Training to row an ocean

By Kit

‘How’s training going?’

Whether it is at the gym, at work or with family, or simply whenever we mention we are undertaking the Atlantic Challenge, this is one of the first things we are all asked. My usual response is ‘well, it’s going!’ 

It is a tricky question to answer, because how does one train for such a challenge? Unlike training for a marathon, a triathlon or a 100-mile bike ride it is difficult to train for something like this. Sure, we can sit on the rower for a long time, go for long bike rides and exercise until we are blue in the face, but realistically the only time we are ever going to be rowing on an ocean, far away from land and in our shift pattern, is when we cross the start line in December.

What does our training and preparation look like? 

Physical training

Kit at a recent competition at The Stronghold, Cheltenham

Preparation is the key to this challenge, both physically and mentally. We are all training separately, aside from the odd weekend together at The Stronghold in Cheltenham, fitting a variety of rowing and weights sessions around our work and personal lives. A huge part of the physical preparation is a lot of low-rate, low-intensity rowing to get our body used to the repetitive movements involved. These sessions are long, and we are all finding different ways of getting through them. If you have a podcast suggestion, please let us know! 

Another crucial aspect of our training is injury prevention. This is achieved by using weightlifting to target the muscle groups that will take the biggest hits while we are rowing the high seas. Having talked to previous years’ crews, we are focussing on our posterior chain, shoulder girdles and obliques, as these take a lot of strain. We are very lucky to have Tom Langton – Laura’s brother, PT extraordinaire and owner of The Stronghold in Cheltenham – as a bank of knowledge, correcting form and assisting us with the weights programme. 

To further prevent injury, we are also ensuring our mobility is top notch. Rowing is not known for being kind to hip flexors and backs, so making sure we are stretching properly is a must. Pilates also helps us to improve our balance and strength in isolated muscle groups. When we are able to take the boat out in the summer months for training rows we will be practising stretching on the boat, and finding the best positions for boat yoga when we have such limited space!

With the 2022/23 race well under way, the realisation that we are next to be at the start line can feel overwhelming and the importance of our physical training is becoming more real by the day.

Boat life

We are incredibly fortunate to already have our boat, SS1, which is berthed at Cardiff Bay Yacht Club. This has allowed us already to have spent a few weekends together, doing an inventory, giving the boat a good clean and even taking it out for a spin in the Bay.

A lot of the training for the row will be familiarisation with the boat and how all of the equipment works, which will be a big learning curve for all of us. By the time we reach the start line we will be pros in auto-tillers, watermakers and fixing riggers using epoxy (yikes!). We are lucky to have the Atlantic Campaigns Safety Officers to send a WhatsApp to, asking ‘What is this!?’. Cardiff is also a hotbed of Atlantic ocean rowers who have completed the crossing in the last few years and to whom we will be forever indebted for their help. 

The team in action in Cardiff Bay

We’re counting down the days until we are through this soggy winter and we can take the boat out. We’ll be spending as many days, weekends and weeks as possible racking up hours on the boat – Atlantic Campaigns requires us to complete a mandatory minimum of 120 hours on open water, including 24 hours of night rowing. In reality, we’re aiming for much, much more than this.

During our training rows we’ll be putting into practice all the skills we learnt at SeaSports, like using the VHF and plotting our routes. We’ll become familiar with every inch of our boat and living on it at close quarters – including using the bucket. We’ll be rowing in shift patterns to get used to the 2 hours rowing/2 hours resting schedule, which will no doubt be a bonding experience for us all.

Mental challenges

All this physical training will help us get to the start line and across the ocean, but it’s only part of a challenge as big as this. We are a team of four women with different personalities, likes and dislikes. From a mental perspective, first and foremost it is important knowing that we have got one another's' backs, that we will support each other through any wobbles we have and lift each other up when we need it. This is not just during the row but over the next 11 months, given that this campaign is like having another full time job. We have definitely built an oarsome foursome, but no doubt we’ll be leaning on one another more over the coming year.

We will also be leaning on the support of our husbands and boyfriends (HABs), family and friends, who will always be our biggest cheerleaders. It's with these people that we will have the hardest goodbyes in La Gomera, but who will be the best hellos in Antigua!

We will be working with a trainer to develop a better understanding of how we all function under duress. Crisis ops is an important part of our preparation. By taking the time now to learn how we respond in emergencies or stressful situations, we can build coping mechanisms to allow us to pull through as a team, whatever happens.

Tying physical and mental training together, in early March we will be completing a 24-hour row immediately followed by a 26-mile hike in Gloucestershire. This will be a good test of our resilience and to find out how we all act when tired. It promises to be a formative weekend, to say the least!

So back to the question ‘how is training going?’. Well it’s going, and while there are a lot of moving parts, we are doing everything we can to make sure we get to the start line in the best possible physical and mental shape.