As a coach, I’ve always been fascinated by how science—especially physics, chemisty and biology—can deepen our understanding of rowing. Today, I want to take a slightly unusual route and introduce a concept from chemical thermodynamics that, surprisingly, has a lot to teach us about rowing technique under pressure and performance. It’s the Gibbs Free Energy Equation, and its key ideas of energy, disorder, and efficiency may help you understand why technique breaks down during intense efforts—and what to do about it.
What is the Gibbs Free Energy Equation?
Let’s start with the equation itself:
ΔG = ΔH – TΔS
Each symbol here represents a physical quantity:
ΔG is the change in Gibbs Free Energy, the usable energy available to do work by the system.
ΔH is the change in enthalpy, which represents the total energy absorbed or released by the system.
T is temperature, and ΔS is change in entropy, the measure of disorder or randomness in the system.
In chemistry, this equation is used to determine whether a reaction can occur spontaneously:
If ΔG < 0, the process is spontaneous.
If ΔG > 0, the reaction is non-spontaneous and requires energy input.
Here’s where we need to be careful: in thermodynamics, increasing entropy can make a process more spontaneous (i.e., more likely to proceed without external energy). But in rowing, increasing entropy doesn’t help us—it hinders us. The analogy isn’t perfect, but it still offers valuable insight when reframed correctly.
Reframing for Rowing: What Each Term Represents
Let’s define our “system” as the rower plus the ergometer or rowing shell. The rower inputs energy through muscular effort, and the system aims to produce mechanical work (split times, boat speed, flywheel acceleration).
In our analogy:
— ΔH represents the total energy input by the rower—cardiovascular effort, muscular contraction, caloric expenditure.
— ΔS represents internal disorder—loss of technical cohesion, bladework inaccuracies, poor sequencing, postural collapse, inefficient movement.
— T represents workout intensity—the higher the intensity, the more challenging it is to maintain order.
— ΔG represents usable energy—how much of your input is effectively converted into boat speed or split reduction.
Entropy and Rowing Technique Under Pressure
In chemistry, entropy can drive a reaction forward. But in rowing, increased entropy is a liability. It doesn’t lead to more useful energy—it causes more energy to leave the system as inefficiency: wasted motion, muscle tension, loss of rhythm, and higher injury risk.
This is a crucial distinction:
In rowing, as intensity increases (T increases), and entropy (ΔS) increases, the energy you can effectively apply to move the boat or erg flywheel (ΔG) becomes more limited.
You’re still inputting energy (ΔH is increasing), but the product TΔS —the “entropy tax”—grows faster. Your effective mechanical output shrinks. From the athlete’s perspective, this can feel like “I’m working harder but not getting faster.”
Now, you asked a key question: Do we want to be positive or negative ΔG in this analogy?
Here’s the critical nuance: in thermodynamics, ΔG < 0 implies energy is released by the system and available to do work. But in rowing, we want energy to be effectively channeled into motion, not spontaneously dispersed. So for our purposes:
A higher ΔG (more usable output for the energy you put in) is better — even if it doesn’t precisely align with the chemistry definition of spontaneity. We are co-opting the formula to express that rowing systems with low entropy convert energy into speed more effectively.
And yes — to your second point:
A rowing shell and athlete do not travel spontaneously from start line to finish line. The system must be fed energy from the rower, and any increase in disorder (entropy) undermines that translation of energy into movement.
Steady State: The Thermodynamic Reset - Staying Consistent Under Fatigue
This is why steady-state rowing and drills are so essential, even for elite athletes. At lower intensities:
Temperature (T) is lower.
Entropy (ΔS) is easier to manage.
The system is more stable and efficient.
During steady-state rows, athletes can:
— Reinforce movement patterns.
— Develop muscular and neurological coordination.
— Reduce technical entropy and engrain form that will hold up under pressure.
Think of steady state as a reset button. It reduces the entropy cost of your training and builds the technical stability you need to preserve efficiency when intensity ramps back up.
Coaching Applications
As a coach, I use this lens to guide programming and mindset:
High-intensity sessions must be balanced with low-rate technical work.
Athletes should learn to “check in” with technique, especially under fatigue.
Technical drills serve to reduce entropy—protecting output and reducing injury risk.
I explain to my athletes:
Fatigue doesn’t just make you tired—it increases entropy. And entropy makes you slower.
The solution? Build a system that can resist entropy through well-practiced, efficient movement patterns that reinforce rowing technique under pressure.
The Bigger Picture: Performance as a System
Think of rowing performance not as linear, but as a balance between energy input and entropy management.
Athletes who focus only on effort (ΔH) hit plateaus.
Those who master technique (manage ΔS ) can do more with less.
Elite rowers improve through refinement—because at their level, every bit of entropy matters.
This explains why:
— You can row hard but not fast.
— You can row slow but technically clean—and eventually become fast.
— Training technique under control prepares you to express it under pressure.
Real-World Wisdom: Holding Rowing Technique Under Pressure
This concept of resisting entropy under fatigue reminded me of a powerful lesson I learned from a coach in high school. He had trained with the Cambridge University Boat Club—the crew that competes in the world-famous Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race. He told us that at the elite level, crews are often physiologically very similar. Most athletes at that level have the aerobic base, the strength, and the power.
That’s why, he explained, when you watch top crews race, they’re often bow-ball to bow-ball at the 1000-meter mark. What makes the difference in the second half of the race isn’t always fitness—it’s form. The crew that can hold their technical model together, even as fatigue and pressure mount, is the crew that pulls ahead.
He emphasized that this was a core philosophy of the Cambridge squad: discipline under pressure. The more chaos that surrounds you—pain, exhaustion, external competition—the more you must commit to order, structure, and execution.
In other words: they trained not just to row hard, but to row well under entropy.
This story is a powerful reminder that entropy isn’t just a metaphor—it’s a reality in human performance. Systems naturally tend toward disorder. It’s part of being human. But the best athletes build the capacity to recognize it and push back against it by honing rowing technique under pressure.
The 2025 Men’s Boat Race – Courtesy of the Boat Race
The 2025 Women’s Boat Race – Courtesy of the Boat Race
Final Thought: Efficiency is the Goal
Let’s return to the equation:
ΔG = ΔH – TΔS
If your entropy term gets too large, it swallows up the benefit of your hard work. You may be training hard—but you’re losing energy to disorder. That’s why:
You can’t outwork entropy. But you can out-discipline it.
The most successful athletes aren’t just stronger or fitter—they’re more resistant to entropy. They hold their shape. They preserve order under pressure.
So row smarter:
— Integrate steady-state rows to reduce entropy.
— Use drills to reinforce technical order.
— Film yourself or use mirrors to detect and correct inefficiencies.
Row like a physicist. Coach like an engineer. And train in a way that makes your energy count.
Interested in learning more about how science and strategy can make you a faster rower? Contact me today for a free 30-minute consult. Let’s take your technique, training, and understanding of rowing technique under pressure to the next level.
