A tip to non-racers like me. Part of the reason I kayak is fitness, so my routine in both bicycling and kayaking focuses on progress. I hope to gain about .5 mph improvement in average speed on every trip. Although that isn’t much, it is significant over the course of a season. Our body has great potential for improvement as well as a propensity for laziness through energy conservation. Gains require breaking through the laziness barrier.
An article about aerobic and anerobic effort explained that activating and remaining in the aerobic zone uses energy more efficiently over longer periods, but anerobic effort helps improve the red blood cells ability to exchange oxygen more efficiently. When paddling, I focus on efficiency and energy management throughout the trip, but during the last two mile or around 30 minutes, I push to use up remaining stored energy, which serves two purpose. It coaxes lazy muscle groups into activity and stimulate oxygen uptake. It also shows how well you managed your energy, which is revealed by how much you peek over the average speep and by how long you were able to sustain the effort. Over time, you gain a sense of your power potential. One thing I gained since joining the forum is greater consistency. Past logs show sporatic results based on fitness and conditions. However, the recent trip log don’t show both consistency and progress, with efficiency compensating for age.
At some point, our body takes a set where it not only stops progressing, but it can actually regress. While biking the North Central Railroad (extends 40 miles from northern Baltimore, Md, to south of York, PA). I typically covered at least the 40 mile round trip of the Maryland segment and often crossed paths with a guy named Norman. Back in the 90s, he was 65 yrs old and he biked the trail daily. We talked at a rest stop, and he mentioned that his average speed took a set at average speed of 15.9 mph. I experienced the same phenomenon with hitting a 16.3 mph avg speed. The first trip of the season, I would climbing certain inclines at around 4 mph, but as the season progressed, I easily sustained speeds of 16.4 mph. I broke through the barrier by developing my ability to spin, from 70 rpm to maintaining 90 rpm. I also replaced my crank arm length by 5 mm and riding more aggresively. With that strategy, average speeds improved bynup to .5 mph each trip. I eventually improve the trip average to 18.3 mph on a mountain bike. When I started introducing other people to riding, that disrupted my momentum. Kayak took a similar twist, which is why I paddle solo.
You can’t paddle another person’s pace, so to improve, you have to focus on your pace. It doesn’t have to be every trip, but it has to be at least a significant portion of the trips. Depending on your level, you should be able to improve average speeds by 1 to 2 mph by the end of the season and resume the level quickly the next season through systematic conditioning and improved efficiency. The way I look at it, if you’re going to paddle, why not make the most of it.