I started paddling in 2018 because I wanted to lose weight and be outside. Found my local Dragonboat team and fell in love. Bought an oc1 the following year and started OC6. I love steering and learning how to surf my oc1 in the small-ish waves we have here in Florida. I paddled hard and nonstop (there’s only 1 season in Florida and that’s paddling season ;) until injury and burn out have made me rethink my future game plan. I love the sport and all the mental health benefits it brings to me. But for 2025, I’m interested in rediscovering the joy paddling once brought me but with a bit more mental space in my life for other things.

Just wanted to give some feedback after my 1:1 OC session with Tek. The challenges I face with my paddling is how to make the proper adjustments to keep increasing my paddling strength. I don’t think I am aware of what I am doing or what to do to get stronger. I chose TLC because it’s an affordable way to get direct feedback and encouragement to train. I joined DW because I knew I needed the training program to support my goals. TLC is a nice complement for additional training off the water or on my own. I am starting to take some initiative on doing more training and i believe i am feeling stronger. I also feel more confident to encourage others. TLC and Tek have a way on giving good constructive feedback and encouragement. He easily spots issues and is able to explain it in a way that your brain can process. I encourage anyone who needs some extra support to join TLC. It’s a way to listen to others and get support from others. There is a lot of information available to beginner all the way to advance paddlers.

For the first WOW of the year, you get to pick your own adventure! Which one fits your goals the most? Explain why in the comments. 10' Warmup (WU) - Pick your own adventure(s) 10' Cooldown (CD) A. Dragonboat: pErg 500m one sided B. Dragonboat: OC1 500m one sided one way. Rest 5 minutes. Then OC1 500m same side back the same way. C. Outrigger: pErg 2000m OC style (can switch sides) D. Outrigger: OC1 Mile Test, 0.5 miles one way. Use 30 seconds to turn around. 0.5 miles back the same way.

Welcome to the TLC Community! The mission here is to develop community-minded paddler leaders! Whether you are brand new to paddling or a paddling coach yourself, you are in the right place to make a HUGE impact on yourself and the community you’re a part of! Your Next Steps: As easy as 1️⃣ 2️⃣ 3️⃣! 1️⃣ Write an introduction of yourself. Click on post and categorize it in “Introductions.” Title it: "Hello. I'm (name) from (city/country). And attach a photo of you paddling. >> Name. When did you start paddling? What brought you to this Skool community? Where do you paddle? What paddling sports do you do? Which teams do you paddle with? What keeps you showing up day in and day out? What has been challenging for you? What do you hope to gain from this paddling community? If someone referred you here, give them a shoutout here! 2️⃣ Read 2 other people’s introductions and leave them a supportive comment. >> Look for introductions that have the fewest replies and start there. This helps to build our community and help you connect with others who might be in similar situations as yourself. The more we connect with one another, the more we are able to help one another and motivate each other. 3️⃣ Schedule one 90-minute block this upcoming week to complete the workout-of-the-week (WOW) >> This is the starting point. Once you are able to designate and pencil in a time block, you have already taken a step towards making improvement. Next will be following through and completing the workout and then sharing it with the group. We all know how hard it can be to get the workout done sometimes, so make sure to positive comment when people get their workouts done! (No matter how small) 👏 Congratulations for joining this community! You’ve joined at the right time. 🕰️ 🤝 Keep engaging and you can earn prizes at the end of the month! Note that the prices will go up as membership increases. 💸

I've been paddling off and on for several years. I started paddling with the Los Angeles Pink Dragons but life changes stopped that several times...as in I joined and left the team 3x. It's been mostly off until I joined LACDBC (Los Angeles County Dragon Boat Club) in July 2023. I've paddled at Sante Fe Dam longer than I did at Long Beach with the pinks even with all the times combined. One of the reasons why I quit pinks was because I couldn't consistently hold onto a paddle due to arthritis. The doctor said that it would get worse over time. Our bodies are strange and resilient. I can hold a paddle now with no issue. I was thinking of quitting again, because I kept getting sick and my son passed away at the end of July. Life was/is overwhelming at times. I had signed up for the California Dragon Boat Camp in October and decided that I should just go as my son encouraged me to paddle and sign up for that camp. While there, I was reminded that many of us are struggling, coping and living with Dragon boating as anchor and the community as support. With that I will stop writing as this is getting long. Anyways, glad to be with you all!