Increasing Time or Drag

[dgbarar]

Hi All:

I am new to rowing and recently received my new Row Erg--fabulous machine. Because I am new to rowing I have set the drag factor relatively low at 100 while I am learning the technique as I do not want to hurt myself My goal is to get to 45 minutes rowing and burn a total of 400 calories.

Currently, I am rowing for 30 minutes using 2 minute mixed time intervals with stroke rates anywhere from 18 to 22 SPM. Along the way, I also add in a few one minutes drills to improve technique.

I am at a point where I want to go up in time. However, I am not certain if I should increase endurance to 45 minutes before increasing drag or vice versa.

I recognize everyone is different, but one appreciate some input from the community.

Thank you in advance.

Don

BTW. I am 67, weigh 160 lbs and in relatively good health.

[DavidA]

Hi All:

I am new to rowing and recently received my new Row Erg--fabulous machine. Because I am new to rowing I have set the drag factor relatively low at 100 while I am learning the technique as I do not want to hurt myself My goal is to get to 45 minutes rowing and burn a total of 400 calories.

Currently, I am rowing for 30 minutes using 2 minute mixed time intervals with stroke rates anywhere from 18 to 22 SPM. Along the way, I also add in a few one minutes drills to improve technique.

I am at a point where I want to go up in time. However, I am not certain if I should increase endurance to 45 minutes before increasing drag or vice versa.

I recognize everyone is different, but one appreciate some input from the community.

Thank you in advance.

Don

BTW. I am 67, weigh 160 lbs and in relatively good health.

You probably want to increase the drag some, but more so the time. (Although 45 min is already pretty good.)

David

[Rod]

I'm 66, the same weight as you and also use a Drag Factor of 100 so no need to change it if it feels good.

I've been rowing competitively for 20 years and tried various Drag Factors, 100 certainly feels right these days.

[hikeplusrow]

I'm 63 and use a drag factor around 90. No plans to increase it.

[gvcormac]

Use whatever drag factor you find most comfortable. Higher won't necessarily mean you use more force; it'll just make your stroke slower if you use the same force. If you want to increase force, just pull harder. You only need to increase drag factor if you can't move fast enough to create the force you want.

Also use whatever stroke rate you find most comfortable.

What matters is your pace (or power in watts). The amount of work you do is equal to your power in watts times the duration of your effort. The calculation for pace is a bit more complicated. See https://www.concept2.com/indoor-rowers/ ... calculator But you probably don't need this. Just pick a pace that is challenging but not exhausting, and go for it.

[Dangerscouse]

I'd suggest incrementally increasingly it and seeing how it feels. Give it at least three or four sessions before you decide, as you may easily think initially it's too high and then settle into it, or you may realise that 100 is right for you.

Always bear in mind that drag factor is a means to an end, and not an end in itself. The right drag factor is the one that makes you the most efficient.

[Rowenfuul]

I’m 70, 5’9” in height, weigh 171lbs and have been rowing on the C2 for almost 5 years. These days I leave my drag factor set to 135-140, really just to give myself a little more resistance in order to build muscle. As others have mentioned, the drag factor is a personal choice. I would just be careful about bumping it up too much at a time- better to bump it up 5 or so and get used to it in your workouts before setting it any higher. Good luck!

[jamesg]

However, I am not certain if I should increase endurance to 45 minutes before increasing drag or vice versa.

Better prefer quality over quantity. Quality is the amount of work in the stroke. You can probably work at about 1W/kg while still aerobic, ie at low rates.

The Drag factor serves to set the pull time to about 0.6s, at the force we can or want to use, since that pull time allows all ratings from 16 to 40 with reasonably comfortable rhythm.

In ergdata, lots of numbers can be seen, including force and pull time and speed.

[hikeplusrow]

I'd suggest incrementally increasingly it and seeing how it feels. Give it at least three or four sessions before you decide, as you may easily think initially it's too high and then settle into it, or you may realise that 100 is right for you.

Always bear in mind that drag factor is a means to an end, and not an end in itself. The right drag factor is the one that makes you the most efficient.

I agree. I've experimented loads with DF. For me, it's down to using a DF that enables me to maintain a good, uncompromised technique, while at the same time giving me acceptable bang for my buck in terms of producing power.

[iain]

Agree with the comments about drag, it is a personal thing especially if you are interested in general fitness rather than competitive times. Experimenting with different drags allows you to find what you like with anything from 0 - maximum preferred by some (although for longer rows, someone of your size is unlikely to choose much above the 130 sometimes recommended to younger heavy weight men).

I would say that your target seems a little underwhelming. By my (possibly flawed) calculation, 400Cals in 45 min is an average of 68W or 2:52.6 per 500m. The calorie calibration of a C2 is very approximate and includes 300Cal/hr for rowing at all however slowly, with the balance for the speed achieved (as you don't need to support your weight, the 300Cal/hr assumes a significant level of exertion and includes the calories that would have been burned anyway if at rest). Unless you have health issues that restrict your rowing, I would recommend slowly increasing your pace somewhat in at least some of your sessions. You may also need to amend your technique if you find achieving a faster pace strenuous over modest intervals.

Most people set targets of distance travelled or speed rather than calories burned as these are much more comparable and the forum users will identify with these while few would with Cals burned.

But congratulations on choosing a great exercise device and making a start.

[Cyclingman1]

At age 78, wt ~200lb, I use and have used DF from 135 to 170. Usually on lower end for 10K and above. Many of course swear by DF of 100 or below. For me, it feels weird.