Three fixes for your indoor rowing technique faults.
Timestamps
01:00 The unforgiving erg
Interrupt the fault before it becomes a habit. Foot connection gets lost at the finish as your toes come away from the footstretcher. When you lose connection you aren't moving the boat forwards, same on the erg because the feet are the only connection to the boat.
Take a $10 bank note and put it under the toes of the athlete - if they lose foot connection at the end of the drive, the money falls to the ground. Have a bet with your athlete - they can keep the money if it's still under their toes. The whole of the sole of your foot needs to stay pushing on the footstretcher at the finish. Try it separately for both feet.
04:00 Catch position
Avoid over-compressing at the catch with knees going over your toes. Take a bungee cord or some electrical tape and wrap it around the rail so the seat wheel butts up to it at the correct catch position. The athlete will feel the wheels rolling over the tape - it acts as a gentle physical reminder to stop at the catch position. Check your catch position first using a mirror or a photo - get your shins vertical. Do some steady rowing to learn where your new compression limit is.
06:00 Slide control
If you tend to pause at the catch, try this. On the erg the rail slopes downwards towards the footstretcher. Lift up the front leg of the rowing machine by 10-15 cms. Use a crate, an aerobics step or a big book. The incline means it's harder to rush forwards. Note if your catch alters when you change direction with the front leg raised. Gravity will tend to make you want to roll backwards away from the flywheel.
