If you haven’t been able to paddle over the winter or haven’t been paddling for a while because the river has been on red boards for a while, this one’s for you.

There has been a fair bit of research on the benefits of Motor Imagery. This is a process whereby you mentally rehearse (imagine) a skill or action to help improve or at least, not lose a skill during a period of detraining.

A recent paper showed that basketball players using Motor Imagery improved performance when compared to a control group. There’s no reason why this might not work for paddlers as well.

So, if you haven’t been able to paddle for a while, take some time imagining paddling a K1 strongly and with beautiful style and balance – great leg drive, rotation and a powerful stroke. That way, when you get back on the river it’ll be like you never stopped paddling!