Tracking the economy is important as oxygen consumption levels off for athletes approximately at the age of 23-25 or after 5-7 years of training. Yet the economy and performance have been shown to improve for much longer period – therefore correlations between performance and economy are even higher than correlations between performance and maximal oxygen consumption.

1.  Training planning and
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 Rowing technique videos
 Applicable bits of rowing
research
Jarek Mäestu
Sports Scientist (PhD),
Ex rower and rowing coach,
Rowing Academy Scientist
SPORTLYZER
ROWING ACADEMY
TRACKING THE
ECONOMY IN ROWING

2. SPORTLYZER
ROWING ACADEMY
Economy – what is it?
Economy can be characterized as an energy demand for a given boat speed of
submaximal rowing. In a simplified view, if the economy increases, the athlete uses less
energy for particular intensity. Furthermore, the energy production shifts to higher
contribution of lipids and oxidative pathways.
Oxygen consumption levels off for athletes
approximately at the age of 23-25 or after 5-7 years
of training. Yet the economy and performance have
been shown to improve for much longer period –
therefore correlation between performance and
economy is even higher than correlation between
performance and maximal oxygen consumption.
Figure 1. Relationship between rowing
economy and VO2max

3. SPORTLYZER
ROWING ACADEMY
How can economy be measured?
Economy is traditionally measured in
standard laboratory conditions using
the measurement of oxygen
consumption parameters, however
it can also be done in the field
conditions.
If the oxygen consumption
decreases for particular intensity (i.e.
at anaerobic threshold), the economy
of the athlete increases and this will
positively affect rowing
performance.
Figure 2. Preparing the rowers for oxygen
consumption field test.
However, using the oxygen analyzer is relatively expensive and not very practical for long
term testing.

4. SPORTLYZER
ROWING ACADEMY
How can economy be measured?
Another way to track economy is by measuring the blood lactate concentration. Lactate
reflects the contribution of anaerobic energy pathways in energy production. Therefore, if
less lactate is produced at a certain intensity, more aerobic energy is used and more
anaerobic resources will be “spared” for higher intensities.
The most reliable lactate testing
should be done in the laboratory.
However, the portable lactate
analyzers are relatively reliable
and easily obtainable, so coaches
can collect data on water where
the athletes are in their natural
environment.
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
60
80
100
120
140
160
180
2008
2010
2011
2012
Lactate
Heartrate
Heart rate
Lactate
Figure 3. Decreases in lactate concentration
at constant heart rate work intensity

5. SPORTLYZER
ROWING ACADEMY
Unfortunately not all coaches have the accessibility for VO2 testing or lactate measures.
So, perhaps the most convinient method is the use of heart rate. It is not as precise as
previous methods, but the trendlines can be easily seen if the athlete improves. In
general, if the average heart rate for certain distance covered (with similar speed)
decreases, one can assume the increase in economy.
If the coach develops a certain test on the rowing ergometer (e.g. 10 km at 1:50 pace)
the changes in economy can be tracked.
Figure 4. Average heart rate (line) plotted against covered distance (columns) in male rower
from the beginning of the preparatory period on the water. Sportlyzer Coaching Software
How can economy be measured?

6. SPORTLYZER
ROWING ACADEMY
If we divide speed by average heart rate, we can calculate how much distance can be
covered in one heart beat. If the distance increases, so does the economy. Below is the
sample of the same athlete and of the same period, but instead speed divided by
average heart rate vs covered distance is used.
Figure 5. Speed divided by average heart rate (line) plotted against the covered distance
(columns) in male rower from the beginning of the preparatory period on the water. Sportlyzer
Coaching Software
In this case, a nice increase in economy can be tracked without additional testing.
How can economy be measured?

7. SPORTLYZER
ROWING ACADEMY
• Tracking the economy is important for monitoring the performance improvement in
rowers.
• Occasional testing for economy in the laboratory is highly suggested for high level
rowers.
• By using the speed divided by average heart rate value, coaches can monitor the
changes in economy during the routine training process without any additional testing
which is especially important for young rowers. However some issues must be taken
into account:
• The values are athlete specific – you can’t compare the values of one athlete
to another.
• Different disciplines (rowing, running, skiing) have different values even for
one particular athlete.
Things to remember

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Discover more
• Economy of a 32-year-old Olympic gold medallist (case study)
• Performance testing complexes (slideshow)
• Incremental testing (slideshow)
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