by COC Sculling Coach Michele Africa

In the sport of sculling, mastering technique is essential. While having a coach on hand is invaluable, learning to self-coach can be a game changer. Coaches are not always available for one on one coaching. You may hear how to change technique from various coaches, but it takes time as an athlete to figure out how to make the body do the precise motion. By developing the ability to analyze and adjust your own technique in real time you can take ownership of your training and make improvements.

The single scull is a teacher of its own, amplifying errors and rewarding you in precise technique. Developing the ability to self-coach, you become more attuned to your stroke mechanics, making it easier to identify and correct inefficiencies. With patience and practice, self-coaching in the single can unlock more potential on the water. The process not only improves your sculling, but also deepens your understanding of the sport, empowering you to become a more independent and confident athlete.

Self-coaching in the single is challenging because of the inherent instability of the boat. Rowers are taught to keep their heads up and eyes forward to maintain balance and a smooth stroke. However, when it comes to improving technique, there is great value in breaking this habit and learning to observe your own blade work.

Tips for Self Coaching in the Single

Watch your blade

One effective way to self-coach is to observe your blade work during the stroke. Watch your blade from the catch all the way through the release and from the release through the catch without interruption. By this observation, you can look at multiple aspects of your stroke.

Blade entry:  Is your blade fully squared as it starts to enter the water? Is the blade entering the water as it’s traveling back towards the bow or entering at the transition? Or is it being driven in towards the stern after the legs have started to push?

Drive phase: Is the blade maintaining consistent depth? Is the blade going too deep? Does the blade have different depths thru the stroke?

Release: Is the blade exiting the water cleanly? Is the blade exiting the water as you’re still bringing the handles to your body or are the hands transitioning direction? Are you starting to feather as the handles are still coming towards your body or as your hands are starting to move away from the body?  

Another way of learning is watching the feedback of the blade. The brain can focus on making the blade do an action instead of focusing on what the hands are doing.

For beginners, glancing out at the blade may initially disrupt balance. To build confidence try rowing with one blade lightly skimming the water for stability while observing the other. Overtime this will help you feel more comfortable monitoring your technique without compromising the boat's balance.

If you’re focusing on specific aspects of your strokes, such as blade placement at the catch, rowing with a partial slide and partial pressure can be very helpful. Limiting the stroke length provides more stability making it easier to look out at your blades without tipping the boat.

The single scull provides an excellent environment for self-coaching. As the ultimate test of independence and technique, it challenges rowers to refine their skills with minimal outside input. However, self-coaching doesn’t have to be overly serious or rigid. It can be an opportunity to learn while playing. Incorporating small games into your practice to make the process of self-discovery more engaging and effective.

The Value of Play in Self Coaching

Play is a powerful tool for learning because it encourages experimentation and creativity. By removing the pressure to get everything “right", games allow you to explore the full spectrum of motion, helping you understand the boundaries of proper technique. They also make self-coaching sessions more enjoyable, keeping you motivated and focused. 

Game #1: Exploring the Extremes

One effective game for improving technique is to deliberately exaggerate a specific aspect of the stroke to understand its full range. Here’s how it works.

1.  Choose an area of focus. Such as your body positioning during the drive phase. You were working on not opening up too early (shoulders going back too quickly). 

2.  Practice doing it incorrectly in both extremes. For example, keep your shoulders slightly in front of your hips and rowing legs and arms only without allowing your shoulders to go back during the drive phase. Keep your back angle the same the whole time. The other extreme is with your shoulders slightly behind your hips from start to finish, legs and arms only without changing your body angle. How does this compare to when your shoulders were slightly in front of your hips for legs and arms only? 

3.  Once you’ve explored the extremes, begin to experiment with finding the centerpoint where the motion feels most effective and efficient.  If you can row the two extremes the sweet spot is in the middle.

You can tailor this approached to any element of your sculling such as catch timing, posture, gripping the handle, blade depth, pressure application, and the list goes on. 

Game #2: How Badly Can You Row All At Once!

Yes, this is my all time favorite drill. Warning, this drill creates smiles, laughter, and an occasional bum pucker. How can you take as many aspects of the rowing technique and do them wrong all at once. Imagine over gripping, hunch back, bending arms at catch, digging blades in drive, back before legs in drive, hands different level into the lap, legs bend in the recovery before hands or back move towards stern, how fast can the seat hit the front stop going to the catch, etc. Continue while staying in the boat and moving the boat forward. You may be asking, “WHY?” The game allows your brain to do things wrong. You explore your hands, body, legs and balance in ways you never would allow because it is not "right".   Through play you can learn while having fun. During this you might be doing big movements that are so wrong that when you go back to proper form suddenly you are more relaxed and balanced, making a tiny correction suddenly seems easier. 

Challenge yourself and your friends by creating new games.

The Benefits of Play and Technique Development

Incorporating play into self-coaching builds a deeper understanding of your stroke mechanics, improves your ability to self-correct and develops your proprioception (awareness of your body in space).  It also allows you to approach training with curiosity and fun, which can reduce frustration and enhance your learning process.

By combining structured observation with playful experimentation, you can unlock new insights into your technique. Whether you are perfecting your blade work, timing, or body mechanics, this playful approach transforms challenges into opportunities for growth - one stroke at a time.