Concept2 Forum

having taken another thread off course, i thought it might be best to de-camp here and start a new one.<br><br>hopefully the more experienced members will pop in and offer advice to us newbies from time to time. but be gentle with us; some of us newbies can feel a bit inadequate and insecure.<br><br>to introduce myself, i am a british 41 year old female, currently weighing 64 kilos, but as i'm only 5'2" i need to shed at least 4 more (i've lost 4 so far). not really desperately overweight but wobblier than is nice to look at! i took up rowing because both of my daughters do the real thing, on water. well, one is a cox (still struggling to hit 5 feet at age 15). they eventually persuaded me to get them a model d which we've had since nov '04. guess who uses it most!? (ME!!) i did a lot of ballet up to the age of 18 and i need to regain some of that muscle tone.<br><br>i enjoy my fitness routine, 35-45 mins per day (always 7k minimum). i tried a pyramid thingy today, which i really enjoyed (250m, 500m, 750m, 1k, 2k, and down again. <br><br>i'm getting a school team together to do a sponsored indoor row for the tsunami disaster (1737k from thailand to sri lanka). hope to do that by mid feb, if not earlier. no better motivation really.<br><br>one thing i'm not sure about - should you hold the handle right at the ends? i feel more comfortable with them in towards the middle just a little.<br><br>go on, your turn.....<br><br>jane

It's pretty easy to feel inadequate when you see the times that everyone else posts here!<br><br>I'm a 52 year old male who's been rowing for 4 months. I'm 5'10" and about 172lbs (78kg). I have a background in running, but the last several years I've been more injured than not. It's nice to find an exercise that I can do without the pounding.<br><br>My best times are 1:55 for the 500, 8:20 for the 2K. I'm sure I can go faster now, maybe 1:50 and 8:05-8:10 (I like to think I could break 8:00 right now, but I don't know). I think I would be comparatively faster in the longer races. I feel hampered by not having enough power in my quads. I don't know how those guys do 1:30 for a 500!<br><br>I started rowing for general fitness and weight loss, but i really like the competitive aspects of comparing my times to others (even if I am slow right now). My goal when I started was to get to average in the standings for my age division and I'm sure that's do-able.<br><br>My training consists of rowing 40-60 minutes at a pace (currently) of about 2:22 or so. Sometimes I do intervals to help with weight loss and to help my speed. I also lift weights for my upper body before I row once or twice a week, but then I only row about 30 min.<br><br>It's nice to know that there are other people here who aren't getting ready for the Olympics!

You want newbie? I've been rowing since 12/28/04--yes, for a week. Have worked up to at least 5K per day, but have no idea what my times are (humbling, I'm sure). One thing: Have you ever found yourself getting shaky while rowing? I hit a wall around 4200 meters today; felt as though I had a blood sugar drop of epic proportions. Wonder: Should I have a little something an hour or so before I row? <br><br>But then again, I saw posts in another section about people throwing up while rowing, and I certainly have no desire to do that! <br><br>Any suggestions most welcome!

Hi Avid, try Juice / Cookie / Biscuit (someone even suggested Jaffa cakes, (If you need to ask what a Jaffa cake is, you don't need to know! ) I usually have it 20-30 mins before. But whatever works for you. If you are hitting a wall, then maybe your pace is too high, slow down and relax. Do longer rows and the speed and strength will come with time.<br><br>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. <br><br>The best thing I have found is the long steady rows > 40 mins. They really really make a difference to your strength and stamina. After completing my first HM (21K), after a rest day, I knocked 30 seconds off my 10k time. <br><br>No one should feel inadequate about their times. The people pulling fast times have been doing it for years. Literally many million on meters have passed beneth their oars (machine). No one has the same genetics, and we're not all made to be perfect rowers. <br><br>Best to enjoy the challange and get fitter. Always enjoy yourself. <br><br><br><br>

<!--QuoteBegin-SimonB+Jan 4 2005, 07:17 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'><span class='genmed'><b>QUOTE</b></span> (SimonB @ Jan 4 2005, 07:17 PM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'><!--QuoteEBegin--> 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. <br> <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><br> 2:06 for a 2K??? Wow are you fast!<br><br>

<!--QuoteBegin-little weed+Jan 5 2005, 11:21 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'><span class='genmed'><b>QUOTE</b></span> (little weed @ Jan 5 2005, 11:21 AM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'><!--QuoteEBegin-->one thing i'm not sure about - should you hold the handle right at the ends? i feel more comfortable with them in towards the middle just a little.<br><br>go on, your turn.....<br><br>jane <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><br>Hi Jane, and welcome to the Forum, very welcome. While there are a few 'off the wall here' , by far everyone here can relate to your sitution, can relate to being new to the sport, but most of all respect you for giving it a go. Indoor rowing is not easy physically or mentally but is incredibly rewarding for those who persist.<br><br>To your question: Hold the handle where it is comfortable! For me that is going to be wider than you because I am bigger. You dont want your elbows splayed out wide, ideally they should come reasonably close to the side of your body at the completion of the stroke, this in turn means the wrists are at a natural angle (oh and by the way the wrists should be fairly level and not kinked down at the end, if you were not aware of that)<br><br>Hope this is of some help.<br><br>regds George

<!--QuoteBegin-pduck+Jan 5 2005, 12:04 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'><span class='genmed'><b>QUOTE</b></span> (pduck @ Jan 5 2005, 12:04 PM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'><!--QuoteEBegin-->I feel hampered by not having enough power in my quads.<!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><br>Hi, and good going on the progress so far. If you want to get your legs involved more lower your drag setting (do you know what it is at present?) Lowering the drag and maintaing the same pace for the same rate, means you have to be quicker in your drive start at the catch - your legs have to quicker and hence you get more emphasis on what you percieve as a weakness.<br><br>Keep the drive long and smooth, dont break the arms to soon, and I guarantee you will feel your quads the next day. ... I speak from experience on this one.<br><br>For your info I row on a drag between 115 and 120df<br><br>regds George

<!--QuoteBegin-Avid Napper+Jan 5 2005, 12:42 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'><span class='genmed'><b>QUOTE</b></span> (Avid Napper @ Jan 5 2005, 12:42 PM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'><!--QuoteEBegin-->You want newbie? I've been rowing since 12/28/04--yes, for a week. Have worked up to at least 5K per day, but have no idea what my times are (humbling, I'm sure). One thing: Have you ever found yourself getting shaky while rowing? I hit a wall around 4200 meters today; felt as though I had a blood sugar drop of epic proportions. Wonder: Should I have a little something an hour or so before I row? <br><br>But then again, I saw posts in another section about people throwing up while rowing, and I certainly have no desire to do that!  <br><br>Any suggestions most welcome!<!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><br>Hi Avid, I usually row early in the morning with nothing but a drink of water or a small piece of fruit while walking to the gym. I have never 'bonked' during a row as a result so can only surmise this is not your problem.<br><br>My guess was that you were maybe just pushing it a bit harder and as a result exceeded your anerobic threshold - the resulting build up of lactate in the blood shut you down. Try backing off the pace 'a little', and make sure you are not overstretching yourself day after day, give your body a chance to adapt and improve and you will see steady improvement for many days and months to come. Hang in, but be patient, and have fun <br><br>regds George

Hi folks,<br><br>my name is John and I live in Massachustts (USA). I'm 38 now, 5' 11" and 94 Kg (207 lbs for we metrically challanged). In advance, sorry this is long.<br><br>I started working out again (after a long lapse) in early December for weight loss, personnal improvement and general health. I bought the model D mid December to go along with some other equipment I had been working on. Once I got the C2, I was very impressed. I bought it site unseen direct... couldn't even get on one to try it but I'm very pleased with the machine and the PM3. Not so pleased with what I can do on it. The longest I have been able to row straight is 5K and at the end, my heart rate was near my max I think my time was just under 23 minutes and far from impressive given my effort. My best 500 is 1:52 and my best 2k was 8:30 (started way fast on a 1:46 pace and faded badly).<br><br>Being completly new to this, I find myself questioning everything from stroke rate, to technique, to damper setting to what heart rate I should be working at. I've been reading alot here trying to learn, apply and improve. I currently row 5 days straight and rest 2. I row strapless to try to develop technique but to be honest, I don't really know if I'm doing it right. I usually warm up on the treadmill, then row, then cool down on the treadmill (kind of breaks things up). I've been trying to vary things every day (short- high intensity stuff, then long easier stuff, then a mix, then back). <br><br>Anyway, nice to be here among others nearer my pace... I was really feeling badly about my abilities. I'm very close to Bostson MA and had originally thought of trying a crash B but that will have to wait until I won't completely embarass myself or die trying. This forum is great and has answered questions about my sore arse, blistered palms and near vomit experiences. If I can be of help to anyone, I will sure try but I fear I will be more needy than helpful for some time.<br><br>Right now I'm trying to digest the UT2 post and figure out what they are talking about... any layman clarification would be appreciated.

On this forum, you can row for years and still feel inadequate. People row marathons at a faster pace then I row the 2k. But then they are world record holders, coaches, olympic medalists, etc. So we race against ourselves mostly, and measure our success by how much we improve. I was totally psyched to go under 40 in the 10k, but now I know I can crush that time, so the benchmark moves down to 39, or 38:30, and so forth endlessly.<br><br>This forum has also changed a lot with the new format, and so there is much more diversity of ability, experience, and opinion then there was in the past. This thread is a good example, bringing out lots of new voices. So welcome to the dialog. Here are some random insights from my experience on the erg and from this forum:<br><br>1) Listen to music; nothing made a bigger difference to rowing long then music. Get an ipod.<br>2) Do long steady rows at first, working up to 10k and beyond. I find I still hit a bit of a wall after 10 minutes, and don't really settle in until after 20min. If you stop at 5k, you never get into that easy rhythm. Ok, I admit I often don't warm up.<br>3) If your goal is weightloss or general fitness, you don't actually need to work that hard. Row long steady rows. Use a heart rate monitor and limit your heart rate.<br>4) Work on technique, and aim for a strong, explosive, but steady stroke; use the force curve if you have the PM3, and aim for a smooth, steep, left leaning haystack.<br>5) Consider lowering the drag on the machine, by lowering the damper to the 3-5 range or lower.<br>6) lower your stroke rate. If you usually row at 28+, you are probably rating too high. Try some 30 min rows at 20 spm. Or row everything at 10 meters per stroke.<br>7) Set a goal to do the "nonathlon" distances at least once per year, and PB them. This will let you focus on the longer rows for a while, then shift to the shorter ones. Ok, the marathon can be a bit intimidating (not sure I am going to do one every year either).<br>8) Get rowpro and try that out; even offline rowpro is a lot of fun to use. The online racing, which is still in testing, will be great inspiration.<br><br>Otherwise, enjoy. For some bizarre reason, rowing on the erg can be addicting.

<!--QuoteBegin-jav1+Jan 4 2005, 09:39 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'><span class='genmed'><b>QUOTE</b></span> (jav1 @ Jan 4 2005, 09:39 PM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Being completly new to this, I find myself questioning everything from stroke rate, to technique, to damper setting to what heart rate I should be working at.  I've been reading alot here trying to learn, apply and improve.  I currently row 5 days straight and rest 2.  I row strapless to try to develop technique but to be honest,  I don't really know if I'm doing it right.<br><br>Anyway, nice to be here among others nearer my pace... I was really feeling badly about my abilities.  <br><br>Right now I'm trying to digest the UT2 post and figure out what they are talking about... any layman clarification would be appreciated.<!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><br>Welcome John and everyone else. I am new to the erg as well... Only having my Concept2 since September. I have accumulated my first 500,000m and have found this forum very valuable.<br><br>I agree with michaelb and have this to add:<br><br>- Technique is king (or queen) - use the concept2 video it is a great example.<br>- Start out slow and work your way faster - slow development based on increased fitness and strength will beat out in the long run<br>- Strapless training works wonders for control of your stroke<br>- Read what the sucessful people have done, they are here for a reason.<br>- 1 second better in pace is 4 seconds off your 2k time, that is alot so don't expect it to come fast.<br>- Slow and steady long rows have helped me more initially than the quick, hard ones.<br><br>There is much more but those are the main points.<br><br>I am still quite slow compared to others here but my only competition is myself. 1:42 500m, 3:36 1k, 7:36 2k, 20:20 5k, 44:06 10k, 7251 30min<br><br>Anyway, the UT2 post is mainly discussing the virtue (and challenge) of mastering long, steady, slow rows at a capped heart rate. The rest of the discussion is about how to define what rate (500m time and heart rate) to use for effective UT2 rowing.<br><br>Steve<br>

<!--QuoteBegin-jav1+Jan 5 2005, 02:39 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td class='genmed'><span class='genmed'><b>QUOTE</b></span> (jav1 @ Jan 5 2005, 02:39 AM)</td></tr><tr><td class='quote'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Hi folks,<br><br>my name is John and I live in Massachustts (USA). I'm 38 now, 5' 11" and 94 Kg (207 lbs for we metrically challanged).  In advance, sorry this is long.<br><!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><br>Hi jav, jane and all other newbies.<br><br>jav, your story sounds very familiar. I began erging in March 04 after a lengthy relapse (15 years or so) from any kind of regular physical activity. I am 36, 172 lbs, and 6'2". I have lost about 15 lbs since I began and I am only about 5 lbs off my high school weight, although I know my body fat % is higher. Don't be discouraged by your times; I just checked my records - my first 2K was 9:13 in May, 7:57 in June, 7:37 in August. Hopefully 7:20 within two weeks. Progress will come with patience. <br><br>Having said that, I have decided that the times are almost irrelevant for me, since my only real goal is improved health and fitness, and in this regard I have made good progress. I only record my times for benchmarking my progress.<br><br>To summarize the UT2 thread in one sentence - Download and print the C2 training guide here <a href='http://www.concept2.co.uk/guide/' target='_blank'>http://www.concept2.co.uk/guide/</a> and follow it closely. I did this some time ago and until Ranger got that thread going, I thought I was the only one who ever followed the C2 program. There is lots of good advice on this forum, but it is at times overwhelming, especially to those of us with limited experience. The C2 guide is easy to read and understand, and a valuable training aid.<br><br>Good luck, time for bed, and concentrate on your long term goal!<br><br>Mark

My recommendation is to forget about average pace and focus on HR and stroke rate. If you use them properly, the pace will take care of itself. As you get stronger and fitter your pace will get faster.

Welcome to all the new ergers. Just remember that everyone on this site was new to this at some time, and as others have said, have spent many years training to get where they are. Absorb all the information and experience you can from them, and it will benefit you greatly. Chip in anywhere you want to comment or ask a question. Good luck, and I look forward to reading about all your improvements and progress over the coming months and years.<br><br>Pete

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.<br><br>Does anyone have any suggestions on what heart rate to target at the beginners level? Also, much has been said about the benefits of stints into higher impact zones being more beneficial (overall) to the long steady paces, particularly with respect to the bodies tendancies to adapt. As such, I have been ephasizing variation and pushing pretty hard, (for me anyway). 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?