Whatever our stand up paddle level of practice, we always wonder if our paddling technique is efficient or appropriate. You know it well… there is not one single paddle technique. You will find many videos on this subject. Here you will discover a series of 8 videos by Larry Cain breaking down his paddling technique into different phases: paddle entering the water, transferring force onto the paddle, lateral movement and exit from water. If you take away one single thing… it’s all about the hips for him! Well, not really everything, but quite a bit! And so we wonder if many of you focus on that part of your body when paddling…
Who is Larry Cain
C’est un athlète Canadien qui a gagné la médaille d’or des Jeux Olympic de 1984 en canoë sprint. He is a Canadian athlete who won the 1984 Olympic gold medal for sprint canoeing. He has translated into stand up paddling all the scientific knowledge on canoe-rowing techniques he gained for years.
It is important to push the paddle in the water as gently as possible, without “splashing” or creating turbulence.
You must go as far ahead as you can to get the paddle into the water, pivoting on your hip and pushing with your paddle-side shoulder.
This exercise focuses primarily on the action of your straight hip after paddle penetration, during which you have moved forward both your paddle-side shoulder and hip. The focus here is almost entirely on quick action from your hip backwards.
Another crucial point presented here by Larry Cain is the amount of body weight that you put on your paddle in the start and middle of your stroke. To emphasize this action through penetration into the water, you must push your paddle as deep as you can into the water mid-stroke.
According to Larry Cain, taking the paddle out of the water should help you, with the hip movement, to create a push forward on the board at the feet.
