Introduce yourself

[mjlawton]

Hi bronze,
I am a beginner rower also, but I can tell you there is a Beginner Pete Plan (google it) which is a training plan many people use. I will tell you though you need to be able to row 5000 meters to start the plan. If you can't do that yet (around 1/2 hr of rowing), then work up to that slowly by adding a few minutes of rowing each day. Once you stop rowing, it is hard to maintain the endurance, so I suggest finding a routine and sticking with it. Make sure you pay attention to the damper setting (lever on wheel) and don't have it set too high. Around 3 or 4 for women generally.

Good luck! Janet

[GaryMac]

Hi all. I am a 51 y.o newbie. Just bought my C2 4 days ago and have done 3K, 3.2K, 5k & 5K so far. After a bad wrist injury 3 years ago I stopped doing any fitness activities (used to do a couple of days road cycling & a couple of gym days each week) and I had gained 6 kgs. Looking to lose some weight and get my fitness back. I also forgot how much exercising improved my mood and have been much more prone to down days since I stopped exercising.

Hoping to do 20-30 mins each morning Mon-Thur take a Friday off then do longer sessions on the weekends (maybe 45-60 mins) or get out and cycle again.It has been taking me about 27m30s to do a 5K so would ideally like to get that down to 20 mins. Am also finding it difficult to get the stroke right, especially the initial drive, and think I am lifting my heels too much so will be focusing on that to begin with. Looking forward to learning from the people on this forum.

[jackarabit]

Message just above yours is a good place to start on your path to 20’ 5k. And get back on that bike when possible.

[Kanga]

Hi
My husband was lucky enough to inherit his mum’s concept 2 C model. So far it’s had a new PM5 and now getting a new handle and complete seat with new rollers to upgrade it. I now have quite the spanner and Allen key set!
I’m 46 and looking to get fit and lose some of the middle aged spread. So far it’s been a few 5k and 2k with not a lot of technique! But have been watching Dark Horse on you tube and just ordered The Erg Book for some ideas.so far my best time is 2k 9.15 (down from 9.43 last week) and 5k 25.59. I’ve got the ErgData app but a lot of tech stuff on there I don’t understand apart from split times . Looking forward to reading the forum and sharing my journey and trying to beat my husbands 2k time of 8.44.

[jackarabit]

Doing great, Kanga! If you are logging your workouts in the Concept 2 logbook, ErgData enables one-button, no fuss uploads. Faster than transfer from PM5 USB stick or USB cable to PC,

Appears you're no stranger to the mechanical arts. Your model C will probably not require much maintenance and repair but handy nonetheless. Here’s to lady wrenches! Bearing grease is the new hand lotion.

[Kanga]

Thanks for the welcome. It’s so much better having a rower at home instead of the gym. I’m just working on getting my technique right, it’s fine in the warmup then goes to pot when I speed up toward the end of a 5k.
Are other folks on here indoor only, or are there outdoor rowers as well?

[lindsayh]

Thanks for the welcome. It’s so much better having a rower at home instead of the gym. I’m just working on getting my technique right, it’s fine in the warmup then goes to pot when I speed up toward the end of a 5k. Are other folks on here indoor only, or are there outdoor rowers as well?

Welcome
There is a mix of pure OTE (erg) and OTW (water) types who have a love/hate relationship with the erg and do both. Some are using erg training for general health and weight loss, some cross training, some cross fitters and some are pure erg racers.
Have a look at the training sub forum - lots of good ideas

[jackarabit]

Are other folks on here indoor only, or are there outdoor rowers as well?

The C2 erg was conceived as a training simulator for the OTW ‘mother sport’ but obviously has a a large following who use it exclusively in pursuit of general fitness. There are two subfora which are primarily of interest to scullers and sweep rowers: “Concept 2 Dreissegacker Oars” under Products and “On the Water” under Training. The landlocked and the waterborne cross paths in general discussion and many here have a commanding knowledge of both boat and erg.

[PirateDeathRay]

Greetings! I am a new rower and so excited to join the community.

My husband told me that he wanted to get a rowing machine and I immediately thought it was a stupid idea. We have a stationary bike and a road to jog on; why do we need to buy more equipment?

Then I admitted to myself that I hate the bike (I'm exhausted afterwards, but don't feel like I'm getting a full work out) and our "road" is a steep, rocky, quarter mile stretch that ends at a busy 55 mph road. I've almost twisted my ankles so many times and jogging uphill makes me unhappy. Especially in the >100° weather we've been having.

Maybe he was onto something. I started reading articles. And watching videos. And reading reviews. And watching *more* videos. I did a lot of research. I finally approached him and said I was all for the rowing machine, but I really wanted this particular one that cost as much as a used car. He laughed and said that was the exact model he wanted because it's the one he uses in gyms.

I gained 35 pounds in the last two years (secondary infertility, pregnancy, and then a miscarriage at three months have left me with a lot of feelings that need eating). Which isn't a lot, but I'm uncomfortable and I don't feel healthy. I feel like I have to add that last bit to defend my desire to lose weight. I'm not morbidly obese and I don't suffer from extreme health problems, which leads family and friends to almost angrily tell me I don't need to lose any weight and should be happy how I am. It leaves me feeling ashamed of my desire to better myself because I'm not "that bad".

That's frustrating. I want to surround myself with people who encourage me to be my best (and I am not currently my best; I can't get my wedding ring on!). I'm hoping to find people like that here. I've already joined the online group, Ducks in a Row. Hello, fellow duckies!

I'm not that competitive, but I love keeping track of stuff, so the logbook makes me so happy (even if ErgData keeps glitching out on me). I've used Fitbit and RunKeeper and I enjoy watching the number steps and miles increase. Now I'm tracking meters!

Not eating my feelings all the time and the dreaded jogging have gotten where I am now, which is 20 pounds away from my goal weight. I'm hoping to gain muscle and improve my cardiovascular health while on that journey. I think my new rowing machine and the friends I make here can help me.

Pirate

[veto]

Hi!

Sorry for my English. I live in Europe.

I have been reading the concept forums for a while to search for training tips and comparison times as I am unsure where I stand and what to do next. I realize my current fitness level is not very good and am eager to better it. I used to row for fun and warm-up when studying, in my school's gym's ergo, which was old and wooden and didn't have any monitors so I don't know how it went but usually I rowed for 45-90 minutes steady. Then, I started to do more running and other sports, and forgot rowing. Then I got ill for anorexia, and have been at a healthy weight since this spring. Spent last winter in hospital so lost most of my muscle mass, but it has been building back I guess. Started getting back to small running and some rowing in april or may. My overall fitness level I guess is still bad but improving. I seem to have a decent endurance base so I can run slowly, row, or bike easily for 1-3hours. But my speed is not very good yet My knees seem to not like running so I have been turning into bicycling and rowing as they are less injury-prone. I really have fallen in love with rowing and hope to compete at my country's national level some day. Maybe in an age group (I am 29 now), doesn't really matter. That would require getting 10km rowing time to 40-45 minutes and 2km to 7 or 8 minutes or something. Unsure if it is realistical for me, but I need to try. I am 159cm and 49-50kg. So quite short.

I have been rowing steadt state aerobic-type workouts mostly for 20-40minutes (usually I combine that with crosstrainer, bike, and/or running to get some length to the workouts), and typically I do row 30 minutes / 5300-5800 metres, 2-4 times a week. I do not know what would be my 5km time if I tried all-out, since I usually don't do that hard on workouts. I also haven't tested my all-out for 2km or 500m. But I would guess they would be quite bad. As said, I lack speed generally. I see that also in running.

So, today I rowed my first 10km. It was 55 min. I tried to do it with light effort, since I had just been running for 1,5 hours prior that in the morning. My heart rate during this rowing was 135, quite steady. The last 10 minutes felt harder but not too hard. The damper I usually put 3 but sometimes try with higher.

Do you thing my plans to improve my times and maybe compete on national level are unrealistic? Given I am so short and quite old. I am willing to work hard and I really like rowing. I plan to incporporate some strength training during the winter, currently I do some squatting etc. during or after my aeroobic workouts. I get about 7-15 hours of exercising (running or rowing or the elliptical etc.) in a week, most of that is done in the aerobic zone, and add to that light cycling and walking. I eat enough to maintain my healthy weight and do not wish to lose weight but not gain anymore either.

So, any comments I welcome But nice to have found this forum.

[lindsayh]

I have been rowing steadt state aerobic-type workouts mostly for 20-40minutes (usually I combine that with crosstrainer, bike, and/or running to get some length to the workouts), and typically I do row 30 minutes / 5300-5800 metres, 2-4 times a week. I do not know what would be my 5km time if I tried all-out, since I usually don't do that hard on workouts. I also haven't tested my all-out for 2km or 500m. But I would guess they would be quite bad. As said, I lack speed generally. I see that also in running.
So, today I rowed my first 10km. It was 55 min. I tried to do it with light effort, since I had just been running for 1,5 hours prior that in the morning. My heart rate during this rowing was 135, quite steady. The last 10 minutes felt harder but not too hard. The damper I usually put 3 but sometimes try with higher.
Do you thing my plans to improve my times and maybe compete on national level are unrealistic? Given I am so short and quite old. I am willing to work hard and I really like rowing. I plan to incporporate some strength training during the winter, currently I do some squatting etc. during or after my aeroobic workouts. I get about 7-15 hours of exercising (running or rowing or the elliptical etc.) in a week, most of that is done in the aerobic zone, and add to that light cycling and walking. I eat enough to maintain my healthy weight and do not wish to lose weight but not gain anymore either. So, any comments I welcome But nice to have found this forum.

Hi there and welcome. The rower is a great fitness tool no matter what your goals.
The first thing is that you are relatively young not old and there are many people rowing competitively into their 70s
It also needs to be said that at an elite level rowers are nearly always tall, lean and well muscled.
If by "national level" you mean representing your country on the water then that opportunity has almost certainly passed you by but there are national and international indoor rowing competitions all around the world that are open to people of all levels and domestic on the water clubs as well.new
The good news is that new ergers will see a lot of improvement for some time as you get fitter and stronger.
The first thing I would do would be to spend some time in the training sub forum looking at "newbie" threads where there is a huge amount of useful information on how to get started and what sessions will help you develop fitness and in particular a stronger stroke which will be your key to improvement.

[veto]

Hi and many thanks for your reply, i will be looking at the newbie forums and also the training forum.

By national level I by no means intended representing my country, and at least yet I'm not remotely interested in water boating (in my country it can only be done in the summer or for maybe 6-7 months in the year), it is only the indoor rowing that i am interested in. So I meant I would like to someday take part in the ergomarathons or ergocup competitions that I see are held in my country, and maybe even in the national championships of indoor rowing, where I see it has demanded about 40-45min time of 10k for women of different age groups to get a decent placing, although there seem to be very few participants too (this is a small country). So if I have a chance with my height, to ever get to a 35-45min 10km time then it would be enoguh to take part in those. Nothing more, just like a competitive hobby thing, I guess but stills serious. I know some men who are heavier who have taken part in these championships even if they haven't done much rowing at all, but being generally fit has helped them. That said, I do not consider myself to be generally fit at the moment yet, but will get there

[lindsayh]

Racing is a lot of fun and very good incentive to help drive your training and set goals - the IR community is very welcoming and supportive and the race days are friendly to all even if you aren't winning. just get the basics right from the start and your fitness will improve in leaps and bounds if you put in the meters.

[nerdygrrl]

Hi Everyone, I am a 42 year old lady who discovered rowing three years ago in crossfit. It turns out my body type was a pretty good fit for the sport and I instantly fell in love with it. Sadly while trying to take down our gym's 500M PR and training for the Crash B's I over did it and came down with my second bout of rhabdo. Long story short, it's taken a very long time for me to be cleared again, but I am back and trying to be mindful of my limits.

All that being said, after three years off I started to row again on the 8/2 and could barely get 4 @ 500M in. After a very inconsistent training routine I managed to pull an 8:58 2K today so I am on cloud nine and looking forward to be back and meeting new folks in the community.

[jackarabit]

First time i’ve seen mention of your disorder on this forum. Serious downtime. Presumably no one here will be pushing you to risk another recurrence! What have you learned that will help others avoid the overtraining redline? And Welcome to our moderately happy enclave!