Ranger's training thread

[Rockin Roland]

Any large body of water can quickly become too dangerous to row on when the wind starts to blow. You could probably count the number of calm safe rowable days in a year on one hand for any of these larger lakes.

The problem Rich has is that his single scull is a Fluidesign boat. Only 11 inches in width and with a very shallow pit. Most importantly the sides of his boat are very thin and sharp. So if he happens to fall out, in the middle of one of those lakes, he'd wouldn't be able to get back into his boat without cutting himself to shreds. Hence I doubt, with his limited experience, that he would venture very far from shore.

[ranger]

Well, it makes a certain amount of sense, if you're willing to take the ridiculous step of believing that no one but ranger has ever thought to try to improve their technique, strategy, equipment, etc. Typically, a coach would be working on most of those factors

Sure, coaches work on technique.

But that is not really what my coach is suggesting.

What my coach is suggesting is this:

(1) Spend _all_ of your rowing time working on technique (until you get it right) and let fitness take care of itself (rather than the other way around).

(2) Work on technique by rowing well, not just thinking or talking about it.

As far as I can tell, my coach is the only coach who has been having his rower(s) adopt these two principles as a training plan.

My coach's further suggestion is this:

(3) If you have trained your fitness to the max, even once, you won't get any better over 2K unless you follow this training plan.

(4) If you have a WR row, like Roy (or Mike C., or Paul Siebach, or Dennis Hastings, or myself, or...), you have trained your fitness to the max in order to get it.

My most important suggestion is this:

(5) No matter who you are, if you follow this training plan, you are likely to get _a whole lot_ better over 2K, perhaps as much as 5-10 seconds per 500m better, a margin large enough to transform one of the worst rowers of any age and weight into one of the best.

As far as I know, my coach is the only one who has suggested these things, too.

BTW, I have the best coach in the world.



ranger

[ranger]

The problem Rich has is that his single scull is a Fluidesign boat. Only 11 inches in width and with a very shallow pit. Most importantly the sides of his boat are very thin and sharp. So if he happens to fall out, in the middle of one of those lakes, he'd wouldn't be able to get back into his boat without cutting himself to shreds.

Hmm.

Interesting thought.

You are right about the sharp edges on the Fluid.

Nonetheless, as I remember, I have indeed flipped my Fluid over the year that I've had it (although not often, just a couple of times), and I had no problems getting back in.

ranger

[ranger]

Interestingly, Mike C. jumped on this thread a while ago and ridiculed this training plan even though his 2K has fallen off by 18 seconds during his 40s, from 6:18 to 6:36.

ranger

[PaulH]

(1) Spend _all_ of your training time working on technique (until you get it right) and let fitness take care of itself (rather than the other way around).

...

BTW, I have the best coach in the world.

And yet you chose to ignore this coach by doing session after session of cross training.

[ranger]

(1) Spend _all_ of your training time working on technique (until you get it right) and let fitness take care of itself (rather than the other way around).

...

BTW, I have the best coach in the world.

And yet you chose to ignore this coach by doing session after session of cross training.

Sure.

Sorry.

I meant to say spend all of your _rowing time_ working on technique.

I'll change it above.

BTW, I am not cross-training at all now, and perhaps this can be generalized to a principle of training, too.

The principle might be this:

(6) Once you row well, you don't need to work on your fitness in other way--at all. Just row.

At the moment, I am erging as cross-training for my OTW rowing, and doing my OTW rowing as cross-training for my erging.

I like this mix.

It is all rowing, but some of it can be done before dawn (OTErg) and then the rest right after dawn (OTW).

ranger

[snowleopard]

Interestingly, Mike C. jumped on this thread a while ago and ridiculed this training plan even though his 2K has fallen off by 18 seconds during his 40s, from 6:18 to 6:36.

And yours fell of a cliff in your 50s, from < 6:30 to 7:02

[KevJGK]

Interestingly, Mike C. jumped on this thread a while ago......

So interesting you never answered his question.

"And here’s a question I’ve always wanted to ask: being that you were a lifetime runner, swimmer, skater, cyclist, canoest, etc. and exercise hours a day without getting sick or stale or taking days off – how come you weighed 195 pounds when you took up indoor rowing and had to lose 30 pounds to compete as a lightweight?"

[ranger]

Interestingly, Mike C. jumped on this thread a while ago and ridiculed this training plan even though his 2K has fallen off by 18 seconds during his 40s, from 6:18 to 6:36.

And yours fell of a cliff in your 50s, from < 6:30 to 7:02

Nope.

We'll have to wait and see about that one.

We will only be able to compare what I can do now, rowing well (13 SPI) at low drag (120 df.), fully prepared, with what I could do ten years ago, rowing like shit (10 SPI) at max drag (200+ df.), fully prepared, when I have completed my race preparation this year (distance trials, sharpening, etc.).

You need to compare apples with apples and oranges with oranges.

You are mixing your fruit.




ranger

[ranger]

Interestingly, Mike C. jumped on this thread a while ago......

So interesting you never answered his question.

"And here’s a question I’ve always wanted to ask: being that you were a lifetime runner, swimmer, skater, cyclist, canoest, etc. and exercise hours a day without getting sick or stale or taking days off – how come you weighed 195 pounds when you took up indoor rowing and had to lose 30 pounds to compete as a lightweight?"

Probably for the same reason you weigh 185 lbs.

What is your % body fat?

How much non-fat body mass do you have?

If they have substantial muscle mass, it is hard for a veteran male to be 10% body fat.

Only 1% of 60-year-old males are 10% body fat, and I suspect that most of those 1% couldn't row a lick, because they are skinny runts or beanpoles, ectomorphs with no muscle mass to speak of.

Why in the world is NavHaz 30% body fat?

He could lose 50 lbs.

ranger

[KevJGK]

Probably for the same reason you weigh 185 lbs.

Well I've always been a pig - so glad we've cleared that up.

[ranger]

Probably for the same reason you weigh 185 lbs.

Well I've always been a pig - so glad we've cleared that up.

I was 145 lbs. in high school.

I was 155 lbs. in college.

I ran most of my sub-3 hour FMs in my 20s and 30s at 165 lbs.

I started to gain weight in my 40s, when achilles tendon problems made it hard for me to run as much as I used to.

Clearly, rowing, which I started doing at 50, solved that problem.

I now work as hard at my rowing as I used to work at my running.

So weight is no problem, although I usually walk around now at about 170 lbs.

ranger

[JimR]

Interestingly, Mike C. jumped on this thread a while ago and ridiculed this training plan even though his 2K has fallen off by 18 seconds during his 40s, from 6:18 to 6:36.

And yours fell of a cliff in your 50s, from < 6:30 to 7:02

Nope.

We'll have to wait and see about that one.

We will only be able to compare what I can do now, rowing well (13 SPI) at low drag (120 df.), fully prepared, with what I could do ten years ago, rowing like shit (10 SPI) at max drag (200+ df.), fully prepared, when I have completed my race preparation this year (distance trials, sharpening, etc.).

You need to compare apples with apples and oranges with oranges.

You are mixing your fruit.




ranger

The issue we seem to be having is that your fruit spoils before we can compare.

Reality is we have two real, confirmed data points (6:30 and 7:02) that show your training plan is not achieving the results claimed. All that investment was supposed to pay off and it just didn't ... what's up with that?!

JimR

[ranger]

Gorgeously clear, sparkling day here in Door County, WI.

Northern air continues to blow in.



12K OTErg just before dawn.

ranger

[Fred]

12K OTErg just before dawn.

Nope, probably not even 10k. here's your posting times this morning. You had a 40min gap between posts. Figure a couple minute to compose the post at 5:19 plus a couple minutes to walk from erg to PC, means you probably erged for not a lot over 30 minutes.
5:19 am
4:39 am
4:03 am
4:01 am
3:53 am
3:52 am
3:46 am
3:37 am


That's not delusion, that's just plain lying.