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This longitudinal study aimed to analyze the effects of a team rowing-based training program on physical fitness and anthropometric parameters in female breast cancer survivors (n = 40; 56.78 ± 6.38 years). Participants were divided into two groups: one rowed in fixed seat rowing (FSR) boats (n = 20; 56.35 ± 4.89 years) and the other in sliding seat rowing (SSR) boats (n = 20; 57.20 ± 7.7 years). Both groups engaged in two 75-min sessions per week for 24 weeks. Significant improvements were observed in both groups in resting heart rate (FSR: −10.65 bpm; SSR: −8.45 bpm), heart rate at the beginning of the 6-min walk test (6 MWT) (FSR: −10.7 bpm; SSR: −11.25 bpm), and heart rate at the end of the test (FSR: −13.85 bpm; SSR: −20.35 bpm). Blood pressure improved significantly in both diastolic blood pressure (FSR: −12.35 mmHg; SSR: −19.25 mmHg) and systolic blood pressure (FSR: −13 mmHg; SSR: −16.95 mmHg). Additionally, both groups increased the distance covered in the 6 MWT (FSR: +63.05 m; SSR: +93.65 m). These results suggest that a rowing training program is a viable and safe activity for female breast cancer survivors, improving cardiac function, blood pressure, and cardiorespiratory capacity, particularly in sliding seat boats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spinal cord injury is a devastating condition interrupting voluntary movement and motor control. In response to unloading, skeletal muscle undergoes numerous adaptations, including rapid and profound atrophy, intramuscular fat accumulation, impaired muscular glucose metabolism and decreased force generation and muscle performance. Functional electrical stimulation (FES) involves electrically stimulating affected muscles to contract in a coordinated manner to create a functional movement or task. Effects of FES-cycling, rowing and resistance training on muscle health are described here. Briefly, FES-cycling and resistance training may slow muscle atrophy or facilitate muscle hypertrophy, and all modalities benefit muscle composition and performance to some extent. These interventions show promise as future rehabilitative tools after spinal cord injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This review presents a perspective on the expansive literature on rowing.Methods: The PubMed database was searched for the most relevant literature, while some information was obtained from books.Results: Following the life span of former rowers paved the way to advocate exercise for health promotion. Rowing involves almost all muscles during the stroke and competition requires a large oxygen uptake, which is challenged by the pulmonary diffusion capacity and restriction in blood flow to the muscles. Unique training adaptations allow for simultaneous engagement of the legs in the relatively slow movement of the rowing stroke that, therefore, involves primarily slow-twitch muscle fibres. Like other sport activities, rowing is associated with adaptation not only of the heart, including both increased internal diameters and myocardial size, but also skeletal muscles with hypertrophy of especially slow-twitch muscle fibres. The high metabolic requirement of intense rowing reduces blood pH and, thereby, arterial oxygen saturation decreases as arterial oxygen tension becomes affected.Conclusion: Competitive rowing challenges most systems in the body including pulmonary function and circulatory control with implication for cerebral blood flow and neuromuscular activation. Thus, the physiology of rowing is complex, but it obviously favours large individuals with arms and legs that allow the development of a long stroke. Present inquiries include the development of an appropriately large cardiac output despite the Valsalva-like manoeuvre associated with the stroke, and the remarkable ability of the brain to maintain motor control and metabolism despite marked reductions in cerebral blood flow and oxygenation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High volume low intensity training sessions such as one hour rowing ergometer sessions are frequently used to improve the fitness of elite rowers. Early work has suggested that technique may decline over this time period. This study sought to test the hypothesis that "elite rowers can maintain technique over a one hour rowing ergometer session". An electromagnetic device, in conjunction with a load cell, was used to assess rowing technique in terms of force generation and spinal kinematics in six male elite sweep oarsmen (two competed internationally and the remainder at a club senior level). All subjects performed one hour of rowing on a Concept II indoor rowing ergometer using a stroke rate of 18-20 strokes per minute and a heart rate ranging between 130-150 beats per minute, following a brief 5 minute warm-up. Recordings of rowing technique and force were made every 10 minutes. The elite group of rowers were able to sustain their rowing technique and force parameters over the hour session. Subtle changes in certain parameters were observed including a fall in force output of approximately 10N after the first seven minutes of rowing, and a change in leg compression of three degrees at the end of the one hour rowing piece which corresponded with a small increase in anterior rotation of the pelvis. However, it is unclear if such changes reflect a "warmup" effect or if they are indicative of early signs of fatigue. These findings suggest that low intensity high volume ergometer rowing sessions do not have a detrimental effect on the technique of a group of experienced and highly trained rowers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article looks at a study which evaluated the effects of the time of day on the performance of an experienced collegiate rowing crew. The circadian rhythm of crew members is taken into consideration, as their performance was evaluated during morning and evening hours. Results indicate that knowing personal tendencies of athletes can help them arrange their training schedule to counteract circadian influences.

The purpose of the study was to assess whether postural stability in persons with spinal cord injury (SCI) could be affected by training. Ten post-rehabilitated persons with thoracic SCI performed 30 sessions of kayak ergometer training during a 10-week period. The ergometer was modified with a balance module adjustable in the medio-lateral direction. Before and after the training period, horizontal support-surface translations were presented randomly, either in the forward or backward direction, or to the side, while subjects sat in their own wheelchairs. The platform perturbation consisted of an unpredictable initial acceleration, followed by a constant-velocity phase and a predictable deceleration. Markers were applied on the trunk and movement data were recorded in 3D. Four kinematic responses of trunk angular and linear displacement were investigated. In general, postural stability was improved after training with smaller rotational and linear displacements of the trunk observed during both predictable and unpredictable translations in all directions. Thus, the training was able to improve the ability of persons with long-standing SCI to maintain an upright sitting posture in response to externally generated balance perturbations, which should imply an increased capacity to master similar challenges to balance in everyday life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]