Abstract
In the sport of rowing, increasing the impulse applied to the oar handle during the
stroke can result in greater boat velocities; this may be facilitated by increasing
the surface area of the oar blade and/or increasing the length of the oars. The purpose
of this study was to compare the effects of different rowing resistances on the physiological
response to rowing. 5 male and 7 female club rowers completed progressive, incremental
exercise tests on an air-braked rowing ergometer, using either low (LO; 100) or high
(HI; 150) resistance (values are according to the adjustable “drag factor” setting
on the ergometer). Expired air, blood lactate concentration, heart rate, rowing cadence,
and ergometer power output were monitored during the tests. LO rowing elicited significantly
greater cadences (P<0.01) and heart rates (P<0.05), whereas rowing economy (J · L O2 equivalents − 1) was significantly greater during HI rowing (P<0.05). These results suggest that economically, rowing with a greater resistance
may be advantageous for performance. Moreover, biomechanical analysis of ergometer
rowing support the notion that the impulse generated during the stroke increases positively
as a function of rowing resistance. We conclude that an aerobic advantage associated
with greater resistance parallels the empirical trend toward larger oar blades in
competitive rowing. This may be explained by a greater stroke impulse at the higher
resistance.
Key words
mechanical efficiency - economy - oxygen uptake
