New & looking for encouragement

[raymond.botha]

Use whatever helps you feel comfortable. A small towel folded over the seat and even 2 small face cloths over the handles for the hands. You'll then be free to concentrate on getting your distance up. The most challenging thing for me when increasing distance is to notice how the core needs strengthening. You get the feeling like when you feel tired after having to sit waiting while sitting. When your posture improves while erging you'll notice how much more effective your strokes feel and that coincides with a trimmer mid section.

I admire your grit and determination. Keep your goal fixed in your mind for motivation and have fun with all the different stats you can observe while erging like the force curve, calories burnt and 500m splits.

You're still young enough to be your best with the will power and determination that comes from age.

Go Mamma !

Ray

[nchasan]

First of all I am totally with you. Except that you have more experience on the ERG than me. I am pretty new to it.

My win is that when I started the best I could do was muster a 2:33 pace over 2000 m and then I thought it would take me three days to recover! But I stayed with it and yesterday was able to pump out 10,000 at a 2:23 pace, and my 2000 time has improved to a 2:10 pace and my 500 from 2:02 two weeks ago to 1:50 this week...so my point is that I feel better, stronger, fitter and happier, and people are starting to notice that I look healthier and that I carry myself differently, even if the scale is slow to see the improvement. For me, the measure is my belt, and already it is one notch tighter! YES!! So hang in and we will progress together!!

My goal this week is to row over 30,000 m. On Monday, I'll do 1000 or so to warm up and then 6000, on Tuesday I'll warm up with 1000 then do two 2000 repeats, on Wednesday I'll warm up with 1000, and then do 6000, on Thursday I'll warm up with 1000, then do 500 hard, then do 2000 easy to cool down, and on Friday I'll do 10,000 to achieve my goal. The one thing I try to do is sprint in from about 250 out with an all out effort. I am trying to increase the distance for the final sprint day by day. Hope this helps!

Neil

[BrianStaff]

Neil,

Your plan is looking good. I only started ERGing last Feb 2008 and I started out with scores and plans like yours.

I am 63 and I just recently broke "my 4 minute mile" by pulling 7:57 for a 2K. I also passed my million meter mark just before xmas and I lost 25 lbs but more importantly I feel a lot better and I do not get out-of-breath doing simple chores.

So, keep with it & good luck

Brian

[Hal Morgan]

Think of yourself as an athlete. You train everyday, so why not. If your challenge is life then you are already a champion. Thinking of yourself in a athletic way helps you to maintain your training. When I a really taxed and someone notices. I say, I am training harder than ever these days. When someone comments on my posture. I stand straighter even more and hold in even more. I say thank you for saying that. When they say are you still rowing? I say all the time and it is cool. I never explain what hurts or why. I never explain why I row to loose wieght I already have lost all of it but keeping it gone is not as hard. I never tell them my Physical short comings anymore. These are all of the things that have happen to me because of rowing indoors and out. Plus I do not look 48. )

[nchasan]

Neil,

I just recently broke "my 4 minute mile" by pulling 7:57 for a 2K
So, keep with it & good luck

Brian

RIGHT ON Brian, you inspire me!

N

[Heifer]

I had to take almost 10 days off this month because of two separate illnesses (thank you to my kid), but having a C2 in the house really helps. I have been rowing 4000s trying to improve my time a little. This week I rowed 5x and dropped my total time by almost a minute.
I am now pretty consistent with 2:15 or so over 15+ minutes. I am going to increase to 5000m this week. I am trying not to focus on my time too much, but rather on rowing every day and my total # of meters (now finally over 100,000).
A question about logging your time: when I am approaching 4000m, I can either row hard until I get to over 4000 and note the time at which the ticker passed 4000, or row hard until I get to about 3980 and then stop, knowing the ticker will go over 4000 from momentum. Which do people do here? I think I got used to the latter in college (knowing that last stroke will carry you over the finish line, so to speak) and there is probably a 1-2 second difference between the two times.
Not that a 1 second difference matters in my current slow times, I'm just curious.

[grams]

Depending on your PM you should be able to set it to a specific distance and it will count down, not up. Then it stops counting and records the exact time you finished.

Or, you can set your split times to be recorded within the session and check them out on the logcard - daily results.

Sign up for the Nonathlon for way more fun! Ten different time rankings, so every day you can enter what you had time and inclination for. Start with them all as a heavyweight, then when you get to lightweight you can do it all again. Your points are calculated based on age-based past scores on a year by year basis, so you are 'competing' only with others exactly your age.

Here is the link: Nonathlon

Have fun!

[nchasan]

D

Here is the link: Nonathlon

Have fun!

Thanks for the link, I really enjoy logging my times especially when I improve, it encourages me to push harder

N

[Rhubarbarian]

Think of yourself as an athlete. You train everyday, so why not. If your challenge is life then you are already a champion.

That's a great advice, Hal. I'm totally stealing it

[Hal Morgan]

Feel free to call it your own Val. Thanks for the boost.


Row like someone is staring!!