LUNA-TICS TEAM ROOM: Year-round "Looney" fun.

[BigBrett58]

Welcome aboard, Brett!

Man, a lot of your story could be mine. There aren't a lot of "Before" pictures of me when I was 6'4" and somewhere well over 300 pounds, but here's one:
...
Still 6'4", but close to 200 pounds.
...

I, too, quit smoking, started eating right and now just feel a whole lot better.

You can do it, too. And we are here to help

Keep us posted, Brett!

William - I really appreciate you sharing the before and after pictures. My body type is similar to yours in that I'm just a big guy. When people guess my weight, they usually guess 75 to 100 pounds too low. I wasn't sure if it was possible for me to get down close to 200 pounds, but seeing your before and after pictures made it seem realistic. Thank you for the encouragement.

[BigBrett58]

[quote="BAZzy"

Hey good to see you Brett I doubt you'll have any regrets; it is just one stroke at a time and your already on your way to better health and fitness, Congratulations, good luck and welcome!

BBB[/quote]


BBB - I agree about one stroke at a time. I learned that life lesson in Marine Corps boot camp, and it continues to help me today. When life seems overwhelming, I ask myself if I can make it through the moment. Can I take one more step; Can I do the right thing for one more moment. Some moments are tough, but after I string some good moments together, I can look back and see that the group of moments turned into an accomplishment. I can't lose 100 pounds today, but I can take one stroke at a time towards that goal.

[BigBrett58]

Hi,Brett. Welcome to team Lunatics. I enjoyed reading your post ... it allowed me to put off starting my evening's row by several minutes ... and your "feel fortunate" observation made me laugh. (Er, might I suggest a heart monitor!?)

We're in the market for a new car ... will check out your suggestions!

I'm always happy to help a fellow procrastinator. While your suggestion was in jest, I was trying to figure out what is needed to use a heart monitor last night. Does a wire run from the chest strap to the monitor? That seems jenky. I hope that's not right.


After being poor through USMC and college, I wanted vehicles that would not break. We've had Toyotas, but we like Hondas right now. Both the Pilot and the Ridgeline were rated number one in their respective classes on Consumer Reports. They're built on the same chassis but are just different shapes. I like them because they're quick, look nice, dependable, and handle great in the snow. I've had vehicles in the past where I'd take a vacation day from work in order to avoid driving in the snow. I don't claim to be an expert on automobiles, but I feel confident recommending a Honda.

[Kona2]

FOUR days to go......

Geese in the skies these days....leaves still on the trees.....16 pumpkins on the vines! Fall's coming and so is the challenge! Anticipation abounds!

Brett - thanks for sharing your story - can't wait to see how your Concept2 chapter continues ! Here are a couple of examples (this astrogator loves to make charts... ) of how a team member's choice to go stratospheric in meter count might be recognized! Wild Bill (aka William H) earned his name with his unrelenting pursuit of meters and health - thought there was a graph similar to that of Mary's when his meter total took a step shift upward ... fun stuff. You'll note that both of these chart events that started in the Fall Challenge....






Season meters as of 133/365 = 24,646,475 m

Total meters on the day = 194,291 m

Oars in space (participation) = 18 percent

MILESTONES...Bragging Rights...Celebrations:

Dan earns a half moon with a posting of 24,254 m
Chris aka Minnie the Mooner earns another half moon for her half marathon
AJ earns another half moon for his half marathon....twin half moons over California....NASA's going to get another report...

Thanks to all today's rowers - way to row!

Mitch TSF 4,000 m - woot! he's getting ready for the Fall Challenge!
Peter G 6,000 m
Greg C 6,021 m
Rick 6,370 m - surely it's not time to put the bikes away yet?!
Steven L 7,214 m
Wild Bill 11,514 m
Rodrigo 17,091 m wowzer!
David T 18,000 m
AJ 21,097 m
Chris 21,097 m
Danno 24,254 m
Brett 51,633 m

An infamous day 9/11...let's make this one ever so much better!

[Kona2]

Welcome to both the year-round team and the Fall Challenge Team, Jill M! We wish you many, many rowing milestones....and lots of celebrations!

[Kona2]

days to the start...49 team members at the ready!

Fall Challenge sign up deadline is 30 September (even though the FTC starts on 15 September, Concept2 gives us a grace period to get the rosters set!).

Whether you're new to a Luna-Tics team challenge or you're a returning team member...buckle your seatbelts! Each challenge team is a new entity - with a strong core of returning team members. What's been true for the last two rowing years is that the Fall Challenge marks the start of an upward trend of meters for both the individual team member and the team in total, increased numbers of team members, and a wild continuing journey to the moon. Maybe your goal is to row four or five times a week, or maybe it's what seems like a stretch of a one million meter season - what you'll find is that team members inspire each other to row more meters - support each other when injuries or life events put someone on the sidelines.



Wonder what this 2011 rowing year will bring???! Join us for the team experience !


Season meters as of 134/365 = 24,830,505 m

Total meters on the day = 184,030 m

Oars in space (participation) = 18 percent

MILESTONES...Bragging Rights...Celebrations:

1.2 MM AJ
1.1 MM Rodrigo-go-go

ONE Million Meter Watch:

Baz with (1,955 m) to go!

Steven L with (110,817 m) to go!

Red giant for greater than 50,000 m posted for Will S! Woot!
Half moon for Danno with 25,186 m posted
Half moon for AJ with 24,112 m

Hooyah! to today's rowers - great numbers from all!

Debbie R 2,259 m
Peter G 5,000 m
Rick 6,255 m
Chris 6,905 m
Tom 10,000 m
Brett 10,000 m
Steven L 10,000 m
Rodrigo 11,118 m
Jill 20,232 m ....thanks for bringing a boatload of meters to the team meter piggy bank!
AJ 24,112 m
Danno 25,186 m
Will S 52,963 m

Have a great rowing day - whenever and wherever you row!

[BigBrett58]

Jill is my wife. I just got her to register on the online logbook this morning. I'll try to get her to register on the forum later. My hope is that I can help make rowing more than just exercise for her by getting involved in the challenges. I don't think she's ever posted on a message board before, so this will be something new for her.

My goal for the fall challenge is 200k, and I'm trying to encourage my wife to try for 100k. I was wondering what goals some of you are setting for this challenge. Also, I'm curious how many days a week do others row. Do you alternate hard and light days? I'm pretty new to rowing and most of my experience in working out comes from the weight room. Right now, I'm just trying to mix up my workouts. For example, yesterday I did my first 10k in just under 54 minutes and today I did my first 2k in just over 8 and half minutes. Since I'm new to rowing, I don't have a good feel about how often I need to take days off. I'm sure that after a month or so I'll have a better feel about how hard I can go without overtraining.

Have I mentioned yet how much I'm loving this rowing?

[Toothdoc]

Welcome to Jill and Brett. With so much new blood this Fall challenge should be fun. FYI there are some of us "old farts" that still have a few meters in the tank.

danno

[Wilbury]

"Old Farts of the rowing world unite."
Welcome aboard, Brett. You have joined the ultimate community. As far as rest goes, rowing is quite demanding. Just listen to your body. When you hop on the rower, and can't seem to get out of your own way (a feeling I know rather well) it's time for a break.
September 15-October 15: Every meter counts. "LETS ROW"

[acrewer]

Brett -

Welcome, you have made a very smart purchase. I was collegiate rower in the late 70's. In the intervening years, I tried gym memberships, classes, jogging, racewalking, walking, yoga, etc to stay in shape. Everything worked, but I got bored or easily injured (fell off the treadmill!). About 4 years ago, I decided to go back to what I really loved, rowing. Bought a used Model D and have over 4 million miles. Less than 800K for my next shirt! Last spring I was squeezing my workouts into a crowded schedule. The lack of warmups caused an injury, so I am slowly building the meters again.

The camraderie of this team is great. Some row lots, others not, but we all enjoy each others accomplishments and tribulations. The support here when my mom passed was really touching - from people I never met in person, but feel I really know. And it's so cool to know people around the world.

Gina

[William H]

Jill is my wife. I just got her to register on the online logbook this morning. I'll try to get her to register on the forum later. My hope is that I can help make rowing more than just exercise for her by getting involved in the challenges. I don't think she's ever posted on a message board before, so this will be something new for her.

My goal for the fall challenge is 200k, and I'm trying to encourage my wife to try for 100k. I was wondering what goals some of you are setting for this challenge. Also, I'm curious how many days a week do others row. Do you alternate hard and light days? I'm pretty new to rowing and most of my experience in working out comes from the weight room. Right now, I'm just trying to mix up my workouts. For example, yesterday I did my first 10k in just under 54 minutes and today I did my first 2k in just over 8 and half minutes. Since I'm new to rowing, I don't have a good feel about how often I need to take days off. I'm sure that after a month or so I'll have a better feel about how hard I can go without overtraining.

Have I mentioned yet how much I'm loving this rowing?

Rowing is quite a different mindset from weight training.

My opinion on rowing is that there are two distinctly different sides to it: Conditioning and Competition.

A common mistake I've seen a few folks make is they focus on the Competition side before building a strong base with proper conditioning. It is important NOT to focus on the "How Fast" aspect at first, just slowly build the metres and focus on proper form and endurance. The key to Conditioning (and weight loss ) is LSD - Long, Slow Distance.

You will derive much more benefit from a relatively slow 6,000 metre row (e.g. 33 minutes @ 2:45/500m) than from a relatively fast 2,000 metre row (e.g. 8:30 @ 2:27/500m). Your 10k in 54 minutes was at a good pace for conditioning @ 2:42/500.

Additionally, a Japanese study has shown that the training benefit of two shorter workouts done in close succession (a 20-30 minute break between workouts) is better than one workout of the same total length.

For example, if you had broken up your 10K in 54 into two 5K workouts of 27 minutes each you would actually be conditioning faster.

I try to do two or three workouts every day; but school, training, ER and ambulance rotations make that impossible so it works out to 5 or 6 days a week on the Erg. I have followed the multiple workout regimen, and it has worked well for me. Just don't try to go too far too quickly. When I started up after a few months off, my workouts were 3K or 5K for awhile until they felt comfortable and I gradually increased them. Now I'm up to 11,000-17,000 for my first stint, 8,000-13,000 for my second stint and some days a third stint of anywhere from 6,000-10,000 depending on how I feel. I just set the Erg up on "Just Row" and let my body determine how far I'll go each day.

Last year, when I was a bit "Erg Crazy" I was forcing 50,000/day for awhile. Let's just say that is not a longterm sustainable pace for a 59 year old. I'm much happier now at a 20,000-30,000 range daily workout.

The important thing is for you to work out what is best for you. START SLOWLY! Especially true for your wife. Nothing will sour someone on any workout routine than trying to do too much too soon. Just try to do something every day. I'm convinced the psychological effect of disciplining oneself to do something, even a little, every day is just as important in the long run as the metres rowed.

You have started down the road (or I guess down the river would be more appropriate, eh?) - enjoy the journey.

[Toothdoc]

Brett:

Danno here, I will echo everything Wild Bill just said. Then I will tell you at age 66 for the up coming Fall Challenge my goal is 10 K every morning before surgery and 15 K every afternoon when I get home. And some days will excede this. And there will be no days off, barring injury. That said take it slow and easy in the beginning. I've been at this for at least 6 years.

dc

[BigBrett58]

Thanks Wild Bill and Danno for the training advice. A 2:45/500 pace is a very sustainable pace for me for a long time. When I push it to 2:25/500, I can maintain that for 30 minutes, but it takes a lot of willpower. If you're telling me that rowing at a comfortable pace will get me results, then I'm happy to follow your advice.

The only Japanese training I could find after a few minutes of research was the Tabata Protocol. This involved hyper intense 30 second intervals followed by 2 minutes recoveries for around 8 intervals. I assume this isn't what you were talking about, is it? My guess is that the benefit of 2 shorter workouts rather than 1 longer workout may have something to do with burning the glucose in your bloodstream during the first 20 minutes and burning more fat in the second 20 minutes. Is it something like that?

[BAZzy]

Jill is my wife. I just got her to register on the online logbook this morning. I'll try to get her to register on the forum later. My hope is that I can help make rowing more than just exercise for her by getting involved in the challenges. I don't think she's ever posted on a message board before, so this will be something new for her.

My goal for the fall challenge is 200k, and I'm trying to encourage my wife to try for 100k. I was wondering what goals some of you are setting for this challenge. Also, I'm curious how many days a week do others row. Do you alternate hard and light days? I'm pretty new to rowing and most of my experience in working out comes from the weight room. Right now, I'm just trying to mix up my workouts. For example, yesterday I did my first 10k in just under 54 minutes and today I did my first 2k in just over 8 and half minutes. Since I'm new to rowing, I don't have a good feel about how often I need to take days off. I'm sure that after a month or so I'll have a better feel about how hard I can go without overtraining.

Have I mentioned yet how much I'm loving this rowing?

Hi Brett

I train as a power lifter three days per week, and row each day (well mostly) as I find it actually assists my recovery.

William mentioned two training phases and I very much endorse where he is coming from. Presently I've been rowing a one hour session at a constant pace, and this has simply been for conditioning as I was supposed to be walking in Papua New Guinea for a couple of weeks and I’ve been following this for quite some time. However, normally I follow a 2,000 metre training program that takes you through periodic training, including endurance, and ‘race’ fitness (HIT).

There is some good information around these days covering High Intensity Training (HIT), and how it assists in fat loss and weight management. Potentially a 15/30 minute HIT work-out using intervals might yield better results than say rowing for longer periods at a constant pace. Cross-Fit is an example of this type of training.

If you get a chance take a good look at the C2 Training guide as it covers a lot of ground and a great reference for anyone into fitness training, not just rowing.

Main thing like any exercise regime just ease yourself into it, or any changes you make to it...and enjoy!

Cheers
BBB

[William H]

The only Japanese training I could find after a few minutes of research was the Tabata Protocol. This involved hyper intense 30 second intervals followed by 2 minutes recoveries for around 8 intervals. I assume this isn't what you were talking about, is it? My guess is that the benefit of 2 shorter workouts rather than 1 longer workout may have something to do with burning the glucose in your bloodstream during the first 20 minutes and burning more fat in the second 20 minutes. Is it something like that?

Unsure of the mechanism involved, but the idea is that it is better to take a break rather than slog through a single, long workout.

Baz is right on. If you are interested in all the ins and outs, there is a lot of great information available out there - after all, I didn't even stay at a Holiday Inn last night

Just ease into whatever you find works best for you and try to do something every day.