Concept2 Forum

It has become clear to me as I have progressed over the last months that improvement in rowing times obviously reflects the rower's cardiovascular improvement, but also a large component of improvement is the mental ability to push through the pain and set a personal best. Some days I can just tough it out, and others, particularly on longer rows, I seem to lack the mental toughness to really settle in. The more I row, the less of the latter days seem to occur, (I am obviously conditioning my body to accept a certain level of discomfort as I row) but I always wonder how much better I could do if I could just handle the pain and really push through. I almost feel like my improvement from almost an 8 minute 2km, to just slightly below 7 minutes was almost 50/50 increased cardio/ and pain tolerance. This has really become apparent when I contemplate breaking my new PB at 2000, and I keep delaying the attempt because I am actually intimidated by the pain that I will have to endure to break that mark. I was so fixated on breaking 7 minutes that I seemed to have a stronger mental focus for that row. I have a much greater ability to push myself on the shorter rows. For example I am positive I can pull a 500m (I will probably try to row this PB in early January) in around 1:24 and I know it will hurt, but I look forward to the attempt as I can handle this short term pain much better than the longer rows. Am I overstating the mental part of rowing? What percent of your rowing improvement would you attribute to physical versus mental factors? Does anyone else find rowing the shorter, more intensely painful, but less protracted rows and intervals much easier than the longer rows?

As someone who has spent over 30 years doing some kind of aerobic activity (running, cycling and now rowing) the ability to "work through the pain" is definitely very valuable. I have been pretty good at it but it definitely is dependent on my mental state. If I'm feeling a little weak mentally I find it hard to push through the discomfort that comes from maximal efforts, even though I know that the "I'm going to die" feeling is only temporary.

I think that improvement is probably 70% physical/30% mental. It's the 30% that gets you though because you have to be mentally ready in order to reach your potential. I think shorter efforts are easier because the pain doesn't last as long and it's easier to deal with that than the thought of suffering for a protracted length of time. My limit for rowing seems to be 5 minutes. Anything under that and I'm able to push myself pretty much to the limit just about any time. Over 5 minutes, I need to be mentally ready to suffer. Part of that is probably due to the fact that I'm pretty much brand new to the erg. I would expect my "pain tolerance" to rise with experience. On the bike I'm able to endure the pain for longer periods, maybe because I have a lot more experience with the bike.

I faced (still face) the same thing even though I've been working out and running for years before taking up erging. One thing that really helped me was Rowpro. At first I was intimidated and never even tried to keep up with faster folks. Then I just decided to go for it and pushed on to keep up. Most all folks on Rowpro (slow or fast) are not judgmental. Prior to my current hip injury I rowed a couple of times a week with a couple of folks who can row 1:50 for an hour no sweat. This has forced me to see how low I can go. I thought sub 2:00 was never in my future. These folks and others are really encouraging and I can do 1:55 pretty easily for an hour now (well not right now as my hip does not allow any rowing).

Or try a training program where you limit the fast stuff to manageable intervals. Also keep in mind what your goal(s) is/are. I am interested in fitness/stress relief and have not raced (except online). So maybe going "fast" is not necessarily the thing to focus on.

BradL wrote:It has become clear to me as I have progressed over the last months that improvement in rowing times obviously reflects the rower's cardiovascular improvement, but also a large component of improvement is the mental ability to push through the pain and set a personal best. Some days I can just tough it out, and others, particularly on longer rows, I seem to lack the mental toughness to really settle in. The more I row, the less of the latter days seem to occur, (I am obviously conditioning my body to accept a certain level of discomfort as I row) but I always wonder how much better I could do if I could just handle the pain and really push through. I almost feel like my improvement from almost an 8 minute 2km, to just slightly below 7 minutes was almost 50/50 increased cardio/ and pain tolerance. This has really become apparent when I contemplate breaking my new PB at 2000, and I keep delaying the attempt because I am actually intimidated by the pain that I will have to endure to break that mark. I was so fixated on breaking 7 minutes that I seemed to have a stronger mental focus for that row. I have a much greater ability to push myself on the shorter rows. For example I am positive I can pull a 500m (I will probably try to row this PB in early January) in around 1:24 and I know it will hurt, but I look forward to the attempt as I can handle this short term pain much better than the longer rows. Am I overstating the mental part of rowing? What percent of your rowing improvement would you attribute to physical versus mental factors? Does anyone else find rowing the shorter, more intensely painful, but less protracted rows and intervals much easier than the longer rows?

If you row a 124 500 meter, your 2k is really left behind. Have you been a sprinter all your life?

being afraid of the 2k pain is not rare, if you wouldn't have it it would be strange. You have to balance between enduring pain and how often you that. I agree that your head is important. How to train that i don,t know. I think it's mostly given.

hjs - I agree that an ability to endure pain is part of a person's makeup, but I think it can also be developed. I think the fact that I am just beginning to row is exposing me to a different type of pain than I am used to, and it is taking me some time to get used to it. Rowing hard, day after day, convinces your body and mind that you really are not going to die if you continue. My cardio is really quite weak, I can average below 1:15 for the first 300 metres, but when I do this I actually have to handle down and cannot finish the 500. I am working on extending my endurance and pain tolerance. I have already moved it out from only 200m when I started. If I can keep going like this, I should be able to come close to a 1:20 500m. As for the 2000m plus, that is a matter of rowing and rowing. I really am a novice. I know I have a lot of work if I am going to improve on the longer rows. My background is weightlifting and martial arts. I have actually never really liked doing cardio, and always viewed it as a necessary evil, but I am looking forward to my rowing workouts (except of course resetting my 2000m PB in a month or so)

Jliddil - I am thinking about getting rowpro. I do want to row fast, but I have no misconceptions at to how good some people are and where I stand in comparison to others. I just want to go as fast as I can go, and this competition with myself will be what keeps me motivated to continue. I have just started the Pete Plan, and I can already, only 2 weeks in feel a real change in my focus. Knowing I had to finish 1500x5 yesterday made me buckle down and do it. It is much easier to push yourself when you have a goal. Also, not trying to go your fastest every workout (which is what I was doing) is a real relief. I was burning myself out by rowing my hardest every workout.

BradL, you said very well what I've tried to express in the past! Look at my 2010 Nonathlon scores and you'll see that below the 2K pieces, I'm decent (I'm not a strong guy, but can endure that intense pain for short periods), and my longer times are also pretty good (I can hold an AT pace for a long time without much discomfort, probably from the cycling and longer running), but the 2K is right at that "tipping point" and I haven't mustered the mental fortitude (lately) to push to the level I know I'm physically capable of. And until I have a "reason" to do so, it will probably stay that way! Nothing I've done rowing, cycling, running, or any other physical activity has been so painful and mentally demanding as a max effort 2K. When I first started this erg racing thing, the distance was 2500 meters and I was able to pull a 1:45 pace for that distance, but was on a rowing team and there was plenty of motivation then.

Cyclist2 wrote:...(I can hold an AT pace for a long time without much discomfort, probably from the cycling and longer running), but the 2K is right at that "tipping point" and I haven't mustered the mental fortitude (lately) to push to the level I know I'm physically capable of. And until I have a "reason" to do so, it will probably stay that way! Nothing I've done rowing, cycling, running, or any other physical activity has been so painful and mentally demanding as a max effort 2K. When I first started this erg racing thing, the distance was 2500 meters and I was able to pull a 1:45 pace for that distance, but was on a rowing team and there was plenty of motivation then.

In the 3 weeks I've had the C2 I've done one 2k test and it was very painful. The only thing that comes close is a few 10k indoor time trials I've done on the bike. I'm training toward doing a better 2k on Feb 12 (the Atlanta Erg Sprints) and I am looking forward to it and dreading it at the same time. I guess the good thing is that it will only last 7 to 7.5 minutes. I think the competition will help me push through the pain though.