Re: [Paddlewise] Increasing speed

Niels said:
<<<<
If 15 seconds bursts of power, with 45 seconds of recover time, is the
perfect workout...Then it seems to me that paddling with the waves and
trying to catch a surf every now and then is the perfect workout! I'm
going to find myself some nice waves,
>>>>

I prefer paddling hard into 30-knot plus winds, head on for my "burst
phase" than running back in with the following sea, turning seaward and
repeating. With just the right wind speed/wave height, it not only is a
whole lot of fun (nothing like the feeling of vectoring to make you
think you are going faster than you really are and thereby encouraging
more activity), you can also "hold" position directly into the wind or
even get blow-back slowly with just a normal stroke rate, until you are
ready for your next spurt. I do this for hours at a time on rough days.
It is great training, combined with free-weight dumbbell lifting and
core-strength training exercises. That was precisely the context I found
myself in on the Storm Island trip where I had to tow someone for 6
hours in gale-force seas. I also found that that kind of training regime
gave untold hours of extra stamina to deal with rough crossings at the
end of a long days paddle in already rough weather. It works. Period.

Doug (who is at the opposite end of the spectrum right now)

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