Struggles

[Ben Rea]

no, he's just following the workout plan, and i think you should let him do it if he want, why are you always trying to tell people what to do and what not to do?

[TomR]

I'm not too discouraged. I know I'm not doing exactly what I'm supposed to be doing but what can I say.... I'm weak willed.

Nevertheless, I'll just keep plugging away and look for small victories.

A famililar contest going on inside your head. I trust the notion of being "weak-willed" will not prove to be a powerful adversary. It seems to me you're wrong on that score, but each of us has to fight this battle for him- or herself.

Tom

[jjpisano]

Did 35 minutes with 10 minute warmup and 17 minutes @ 228w & @ 21 s/m then active rest for 1 minute, 3 minutes on again active rest for 1 minute then 3 minutes on again to the end.

So I was able to increase my uninterupted work by 1 minute from Saturday's workout where I did 16 minutes of uninterupted work.

I'm sneaking up on 20 minutes of uninterupted work - which is where I wanted to be last Monday. I figure I should be there in a few days

I used a heart rate monitor this AM.

I averaged 148 bpm. My high was 177. I was at about 140 bpm within a minute of starting the 228w @ 21 s/m. I was at about 150 bpm within two minutes. I was at 161 bpm within 5 and a half minutes.

The heart rate monitor did not necessarily reassure me. I was sort of thinking - wow, no wonder why I'm hurting.

The conditions were OK this AM with respect to temperature and humidity.

Recently, I went back to look at what I was doing exactly a year ago. I was doing 198w @ 19 s/m. I'm now working at about 15% higher intensity than a year ago. Although I am not exactly performing my workouts in a perfect manner, (e.g. 2 one minute breaks thrown in this AM) I have to keep things in perspective.

I was thinking that when I finally get up to 20 minutes of uninterpted work with those extra 6 minutes thrown in at the end, then for the next workout I'll just get rid of those 6 extra minutes at the end and it'll be a step down in workload (which will feel like a break) . Then I'll build from there. At that point I'll officialy no longer be struggling but back on track.

There is a certain artistry involved in planning a training regimen.

[RowtheRockies]

Jim,

Looks like your pre-vacation level of conditioning is returning. Good Job and keep it up.

Rich

[tennstrike]

Then I'll build from there. At that point I'll officialy no longer be struggling but back on track.

There is a certain artistry involved in planning a training regimen.

One of the best things to take from Mike Caviston's thinking on planning a training regimen is "Baby steps. Always take baby steps."

You will most certainly get back to where you were. But there is no real hurry, is there?

Good luck.

[Mike Caviston]

Another thing I was thinking of doing: decrease the length of my warmup - after all I'm already warm.

Training when it’s hot & humid and training after a layoff are double whammies that make it very difficult to feel as if you are getting any quality training done. At least in my experience. My approach in that situation is the opposite of what you are contemplating here – i.e., a longer warmup and a shorter workout. For example, if I were planning to do a long, continuous workout (Level 3, in WP terminology), my standard warmup is 2.5K done in a structured format that features a combination of slow/moderate strokes interspersed with higher intensity bursts, and the average pace works out to about 8s/500m slower than L3 pace (or about a 20% reduction in Watts, if you prefer). On a very hot day, I might repeat the standard warmup 2-3 times (with a 2’ break in-between to hydrate & cool off). Then I reduce the planned workout depending on how hot/humid it is and how I feel after the warmup, so 16K might become 10K, 8K, or 6K. I’ve beaten my head against the wall enough times over the years trying to get the whole workout in and feeling crappy (mentally & physically) after giving up part way through, to now be satisfied with at least some meters at my planned pace and the balance in a structured format. I don’t kid myself that the extended warmup/shortened workout format gives the same training effect as the original workout – but it gives a better training effect than crashing and burning a third of the way in.

Good luck working yourself back into shape.

Mike Caviston

[mpukita]

I’ve beaten my head against the wall enough times over the years trying to get the whole workout in and feeling crappy (mentally & physically) after giving up part way through, to now be satisfied with at least some meters at my planned pace and the balance in a structured format. I don’t kid myself that the extended warmup/shortened workout format gives the same training effect as the original workout – but it gives a better training effect than crashing and burning a third of the way in.

True wisdom from a World Record Holder. We've all been there.

[jjpisano]

So I finally did the minimum workout of this set of workouts.

I finally did 20 minutes of uninterpted work @ 228w & @ 21 s/m. It took 3 weeks and 1 day but I did it. This is still below the work level I was at when I left for vacation in mid-June. My last bout of uninterupted work in mid-June maxed out at 24 minutes @ 228w @ 20s/m.

For the last two weeks I patiently waited out the heat, while increasing my volume with intervals. The intervals were of various types and on particularly warm mornings I gave myself a little more time with a water break where I walked away for a few minutes.

During the last two mornings the heat has broken locally so I went for performing the uninterupted work. I broke yesterday after 13:20 but I knew that there were a few things I could do today that would make it possible for me to perform the workout.

For instance an hour before the workout, I opened the basement doors wide open to let in the cool morning air. I wore less clothes than yesterday. My usually sedate warmup was even more sedate and I wore a heart rate monitor today to "reassure" myself.

In addition, yesterday I also had a bunch of badly pulled muscles from all sorts of weekend activities with the family. Today I still have a few less pulled muscles.

So when the time came for the uninterupted 20 minutes of 228w @ 21 s/m, my goal was survival.

I was at 161 bpm by 7:30 down. I was above 170 for the last 6:30. It was like a relentless march into physical deterioration. How crazy is that? My heart rate maxed out at 178.

Now hours later I sit unlabored, quitely hammering away on the key board with a sense of accomplishment. I know that I have progressed from just 3 weeks ago. Furthermore, I know I'm not where I was in mid-June but I have a sense that if I keep doing the training in creative ways during the hot months and persist I can make progress.

I believe that these two cool mornings are just a short break in the heat and I'll probably be getting back to intervals. When the next cool break comes, I'll be ready for my usual uninterupted work again.

And so the struggle continues.

[RowtheRockies]

Jim,

Good to see you are getting back on track with your rowing. That heat you are dealing with sounds miserable.

Rich