With a gruelling fitness programme that began over 18 months ago at Team SCA’s training camp in Lanzarote, the team has been working tirelessly ever since to ensure all crew members are at peak physical fitness as they continue to battle the boys.
Now preparing to embark on leg five, the girls will continue to contend with extreme physical exertion and minimal sleep to make notable gains in the race. As such, ensuring that energy levels remain consistent is key to maintaining a well-functioning team.
This is all the more important given Team SCA crew members can burn up to 1500 calories a day out at sea. Though thankfully, while each of the sailors are functioning on minimal body fat, their intense on-shore training has meant they have built up enough muscle so as not to lose more that 5-7kgs over the course of the nine month race.
The food on board, which consists of three freeze-dried meals a day, natural fruit and nut bars, beef jerky and electrolyte tablets, helps the Team SCA crew to maintain their performance.
Want to train like a sailing pro?
Santi Casanova, who is a qualified cross-fit trainer, physiotherapist and member of Team SCA’s shore crew, has set the sailors a strict exercise plan. In fact, when they are off the water, each member of Team SCA trains in the gym for around 45-75 minutes per day.
Santi says the five most effective exercises for sailing training are:
- Pull-ups – in all their different styles and forms
- Squats – or any exercise with a squatting motion
- Interval training – short bursts of high intensity activity
- Partner exercises – training alongside a person with similar abilities and strength to push each other harder
- Team challenges and competition – small teams working towards one objective
These exercises are all designed to help improve each sailor’s strength, agility and mental ability – all vital components for anyone hoping to succeed in a team sailing environment.
For Team SCA’s sponsors, SCA, leading global hygiene company and parent company behind household brands in the UK and Ireland including Bodyform, TENA, Plenty, Velvet and Cushelle, the value of teamwork is something that is directly reflected in their business practices.
“For SCA, the race is about building a high-performing team, cooperation and striving towards common goals with a clear strategy – many similarities with SCA’s own business” commented Sally Barker, UK managing director of SCA. “Just as Team SCA has built a high-performing sailing team, SCA works hard to develop high-performing hygiene products and services that help improve the lives of millions of people around the world.”
Try the training!
If you’ve been inspired by Team SCA you can try some of their workouts for yourself:
Repetitions: of 24, followed by repetitions of 20, 16, 12, 8 and 4
- Horizontal pull-ups
- Overhead lunges
- Side slams
- Push ups
- Turkish get-ups
Interval Circuit Training: 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off. Three laps with 1 minute rest between each lap
- Rowing
- Paralette push ups
- Stability ball upper body clockwork with weights
- Box jumps
- Horizontal pull-ups
- Tricep dips
- Mountain climbers
- Kettlebell swings
- Jump rope
- Bosu squats
- Russian twist with weights
- GHD back extensions
- Medicine ball over the shoulder
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