Mandatory for paddlers hoping to compete with the team in Long Beach. If you are unable to attend this day, contact a Coach to reschedule.

Location: Memorial Park by the stretching area (near the tennis courts)
Date: Sunday, June 17
Time: 8:00-10:00AM

1 Minute/ Push-up
1 Minute/ Sit-Up
Pull-Up
1 Mile Run

For the timed exercises (Pushups and Sit ups) The timer will let the participant know when they 30 and 10 second marks are. A coach will Count and if you do NOT hear a count then you SHOULD either continue your progression or that one will NOT count.

For the Mile Run/Walk, A Coach will announce your time every lap (4 laps).

Strength Test (Push-Ups) - The subject assumes a front-leaning position with the hands placed where they are most comfortable. The back, buttocks and legs must be straight from head to heels. Begin the push-up by bending the elbows and lowering the entire body until the tops of the upper arms, shoulders and lower back are aligned and parallel to the floor. Return to the starting position by locking the elbows. During the test the subject cannot relieve pressure from the upper body while in the resting position. If the subject does not keep the body straight or locks the elbows completely, that repetition does not count. The score is the number of push-ups completed in one minute.

Muscular Endurance (Bent-Knee sit ups) - The subject lies on the back with knees flexed at a right angle. A partner kneels at the subject's feet and presses down on the subject's insteps to keep the heels in contact with the floor. When ready the signal "GO" is given and the subject sits up to touch the knees with the elbows. Without pause, the subject returns to the starting position just long enough for the shoulders to touch the mat and immediately sits up again. The score is the number of sit-ups that can be completed in the allotted time. Norms have been computed for one minute period for men and for women.

Pullups – This is the ultimate exercise to test upper body strength. It requires grip strength from your hand and forearms and pulling power from your biceps and back muscles. The proper pull-up requires your palms to be facing away from you and your hands just greater than shoulder width. Pull you chin over the bar and simply drop back to the starting position with your arms straight and biceps relaxed.

The Proper Pull-up (regular grip) - Grab the pull-up bar with your hands placed about shoulder width apart and your palms facing away from you. Pull yourself upward until your chin is over the bar and complete the exercise by slowly moving to the hanging position. Pull-ups (negatives) - If you cannot do any pull-ups, you should try “negatives”. Negatives are half pull-ups. All you have to do is get your chin over the bar by standing on something or having spotter push you over the bar. Then, you slowly lower yourself all the way down - let your arms hang grasping the bar fully stretched. Keep your feet up and fight gravity for a count of 5 seconds. This will get your arms used to supporting your weight.

Assisted Pull-ups - This is the first step to being able to perform pullups. Using the bar that is 3-4 feet off the ground, sit under it and grab with the regular grip. Straighten your back, hips, and slightly bend your knees while your feet remain on the floor and pull yourself to the bar so that your chest touches the bar. Repeat as required. This is a great way to start out if you cannot do any pull-ups at all. You can also do this on a pair of parallel bars that are used for dips. These are also great to do after you can no longer perform anymore dead-hang pullups. This is a good replacement for the Lat Pulldown machine as well.

The following video shows a breakdown of the dragon boat stroke. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4DQ2vTT3O8 

The Coaches have revised the selection process for the upcoming Long Beach Event.  It is important that everyone reads this announcement since it will apply to other future competitive events.    The selection process for recreational events will be more flexible.  

_______________________________________________ 

In previous races, the main criteria for being on the event roster were not based entirely on paddler skills. It was basically the first 25-35 to sign up on the list. This is not how Houston Heat will create the rosters for every event - particularly the competitive events. We do wish that everyone could paddle in every race. However, Long Beach is one of the bigger and more competitive dragon boating events in the US, and there is room for only 25 paddlers on each boat. We’ll want to seat our best available paddlers for each race. These paddlers will be chosen from the pool of participating HH members in Long Beach.

Some of you have asked in previous races, "Why was I not put on the boat?" In dragon boat racing, a strategy is to find the best combination of weight & height, synchronization, form/technique, teamwork and power. It's never easy to juggle all these factors. For some events, we can be less stringent about some factors - but for Long Beach, all of these will be very important.    However, if we get enough paddlers to form a second boat, then the Coaches can create rosters for two teams: Team A and Team B.    Having two boats will guarantee that everyone will paddle for most, if not all, of the races. 

We will be running a tight and strict training schedule. Paddlers will be required to attend a minimum number of water practices. Coaches will also select paddlers based on their assessments, progress evaluations, teamwork attitude and dedication. When the decision comes down to whether one person is more “fit” or “capable” than another, the choice will be made for including the person that has displayed more dedication, knowledge, power, experience and willingness to sacrifice it all for that race. It’s never an easy choice but men have not been given preferential treatment over the female paddlers on the HH boat, as witnessed recently in Austin, for the final heat.

We hope this process will motivate members and Coaches to improve as paddlers, so that Houston Heat can become one of the top ranked competitive teams in the country. It's clear that in Texas, Houston Heat is a top team...but at national events, it's a different story. The teams we'll face at Long Beach will be more experienced, competitive and tougher than those we've faced at local events. Long Beach will be a humbling experience for Houston Heat, and will hopefully motivate us to work harder as a team.

Everyone is always welcome to ask a Coach for what you can work on specifically. They will be happy to give individual suggestions and feedback. Use the race videos as a tool to see your performance during a race.

[From Coach Hau]

Eat your pasta, it's going to be an endurance workout this weekend. This is our third practice. We need to kick it up a notch. This is why it is important to show up to every practice. Each week we will be building on what we did in the previous practices. See the workout objective. MR = Minute Rest

Click here to view the workout planned for Saturday (Word doc)