Rowing Injuries

General Information

Rowing is a generally considered to be a very safe, low impact sport when done correctly. Technique is stressed not only because it make boats move faster, but also because poor technique can lead to injury, particularly in the back. As an aerobic, non-weight bearing activity, rowing can be a wonderful alternative to high-impact sport; however, rowing may also exacerbate existing injuries such as those of the back, wrist, and knee.

Rowers may experience sore muscles (especially at the beginning of the season), but should feel better after a day or two. Any pain that continues or gets worse it needs to be addressed.

The most common rowing injury is blisters on the hands. Rowers must take care of their blisters so that they do not get infected. Infected blisters are very painful, can be a long time in healing, and markedly decrease a rowers performance. First, leave blisters alone. Don’t “pop” them. In the best of all possible worlds, the blister will reabsorb and form a callous. If the blister pops of its own, rowers should keep blisters clean by washing hands after rowing and using band-aids and tape to keep blisters clean and protected. Blisters tend to decrease with experience. A further note: leave your rings at home.

Lower Back Pain/Injury

Lower back pain is probably the most commonly occurring complaint among rowers. There are three main types of back pain.

• Disc injury (rare but serious) is caused by the disc being repeatedly stressed by constant flexing, twisting, and loading of the spine.
• Facet joint pain (also rare) is caused when the facets (part of the bony vertebral bodies) are jarred or stretched too far and become inflamed with overuse or misuse.
• Muscular back pain (more common) is caused when muscles in the back are strained or sprained or simply overused. Muscle strain is usually precipitated by a single incident, most often lifting the boat. Pain is usually throughout the muscle and will be worse on any movement.

Any back pain that is intense, long-lasting, restricts movement, hurts overnight, or is made worse by rowing needs to be addressed and treated immediately. In most cases, the underlying problem can be identified and corrected with minimal impact. However, if ignored, the problems become more severe and the athlete may not be able to return to their highest level after the injury. Early treatment is good treatment.

Wrist Tendonitis

Wrist tendonitis is characterized by pain, swelling, and weakness in the wrist, usually over the back surface. It is most likely to occur in the inside or feathering wrist, as a result of the feathering action, and is caused by overuse of the tendons on the back of the wrist. When it happens, it is usually in the novice rower who is learning to feather, or in the varsity athlete with a sharp increase in rowing training. Treatment is simple: rest, ice, and compression to decrease pain and swelling. The athlete should also review the feathering technique with the coach.

Overtraining

Constant tiredness, irritability, trouble sleeping, decrease in training performance, decreased appetite, and loss of weight are all signs of overtraining. These signs are often missed by the athlete themselves so it is vital for parents to be attentive to these things in your athletes. Rowers are expected to be tired, but they generally “bounce back,” especially if they are eating properly and getting enough sleep. If your teen is not, they may be overtraining and should discuss their situation with the coach.

More in depth information may be obtained at

http://www.users.york.ac.uk/~socs285/pdfarticles/Common_Rowing_Injuries.pdf
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/BHCV2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Rowing_preventing_injury?open

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