Newbies

[old] SimonB · Post by **[old] SimonB** » January 5th, 2005, 10:51 am

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'>QUOTE (pduck @ Jan 4 2005, 08:36 PM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'> </div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'>QUOTE (SimonB @ Jan 4 2005, 07:17 PM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'> Although not really a newbie, i've only got back into rowing on a regular basis after a 2 year abscence (rowing in total 10+ years). The Holiday Challange got me here. Now I row 60 mins or 10k depending on time. And did two HM's in the Holiday Challange. I'm 39, male 164lb. Vegetarian. My best 2k is 2:06, 10k in around 42:50, 60 mins around 13450m. Not very impressive, but I'm proud of them.  </td></tr></table> 2:06 for a 2K??? Wow are you fast!  </td></tr></table> Good spot 2:06 pace

[old] Mark Keating · Post by **[old] Mark Keating** » January 5th, 2005, 11:44 am

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'>QUOTE (jav1 @ Jan 5 2005, 01:30 PM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>Thank you all for the kind support and advice. I tried downloading the manual from c2 uk but the link (or site) does not appear to work. </td></tr></table> The entire C2 UK site is down for repairs currently. It should be back up and running by 5 PM (not sure what time zone), Jan. 5. Mark

[old] Mark Keating · Post by **[old] Mark Keating** » January 5th, 2005, 12:12 pm

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'>QUOTE (jav1 @ Jan 5 2005, 01:30 PM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>With so many opinions, how do you decide what too hard or too easy is? </td></tr></table> I have asked myself the same question several times since I began erging, and I assumed that one would derive the greatest benefit by training at the bands of highest intensity. With the little bit of experience that I have now, and especially after reading the UT2 thread, I don't think that is necessarily true. The chance of injury and burnout are greater at the higher intensities for sure, so start slow. I think it is important Jane that you read the info in the C2 training guide and familiarize yourself with the concept of training bands as a % of (MHR) max heart rate. Then do a MHR test - there are clear instructions in the guide. It is a brutal, exhausting test, but the good news is that it doesn't need to be done very often. You will then be set to begin training according to C2's bands, and I think that is where you will find the answer to your question. I have enjoyed using the C2 Interactive Programme as well <a href='http://www.concept2.co.uk/training/interactive.php' target='_blank'>http://www.concept2.co.uk/training/interactive.php</a> , the varied structure helps fight boredom. Somewhere in the guide there are also a couple of pages outlining a very slow,very gradual start-up program for newbies. This also may be suitable place to start depending on your fitness level. Hope this helps. Mark

[old] neilb · Post by **[old] neilb** » January 5th, 2005, 5:27 pm

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'>QUOTE (jav1 @ Jan 5 2005, 08:30 AM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>I usually do rerows and push myself to always better the prevous performance. Some days it feels easy, other days the effort seems impossible. With so many opinions, how do you decide what too hard or too easy is? </td></tr></table> Great to have new people on board. I started back about 2 months ago after a while away (and never really too much work on the rower anyway). The initial improvements come very quickly and so there is a temptation to keep pushing harder and harder day after day; this is a normal reaction and has a very positive effect in encouraging people but it needs to be balanced with the benefits of getting the basics right. Follow the manual advice and build steadily. Take the UT2 approach to heart and work on the longer, steadier, sessions. The PBs will keep coming but remember that a ergometer is for life not just Christmas. You are not competing against anyone else on this site but simply looking to measure how you yourself improve over quite long periods of time. So, relax, enjoy the rowing, get UT2 understood!, and go at the pace that you believe to be right for you. Some days will be good and some not so good but trust me you will never have a really bad day on a rower. Then later on you can start to look at whether you want to be more competitive and use the rankings etc but as a means of motivating yourself. Finally, if you can arrive at a goal from all of the replies and helpful comments then you are not too late to include it in the "what are you going to do in 2005..." thread. Going public with your intentions is a great way to help stick to them. For example "little weed" what about setting that 1737k as your personal goal for 2005?

[old] little weed · Post by **[old] little weed** » January 5th, 2005, 7:09 pm

well, i'm doing 50km a week, neil, (7 a day and one for luck). if i do that for 37 weeks of the year i should manage 1850k. so that sounds do-able. maybe i won't be so much of a little weed if i manage to do that! how many calories, and hence pounds, do you think that will burn if i do that all at around 20spm @2.20/500m? anyone good at maths? if i could, i'd do this for more than 37 weeks of the year, but we spend the school hols elsewhere and the c2 doesn't come with us. (or does anyone know better? can you get them on the roof of a volvo 850?) it's great to see so much activity in this thread. i'm still digesting it all after a busy 1st 24 hours back at school. however, i did take time to download the training manual. it's 40 pages long and the MHR stuff is on page 24, but it is just sums and not physical tests. i know what you're talking about mark, coz i saw it somewhere the other day. can you point me in the right direction? today i did 250m, 500m, 750m, 1k, 2k, 1k, 750m, 500m, 250m and my heart was at 160 at the end of each of these (except the first 2 or3). i let it drop to 120 before starting the next distance. tomorrow i will do 1k, 5k, 1k. i'm not using the pace boat at the moment, but really concentrating on my technique and body position as i think i've done my back in a bit with poor technique. i read the stuff in the manual and that helped. now, if my concentration lapses and i get a back twinge, i think about my 'deportment' and it's ok again. also, i notice that pull more effectively as a result of this. and i lowered the damper to 4 from 5. thanks for all this very positive support jane

[old] holladay · Post by **[old] holladay** » January 5th, 2005, 7:55 pm

Hi Everybody! Thanks for starting this thread -- great idea! I am 37, female, 5’ 8”, and 88 kg/195 lb from Indiana. Two years ago I began to battle a severe case of plantar fasciitis. Even swimming aggravated my feet some. But I had to exercise because I was gaining so much weight and became pre-diabetic. In October, I weighed 97.5 kg/215 lbs. Right before thanksgiving, my doc suggested rowing. So went to my Y and gave it a try and I could tolerate it! We bought a model D as an early Christmas present. Fortunately, the holiday challenge got me started rowing every other day (I went 101,304 m.) At first I could only do 5 minutes at a time for a total of 20 minutes. Now I can row 2 x 20 minutes most days of the week. My pace has finally come down to a steady 2:45/500 m. I will row in my first race on Saturday in Indianapolis. Fortunately, there is a novice 1000 m row. My goal is to go at 2:40 and FINISH! What I enjoy most is the rhythm of rowing. I enjoy using row pro and would love to try a row (not race per se ) with other novices a Saturday. Perhaps we could pick a target rate? I row first thing in the morning or I never get it in. So I get up and drink a meal shake (spiru-tein, kind of like a slim fast). Anything else is too much and I feel sick and shaky if I eat nothing. Traveling with the erg? My husband laughed when I asked if we could cram the erg into the truck or on top of the car to my parents for vacation! I was serious. (It stayed home.) I'll have to think of a 2005 goal. Susan

[old] PaulS · Post by **[old] PaulS** » January 5th, 2005, 8:06 pm

Susan, Ya gotta tell them about your CBreeze "costume"....

[old] Steve_R · Post by **[old] Steve_R** » January 5th, 2005, 8:51 pm

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'>QUOTE (little weed @ Jan 5 2005, 06:09 PM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>well, i'm doing 50km a week, neil, (7 a day and one for luck). if i do that for 37 weeks of the year i should manage 1850k. so that sounds do-able. maybe i won't be so much of a little weed if i manage to do that! how many calories, and hence pounds, do you think that will burn if i do that all at around 20spm @2.20/500m? anyone good at maths? -edit- it's great to see so much activity in this thread. i'm still digesting it all after a busy 1st 24 hours back at school. however, i did take time to download the training manual. it's 40 pages long and the MHR stuff is on page 24, but it is just sums and not physical tests. i know what you're talking about mark, coz i saw it somewhere the other day. can you point me in the right direction?  </td></tr></table> I did a quick calculation and 1850k @ 2:20 would take you 143.7 hours. Multiply that by calories per hour and divide that by 3500 and you get pounds. Without knowing exactly what it is, I will estimate about 800 cal/hr and you get 32.8 "pounds" expended energy. This number of calories burned is also affected by calories burned after you stop working out and changing basal metabolic rate with increased muscle etc. Based on your workouts, you might have to change your caloric intake to maintain a 500cal/day deficit since you will be using more than 500cal in your workouts. Since the UK site is down, I took the heart rate test off a page I saved: <table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'>QUOTE </td></tr><tr><td class='quote'> Calculating Your Maximum Heart Rate All the routines in this training programme are based around you working at a percentage of your maximum heart rate (MHR). There are two ways to calculate this. The first way, the formula 220 - your age, only provides a loose estimate. For a more accurate measurement, follow the below protocol: First of all a word of warning, you should be fit and healthy before you carry out this procedure. You should not have drunk alcohol in the previous 24 hours nor have drunk strong tea or coffee in the previous 3-4 hours. You will need a Concept 2 Indoor Rower and a heart rate monitor and interface. Run through your normal warm up routine and when this is done you are ready to start. Set up the monitor by first pressing READY+TIME and using the set digits, set the split time to 1:30. With the main display set to 500m split time, row for 1m 30secs at a heart rate that does not exceed 140 b.p.m Increase the power by 25 watts and continue for another 1m 30secs. Continue increasing the power by 25 watts each 1m 30secs until you blow. By pressing recall you can read off your heart every 1:30 and you can record the highest figure, which will be your own MHR. If you don't have an interface then you will need someone to help you by recording the heart rate from the wrist monitor. When you have found your own MHR, you can amend the programme, substituting your own figures for the training percentages indicated.  </td></tr></table> Hope it helps. Steve

[old] jav1 · Post by **[old] jav1** » January 5th, 2005, 9:30 pm

I haven't been able to download the training manual but I did just finish my first 10K striaght. It wasn't as hard as I thought and much prefer it to the 500 all out intervals that make me want to puke. My heart was fairly steady at just about 152 which I think is high according to the UT2 post but it felt manageable. My time was slow at 49:25 but being my fit time, I'm glad I did it. I have a better understanding of the getting past that 10 minute wall and settling in... I even had enough left to muster a 2:05 pace for the last 200 meters. I'll try the manual again tomorrow... and Little Weed , thanks for starting this post.

[old] holladay · Post by **[old] holladay** » January 5th, 2005, 10:28 pm

I was getting way too hot rowing, so I ordered a C-breeze (it is a fitted piece of material that covers the vent and blows all that hard earned wind in the rowers’ direction.) My four year old daughter opened the package and thought it was a costume. She has quite an imagination. First she thought it was the shell of a snail and she walked around VERY slowly. When Dad told her it looked like a tire cover, she started doing summersaults! Susan You can see the pictures by following the link: <a href='http://www.ps-sport.net/pictures/CBreezeCostume.jpg' target='_blank'>Pictures of my daughter wearing the C-Breeze</a>

[old] SlugButt · Post by **[old] SlugButt** » January 6th, 2005, 1:35 am

Hi all! Susan, your daughter is brilliant! What wonderful creativity.

[old] neilb · Post by **[old] neilb** » January 6th, 2005, 5:34 am

Remember "Little Weed" that it is not about losing pounds. You will see body fat reduce and an improvement in muscle tone (but without muscle bulk which is the great thing about rowing.) As said already though it is important to get the diet right. I am not a dietican or medically qualified but I would think that a calorie deficit each day of say 500 is probably enough; any more than this and training and health may start to suffer. Listen to what your body is telling you, make sure you build in recovery rows/days (even if you need to force yourself not to row) and eat well. Worth recalling that a girl at my gym is rightly proud of the fact that whilst her weight has not altered too much she has dropped two dress sizes, feels great and is pleased with her toned apperance, all from rowing. Keep going and it will not be long before it is time to drop the "Weed".

[old] CAROLE MAC · Post by **[old] CAROLE MAC** » January 6th, 2005, 5:57 am

new ladies.... feel free to mail me although I have only been rowing 16 months I will try and help if I can ... I have loads of time on my hand at the moment....Carole getting bored already... only 5 weeks til plaster comes off <img src='http://users.pandora.be/eforum/emoticon ... zy/686.gif' border='0' alt='user posted image' />

[old] cityeast · Post by **[old] cityeast** » January 6th, 2005, 8:09 am

Hi All, I got my C2 D about 1 month ago. Prior to that I dabbled on the C2 Cs at my local gym at best once a week for 5 or 10min. When I lived in Sydney I could road cycle all year round, but since moving here 3 years ago the cold and snow makes winter riding a bit dangerous. I love running in winter but can't seem to get a start without getting shin splints. Anyway, inactive winters and good european food has been detremental to any improvements made during summer. So its been 1 step forward, two steps back. I am 33, 6'.0, and was 94kg when I unpacked my model D ( puts me close to jav1). I am now 90kg and aiming to return to 82kg which I was back in 2000. I expect to reach that goal before the middle of the year (I expect the last few kg will be difficult). Important to me in my weight loss training are the following: *Diet: avoid refined sugar at all costs it is evil. Fats are not evil, but to be consumed very sparingly. Plenty of fruit and veg. I avoid pasta, rice, potatoes, bread, fruit and meat 6 hours prior to sleeping. Plenty of water. I try to eat small meals more often, to avoid hunger and benefit from the Thermic effects of eating. Otherwise I find diet not so important as exercise. *Exercise: Min 30min, max 60min (rower and running. cycling up to 2 hours). I challenge myself with every session, even if that means just finishing the time or distance I set out at the start. I use my Polar HRM with every exercise session, it is my speedometer. I avoid more than 1 day off to every 3 exercise days. I use row-pro religiously, almost always using two pace boats (fixed pace plus my last equivalent row). I only compete against myself. My first row (13/12/2004) was 8'000m, which I finished in 33:54 (2:07 pace). Yesterday, after a hard day at the office, I scraped through the 2:00av. for a 60min (15'018m). Motivation: I set small achievable goals. It took my body a while to get out of shape, so I expect it will take a bit of time to get back in shape. I constantly imagine the things I want, the things I can do, and the clothes I will fit into when I reach my goal weight. I weigh myself the same time daily. I never punish myself for indulging or passing on a session, but remind myself it means 1 day further from reaching my goal. I have started an Excel spreadsheet with graphs, etc, to record every bit of information so not only can I monitor my progress, but offer the results to everyone here when I have succeeded. The C2 is one of the best investments I ever made. I wish everyone else the best in reaching their goals, and enjoying whatever exercise they do, whether it be rowing or something else. Variety is always beneficial in sport, unless perhaps your aim is competition.

[old] little weed · Post by **[old] little weed** » January 6th, 2005, 8:19 am

as far as diet goes, neil, i've made 3 changes; i have just cut down my alcohol intake to 2 glasses of wine per day (don't ask what is was before!!). also, i don't like biscuits and cake really, but i used to just join in with the family if they were having a sugary snack; so i've made a conscious effort not to do that. thirdly, when i DO need a scooby snack, it's now either a piece of fruit or a bowl of muesli. otherwise, i'm not really dieting. oh, and my daughters are vegetarian, so i eat very little meat. (one other point is that i am now eating several times in the day, maybe 6, including breakfast, and drinking a lot more water/fruit squashes.) it's very difficult not to become involved 100% with this lifestyle change and feel like you're letting yourself down if you don't exercise EVERY day. as i trained in ballet till the age of 18, then as a classical musician at music college, you are brainwashed with giving 100% to what you're doing. also, the numbers, whether calories, weight or whatever, were terribly important to us at a performing arts school (you got put into a different dining room if you weighed too much, or too little) and it's difficult to re-train your brain. but i take your point entirely and i KNOW that rest is as valuable as training, BUT........! carole, thanks for this offer. i'm sure some of us will take you up on this. i've never broken anything except a toe, but my daughter recently had knee surgery and it affected the whole family, because of her limited mobility, for a month. even now, we can't plan very far ahead because there are likely to be up to 4 more ops. we even missed skiing this year. thankfully she's a cox, so it's her mouth that needs to be in action (and it always is). so you have my sympathy. still, with you out of action, it'll give the rest of us a chance to catch up (YEAH, RIGHT!). sorry to ramble on, but i'm really enjoying all this - i love my c2! jane

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