Pete Plan 2017

[IefTheChief]

Wow calalli that's impressive, 1k cals per day extra. I do the same so I know it's hard work. Personally I wouldn't do a fitness program because it's temporary - you can't keep in shape when you've achieved your weight loss goal. I don't do diets for the aame reason, I don't see how I could fit them in my life. However, I can always do SS work, the rest of my life (I hope) so I accept those sessions as something I'll do forever. I would personally advice you to do some SS work, but I'm no expert by any means!

[optimuswolf]

Evening all. Good work especially on the calorie burn Calalli - I've eaten about 1k calories in chocolate biscuits today

Took several people's advice and switched around the first two sessions of my modified PP cycle 1 week 3.

24/4 8K SS (Target SPM - <20)
33:49.1 8,000m 2:06.8 19

Pretty pleased with how I've managed to get the SPM down - just a month ago I felt uncomfortable dropping below 25 and I'm getting more power into each stroke. I hope this wil help my shorter distances.

25/4 4x1000m/5r (Target 1:51 and then negative splits)
14:36.8 4,000m 1:49.6 28
3:40.7 1,000m 1:50.3 28
3:40.0 1,000m 1:50.0 28
3:39.7 1,000m 1:49.8 28
3:36.5 1,000m 1:48.2 28

Tough session - but I was determined to go under my target 2k pace for the last interval. I'm fairly confident of hitting the 7:15 this time next week which will make this first month of taking it seriously well worth it. Football tomorrow (will feel like a rest!)

[hepting]

@Optimuswolf - nice job with the 1k's - way to finish hard!
@calalli - Negative splits are tough - well done

Started Wk 9 of the BPP

9,000m 36:17.6 2:00.9/500 avg (Rowpro says 2:01.0 and C2 says 2:00.9 so I'm going with C2! )

Started off trying to avg 1:59.x - held it for 5k and then it slipped. For whatever reason HR was higher than normal early on and I just could not sustain my pace. Part mental part physical I suspect. Same thing happened last week on a 8500. Learning a bit as the weeks go by what makes for good days and bad - clearly my times after a day off are better, and when I eat has an impact. All part of the learning. The good news is I got through it! Continue slow progress with weight loss averaging about a pound a week.

[mdpfirrman]

@ Cali - huge improvements! Very nice work on the 500s (and on the longer row!). I would say, no, your 500s won't tell you what your HRM is typically. Usually you'll know on an all out 5K what your HR max is (like the one that Hepting did). 500s give you too much time to recover. Actually, your long row (assuming you were pushing it) would probably be a better indication (near the end of the row). Very nice progress!

@ Hepting - you expect an awful lot out of yourself every single row. I know you have specific goals but you're getting there. Your cardio isn't what it was probably when you were a lightweight rower, but it's not gone either. The more you row and work, the better those paces are going to get. You'll be sub 2:00 for 10K (or more) very soon. Don't beat yourself up over .5 or 1 second pace as long as you're working hard (which it's obvious you are).

@ Optimus - that's the hardest I've seen you push an interval session! Nice work. That's a very hard session. Likely I was a bit run down when I did that session last time and had been exposed to strep (my wife had it recently). That session is hard.

I'm going to have to start following my own advice soon. It's a good idea to check your RHR in the AM occasionally to see if you're overtraining. I keep getting sick (though the last time it was just a couple days) more than likely from overtraining. Good news is I'm getting over it quickly each time (or fairly quickly). I do lose a bit of pace each time which is aggravating. If your RHR is creeping up, they say that's a good indication you're training too hard. It's something I read that a few coaches recommended in US Rowing magazine. Good advice I think. They say if you see "creep" on the RHR, then do more SS work for a few days and don't push it too hard until it works it's way back down. I'm going to give this a few days to see if it gets better on its own and then see the doc if it doesn't (and get some antibiotics).

[calalli]

Thank you for the good words everyone.

Ivo - I agree, that a single program is not a long term solution. I just started the P90/ erg program to get going, lose the bulk of the weight I need to shed and develop new habits. At the end of 13 weeks I will probably do another 13 week program, that will more or less coincide with finishing the BPP. By then I hopefully will have good habits and maintenance will be a cinch. I do like the resistance training in the mornings although I don't see myself going to a gym doing squats and deadlifts ever again.

Optimus - nice 8k at a much lower rate. And negative splits on that 4x1000, like Dyson said, that's tough.

Dyson - way to tough it out! And claim that tenth for sure Losing a pound a week is a good sustainable pattern, I know after 2 months I am slowing down to about that rate as well.

Mike - You must be one of the most positive people I have ever encountered I hope you can avoid the antibiotics. I have planned to check my RHR a few times before I get out of bed ( i wear a Polar A360) but I never seem to remember until I have already gone downstairs and started the coffee. Oh well.

26/4/17 BPP 5.3 7000M - Plan is to match the rate from the prior effort, 2:13.4. I picked up nearly 2 seconds and felt rubber legs for the first time rowing. I tried again to Max my heartrate, hitting 160 at the very end.

Time Meters /500m Watts Cal/Hr s/m
30:41.6 7,000m 2:11.5 154 829 21
6:11.7 1,400m 2:12.7 150 816 21 143
6:08.6 2,800m 2:11.6 153 826 21 147
6:09.3 4,200m 2:11.8 153 826 21 152
6:08.0 5,600m 2:11.4 154 829 21 154
6:03.9 7,000m 2:09.9 159 846 22 160

[Rowan McSheen]

Afternoon all. Been absent for a couple of days due to the phone line being broken by some guys digging up the road outside. How did we manage before the internet, eh? I tell you, it was tough living in the dark ages

Excellent progress by all, and great work Cal! As regards the hip/back niggle, I suspect the root cause is a sedentary job and posture at the computer, plus a little progressive age-related decrepitude ... Incidentally, I scored my highest hr on the erg by doing a test set by (I think) well-known coach Eddie Fletcher: if I recall, a series of 4 or 5-minute efforts with short breaks, each effort faster than the last, until you fall over sideways in a heaving wheezing puking heap. Mine was 162, which I rounded up to 165. Highest I've seen when running is 175, some years ago.

I think this thread shows what following a proper balanced training programme can achieve (and thanks to Mr Marston for devising it in its various flavours).

Mike: maybe you do need a checkup, or just a few days out to regroup? Doesn't seem right that a chap as active as you should keep getting the lurgy. Where are you, by the way? When I lived abroad in a cold climate (Russia), this was the time of the year when all the bugs came out to play after lying dormant during a long sub-zero winter.

A couple of sessions to report.

BPP week 10, optional 5th session, 7 x 500m / 2min rest. Instrux: hold the average pace of the session in week 7 (1:58.x) and try to beat it on the final rep. For some reason I thought I had to beat the pace by 1 second so turned in reps from 1:57.1 to 1:57.4 and was pleased with that because a) I think that's the best pace I've done on that session for years, and b) I resolved to gain the extra pace through a stronger rather than faster stroke and kept it at 27 spm, and c) it felt great! But I fear I might have made a rod for my own back for this session later in the plan ...

BPP week 11 1st session: 10000m steady. Done as 2 x 5000m at 2:14.0 and 2:14.1 @ 20 spm, hr well inside UT2, couple of minutes in between to wipe down, stretch and reset RowPro.

Next up is 500m reps again, and this time I shall read the instructions!

[calalli]

Stu - Haha! sedentary job - check. poor posture at the computer - check. progressive age related decrepitude - check.

27/4/17 BPP 5.4 20min - don’t worry about the pace. Well, I wanted to do a bit more work. I have never done a 10K before, and took Ivo's suggestion about SS. I kept the HR right at the UT2/UT1 threshold.

Time Meters /500m Watts Cal/Hr s/m
49:40.4 10,000m 2:29.0 106 664 20
10:18.6 2,000m 2:34.6 95 626 21 130
9:50.3 4,000m 2:27.5 109 675 21 130
9:50.1 6,000m 2:27.5 109 675 20 133
9:51.2 8,000m 2:27.8 108 671 20 131
9:50.2 10,000m 2:27.5 109 675 20 132

[hepting]

@calalli - great 7k with a very strong finish and getting through the 10k - that was always a beast for me.

@Rowen - way to set a new bar for yourself. I bet you'll find it something you will build from and not regret!

BPP Week 9 #2

Last time with this workout in week 5 I did reverse splits and averaged 1:49.4 but did 2 seconds better split on my last rep. So I went out a little harder this time to see if I could hold a more steady pace pushing harder. Net result - I did slip on each rep and had a rough last 500 but averaged 1:47.7 which is an improvement, and I am confident I did not leave anything in the tank. I do feel as though I am getting more acclimated to the pain again now. It has been so long since I've done this much rowing. So much of these faster pieces for me are mental in regards to tolerance of the discomfort and motivation to keep pushing through.

4x800 2 min rest
#1 1:47.2 avg/500
#2 1:47.4
#3 1:47.6
#4 1:48.7

[optimuswolf]

Morning all.

Hepting - very fast splits there. I think 4x800 is a close approximation of a 2k especially with limited rest? So you're on track for something around 7:10 and not a million miles away from your 7min goal.

Calalli - impressed by you're being disciplined about HR - I don't have a monitor but am intrigued with all this UT2 UT1 talk. Plus I have no idea what my resting HR is to refer back to Mike's point. PS you've now rowed further than I ever have....

Stu - I always like to beat targets by up to a second and you managed it easily enough which shows improvement.

****************************

27/4 - C1 W3 S3 (3k/2.5k/2k) 5r Target 1:59.5

29:33.7 7,500m 1:58.2 27

11:53.5 3,000m 1:58.9 26
9:52.3 2,500m 1:58.4 27
7:47.9 2,000m 1:56.9 28

Put a fair bit of effort to this one considering it was first go and was already upping the target pace from PP suggested 5k+1s (2:00). Didn't feel totally comfortable because I am adjusting my stroke to keep my heels down more. I have an inkling that this was what was causing my knee ache. Watched some online demos and whilst for competitions people do go off their heels, its obviously better on the body to drive through the most stable part of the foot like you would a squat. V little knee ache today When I am back from hols I will try to work towards strapless SS sessions.

Before then I have one 10k SS session on Sunday (first 10k distance so will be hard to resist setting some sort of benchmark...), then the first 2k test and if I have time, a 5k test (target 19:40) on Thursday before 9 hours of hell on a plane with a toddler....

[hepting]

Optimuswolf - Nice job with those 3 pieces - Upping the pace a full second and killing it in the last 2k.

Good luck on the upcoming week of "testing" - you may consider trying to do the 2k after the 9 hour flight with the toddler - with all that pent up frustration and energy you could blow it out! Look forward to hearing the results.

[mdpfirrman]

@ Stu - very smart rowing as always Stu. The fact that you went faster than you have in a while is telling you that your training is progressing. Great work on finding out the HRM. When did you fit that into your training?

@ Cal - great work on the 10K. That's a long row the first couple of times. Believe it or not, it won't seem that long in a few months!

@ Hepting - I've never done the BPP, so I can't relate to that row, but that sounds tough. The fact that you couldn't negative split the way you push yourself says a lot. Nice work. Just be cautious not to over train (though you're younger than me, tends not to affect the young as much as the Masters rowers like me).

@ Optimus - Nice work on the Waterfall. I'm a bit jealous I didn't get to that this round (got sick the day I was supposed to do it). Ironically, that's my favorite (if there can be a favorite) of the intermediate intervals. Just the mental aspect of knowing it's going to be less each interval helps I think. Yes - doing the SS unstrapped will help you tremendously on the form and not lifting up your heels too much. I think it's natural to lift your heels a bit on the catch, but I know what you mean. My drive used to start off of my instep / toes - not the best idea. It does feel more solid off your flat foot (and more powerful). I've noticed my form has improved with time, but I'm not sure exactly how -- other than paying a lot more attention to sequencing and "sitting up straight" though the recovery and drive (not rounding the back too much). I'm still working on my form after 2 1/2 years. Amazing how much attention to detail it takes to have good form.

Still battling this latest sickness. Feeling worlds better today than yesterday, so that's good. I hope to be back on the rower in a couple of days (at least that's wishful thinking). We'll see. Keep up the good work.

[Gaucho1]

Hi,
everyone is progressing, impressive performance. Hope you will get healthy soon Mike.
I caught a cold but row anyhow:
10,018m 41:37.2 TIME 2:04.6 PACE Stroke Rate 23
All of you have a nice weekend. I´m going to have barbecue for three days now. That needs lots of rowing, biking and running to compensate the calories
Best regards,
Dietmar

[mdpfirrman]

Strong row Dietmar, especially with a cold! Enjoy the BBQ! I'm a bit jealous now that the wife and I eliminated pork and beef! All we are doing now is chicken and seafood (and organic eggs). Moving slowly into vegan territory!

[IefTheChief]

Calalli - that was a great SS session. Very steady indeed. Did it feel good? In the beginning I didn't like the 10K rows, but now they are my favourite. They're simple in the sense that I don't need to warm up (just hop on and get going), and they are great for technique and "mind-muscle" coordination. I get in a trance and it's over before I know it. Really enjoy them and will definitely keep them in my repertoire for my post PP life, once weight target is hit.

Mike - vegan life and rowing, is that even possible? Also want to reduce the meat but I feel I need it still, especially the bloody, juicy, tender steak sunday roasts (the lady is from the english countryside). Think I'll always need those, unfortunately

Dietmar - jealous of your rows. Would give up lots of things to be able to row like you (even when you're ill). Good for doing session, get sweating and get things flowing. Hope you'll feel better soon.

Optimuswolf - Also strong session. Good luck on the 5K. I can relate to your progress, also want to do a hard 5K in 3 days, target 19:50.

Hepting - same as Dietmar. Very powerful sessions, great to see your progress.

Three sessions to report from the other side of the pond.

PP C4W2D1, Pyramid, target 1:53.8

14:55.7 4,000m 1:51.9 249 1156 29
0:56.9 250m 1:53.8 237 1115 27
1:53.6 500m 1:53.6 239 1121 27
2:50.3 750m 1:53.5 239 1121 27
3:47.4 1,000m 1:53.7 238 1118 30
2:46.4 750m 1:50.9 256 1180 30
1:49.2 500m 1:49.2 269 1224 30
0:52.1 250m 1:44.2 309 1362 32

Love the pyramid, going down feels so strong.

PP C4W2D2 SS 8,000m

32:43.4 8,000m 2:02.7 189 950 24
8:20.2 2,000m 2:05.0 179 915 24
8:19.8 2,000m 2:04.9 179 915 24
8:19.4 2,000m 2:04.8 180 919 24
7:44.0 2,000m 1:56.0 224 1070 27

Did this one after midnight, after having had a company outing with 2 beers. Pete says minimum 8K so went for that. Couldn't sleep until 3am so this row was not a good idea. Felt strong though strangely enough

PP C4W2D3 (today) 4x2,000m/5'r, target 2:05.1

32:43.4 8,000m 2:02.7 189 950 24
8:20.2 2,000m 2:05.0 179 915 24
8:19.8 2,000m 2:04.9 179 915 24
8:19.4 2,000m 2:04.8 180 919 24
7:44.0 2,000m 1:56.0 224 1070 27

Had day off after previous SS row, had to catch up sleep and gain strength for this one. Last cycle I did my first sub 8' 2K in interval 4. Then 2 weeks later did 7:25 on a test. Aiming for a sub 20' 5K on my hard row this week, so wanted to do well under 2' on my last rep but not go all in. I like this session, think I'm ready for the 5K row. Planning a smooth 10K tomorrow.

[mdpfirrman]

@ Ivo - nice work all the way around (on the pyramid, the SS and the 4 X 2000!). Get rested up for that 5K to go sub 20. It's within your realm of possibility currently but that will be tough too (as your strength is a bit stronger than your cardio currently). I think you've got your SS and 4 X 2000m times identical (you may have been looking at the wrong time for your SS work because that would be very fast for SS work).

Yes, vegan (or in my case more like semi-vegan) is very possible while rowing. There are now bodybuilders, pro American football players, MMA fighters, Olympic weight lifters and many others that are vegan. You just have to make sure you get your B12s, iron and eat enough protein. I'm planning on supplementing some (with SunWarrior Plant based protein). I'll miss steaks and burgers but I went dairy free two years ago and haven't looked back (though I miss cheese on pizza occasionally or on a sandwich). I think if you can go dairy free, leaving behind most meat isn't a large step. It's been more of a challenge just eating enough because meat has a lot of calories and without eating it four or five days a week, it's been tough getting all the necessary calories (as I don't do processed foods often at all).