Struggling to get length
Hi all
I'm coming into my fourth year of rowing at University (sweep) and I've had a lot of feedback on my rowing recently. Basically the long and short of it (pun intended) is that I should probably be rowing longer. On an RP3 at UT2 my stroke length tends to hover around 118-122cm unless I actively go for more which is uncomfortable, and in the boat I struggle to get more than a 50 degree catch angle even with the feet dropped lower than other people in the boat.
I'm not a tall guy (about 5'8) which might be something to do with it but I'm sure not the only reason. I don't think I have flexibility issues but if there are any flexibility tests for rowing I would be interested to hear. Do I just need to keep going for more length and eventually it'll stop being uncomfortable?
I hear the instagram rowing coaches talking about 'staying within a comfortable range' and not overreaching quite often but I don't know whether this applies in my case.
Thank you!