6k Slump...

GLC-Will · Post by **GLC-Will** » September 4th, 2008, 8:34 pm

For a little back story...

Prior to my incident today, I was(or would like to consider myself) very fit. Come the end of spring, we stopped erging and only did water practices for nationals training. I noticed from then on, my erg times dropped. I picked it up a little bit, but I never quite got back to my level I was at before the official season ended. Today I did a 6k, and about 2500 meters in, I had a total breakdown. I paniced and couldn't finish, which was very disheartening. I went up slowly from a 1:50 to a 1:55 and then I just died. Considering I did a 10k at a 1:50 split, this made me very angry.

The official 6k our coaches are having us do is on next Thursday or Friday. What I want to know is what can I do to try to at least get some fitness back before then? I know I don't have much time to work with, but I just need you guys to give me some kind of workouts that will get me ready for my 6k.

Just a few stats to provide..

I'm 16(17 in october), about 175 pounds, and 6'2.5". I'll take anything you guys give me, I want to work very hard.

off topic question: Does it seem unusual that I find it harder to get lower splits on a brand new Model D as opposed to a Model D made about a year ago or so? My parents bought a new model D at home, but no matter how hard I crank on it, the splits are about 6 or 7 seconds higher then my times at our boathouse.

PaulG · Post by **PaulG** » September 4th, 2008, 9:19 pm

If you care to, I suggest you re-read your post and then listen to the aged voice of experience. You said you panicked. And then you are asking for some type of conditioning advice that will improve your times in about 7 days. The panic is an emotional issue not a physical problem. Also you very well know that no amount of magic workouts will improve your erg times in less than a week. These emotional and psychological problems are not any less real than a physical problem because both can limit your performance. The panic alone will raise havoc with your form. I suspect you are overtrained and burnt out. My suggestion is to keep the hell away from an erg and get all the rest you can for one week. Then approach the erg like you have never seen one before.

In the early Peistocene age I was high jumper in track and field. Once the season was underway I would usually get too tense and stop having fun just jumping. My best marks often came after a week away from training and I was itching to start jumping again.

You are already fit. Stop thinking and start having fun.

TabbRows · Post by **TabbRows** » September 5th, 2008, 7:45 am

Nicely said Paul. Our mental state affects our times as much as our conditioning.

GLC-Will, don't be discouraged by a poor practice. Based on your quotes in your signature and your description of your motivation, I suspect that you've been pushing yourself to crank it on every work out and your body was simply telling you to back it off a bit. You should be treating these next 5-6 days as a tapering period where you get rested and mentally set for the test. If possible use the day before the test as a rest day. Warm up before hitting the test. And remember to pace yourself during the test, don't "fly and die" by going out faster than your target pace. There are plenty of threads about pacing on these boards.

As far as differences in Model D's, check the drag factors on both machines. Not the damper handle position. Your new machine at home will most likely have a higher drag factor at the same damper position than the boathouse machine. So ask the coaches or equipment manager to clean the boathouse machine or reset the damper to equal the drag factor you use at home.

Good luck on the test. Let us know how you did. Good or bad.

PaulS · Post by **PaulS** » September 5th, 2008, 8:17 am

I may be misunderstanding your post, but if you had been doing water only for quite a time and jumped back onto the Erg expecting to be where you were when you left it, that is a bit of a problem. The Erg and Oar are quite different and you need a little practice to get back in the groove. Get in several Erg pieces, 30 - 40 minute with gradual negative splits, starting at a relatively easy pace (2:00), working down to your planned 6k pace (1:50?), perhaps the final 10 minutes at the 1:50.

almostflipped · Post by **almostflipped** » September 5th, 2008, 1:18 pm

First, I agree with Paul, rowing form is not erging form. There will be some time needed to switch between the two. Secondly, 2k form is not 6k form. It's very possible that your 6k will be a little slower than you'd expect right now. Don't worry about it, it will get faster as the season goes on.

Look at it this way, the 6k is just a measure of where you are at this moment. All it does is say "Ok, this is where I'm starting, now let's see where I can go". Keep your focus forward and let the odd blips and valleys just float by.

As for the new erg, we don't allow our juniors to test on an erg that is less than one year old. The bungee is still quite springy and leads to a different load (regardless of drag) that can dramatically effect erg scores. If you were running your practice 6k on a new erg, don't worry about. The old erg is probably good for 20-40 seconds over 6k.

GLC-Will · Post by **GLC-Will** » September 11th, 2008, 11:22 pm

I ended up doing my 6k today, and I suppose it went okay. I got a 1:51.6 split, but this is good for me, since I can build myself up and get back into peak shape.

Thanks for all of the advice, guys. It really helped me out.

I'll make sure to keep all of you updated on my progress!

TabbRows · Post by **TabbRows** » September 12th, 2008, 8:22 am

Nice row GLC.

That pace translates back to riight about a 6:30 for a 2K.

Just work hard this year and follow your coach's program.

Remember, good technique on the water overcomes strength on the erg.

PaulG · Post by **PaulG** » September 13th, 2008, 11:00 am

Good job GLC. It won't alway be fun but it should always be rewarding.

johnlvs2run · Post by **johnlvs2run** » September 13th, 2008, 12:17 pm

TabbRows wrote:That pace translates back to riight about a 6:30 for a 2K.

1:51.6 for a 6k translates to ~ 7:02 for a 2k - based on typical results in the rankings.

bmcgraw · Post by **bmcgraw** » September 14th, 2008, 10:20 am

PaulS wrote:I may be misunderstanding your post, but if you had been doing water only for quite a time and jumped back onto the Erg expecting to be where you were when you left it, that is a bit of a problem. The Erg and Oar are quite different and you need a little practice to get back in the groove. Get in several Erg pieces, 30 - 40 minute with gradual negative splits, starting at a relatively easy pace (2:00), working down to your planned 6k pace (1:50?), perhaps the final 10 minutes at the 1:50.

Paul,

Can you elaborate on this? I've always been curious (and frustrated) about why when I get back on the erg after a lot of water time I'm slower than I used to be.

GLC-Will · Post by **GLC-Will** » September 29th, 2008, 10:55 pm

I figured i'd give another update, just for boosting my own ego

.

Did another 6k today and my split was a 1:48.1. I'm right back on the horse now, and it feels real good. I have until November to attempt to hit my end of season goal of 1:46.5.

'tis going to be hard!

almostflipped · Post by **almostflipped** » October 3rd, 2008, 10:35 pm

Just saw your post. Congrats on the progress. Keep up the work and you may surprise yourself with what you can do.

GLC-Will · Post by **GLC-Will** » November 11th, 2008, 2:19 am

I swear, this is the last time I bump this thread up with bragging.

This is the final proof that my original post was just silly. My end of season 6k goal was a 1:46.5 split, and I was aiming to just get close to it at the beginning of the season Today, I did my final(maybe not!) 6k of the season and got a 1:45.4 split, or a 21:04.9. I'm hoping to do another 6k before the year ends and get sub 21, just to laugh at the erg.

Thanks for the motivation, friends.