Q. The BRace is a support at the finish – how does this help posture during the stroke?

A. Control of the body during the rowing stroke is set up at the ‘finish’ position.  If you get good control from this point, you have a much better chance of holding that good control for the rest of the stroke.  If you don’t get good control from this point there is minimal chance of gaining and holding good control for the rest of the stroke.

Q. How does the BRace allow for improved posture on the ergo?

A. Good posture comes from rolling the pelvis forward.  When the knees are straight this lengthens the hamstring muscles and adds tension to the pelvis in the opposite direction (i.e. encourages slouching of the low back).  This is particularly important as the first trunk movement of the Recovery is Body-Rock, and this requires more rolling forward of the pelvis while the legs are still as straight as possible.  This is something made more achievable with good postural control when the BRace is in position.  
 
Q. Why not just hold the knees slightly bent at the finish to achieve good posture?

A. This is what ergo users have to do without BRace. This is unnatural, energy consuming and difficult to coordinate, which detracts from the potential power of the legs as they straighten.  All of this is solved with the Rowergo BRace.

Q. What happens if I get used to the BRace and then can’t use it in a trial or I don’t have a block under my legs in some boats?

A. Rowers have always had to adapt to different degrees of blocking under their legs with different boats. When the BRace is used on an ergo, the relief of pressure on the low back is immediately obvious, allowing optimal training of the postural support muscles and reducing injury risk.  BRace use also has a significant training effect for the postural muscles, which will continue to be used when a block is not provided in some boats or during elite ergo trials. So, use the BRace on your ergo to train and gain the best muscle control, and to relieve back strain.

Q. Why do I constantly have tight hamstrings?

A.The most common reason is that these muscles are overworking because; 1. They are providing most of the force for hip extension during the drive along with the low back muscles – and instead of the gluteal muscles, and/or 2. Accumulative strain is building in your low or upper back and the hamstrings are one of the signs of the body’s protective mechanisms to add extra control to the back (this is also called spasm).
In the vast majority of cases this can be quickly solved with great physiotherapy care.