Brand New To The Forum

[old] woolsmith · Post by **[old] woolsmith** » October 29th, 2005, 11:02 pm

Welcome to the Duck Pond, Diane! If you haven't joined a rowing team already, the Ducks would love to have ya! The instructions are posted at one of the original Women's Forum notes at the top of the page. It's a non-competitive team thing. Any meters you row will simply add to the team's total, so more people means more meters. Ducks in a Row are now in 7th place, woohoo! C2 has some great info on its website, and the UK Concept2 site has some great stuff as well. Good idea to start slow like you're doing--you'll be using muscles ya forgot about! I got my rower in May, and this thing is addicting. I love it, love it. The challenges are lots of fun, and they give me great motivation to keep me rowing. Otherwise, I'd probably keep finding excuses after excuses to not row. In any case, glad to see you here, Diane. What are you working on in school? I'm debating going back for a graduate degree, but I'm not sure it will help me in the field I'm in...and I'm not so sure I want to stay in it, anyway. I'd blow over 30 grand to not really move me ahead, so I'm considering going from the healthcare field into computers. I might be able to combine the two somehow. I have to decide what I wanna be when I grow up!! --Jen in WI

[old] Xeno · Post by **[old] Xeno** » October 30th, 2005, 12:14 am

Welcome and hi from me

[old] liz laker · Post by **[old] liz laker** » November 8th, 2005, 6:16 pm

Hi I'm not new to rowing used to go to a gym but got myself a concept 2 last year. it's great having one there yo use when I want, I'm a runner normally and find it compliments my training. and is great when I dont want to go out in the bad weather!

[old] Diane Edinger · Post by **[old] Diane Edinger** » November 18th, 2005, 2:08 am

Thank you for the welcome Jen and Xeno! I look forward to learning from you all! Regards, Diane

[old] Diane Edinger · Post by **[old] Diane Edinger** » November 18th, 2005, 2:47 am

Jen, Thank you for the note of encouragement It IS very addicting! ...there are few sports that really call to me...there has to be that un-nameable something that gets you hooked. I purchased a heartrate monitor recently, and it has really helped me to pace myself and stretch my endurance. I had never realized how much my enthusiasm was ...not helping me. Not to mention the unnecessary discomfort! The C2 website is great. The personal logs are a great way to actually see improvement, and the discussion pages are a wonderful place to learn from others and be reminded of our common humanity. I will check out Ducks in a Row! ...a virtual rowing team...who would have thought! I am going back to school to tie together my art and design background with mfg. engineering. Your idea to seek to combine disparate fields of study could be a really great adventure! Best wishes...going back to school is a real treat! Take care, -Diane P.S. I have to come up with a good pen name! That seems to be the thing to do.

[old] grams · Post by **[old] grams** » November 18th, 2005, 1:17 pm

Hi Diane, In my 30's I got a BLA degree in landscape architecture (design) and then went back in my 40's for a Masters in construction engineering. I've never been sorry. It gave me a real edge over the folks who did engineering design but couldn't visualize the resulting layout. You will be way ahead of the crowd; go for it. grams

[old] Diane Edinger · Post by **[old] Diane Edinger** » November 18th, 2005, 2:01 pm

Thanks for the encouragement Grams! It has been a lot of work, and long hours when working full time as well, but the benefits are immeasurable. Besides, going back to school as an adult is a great experience--much easier and more enjoyable! Regards, Diane

[old] Leena · Post by **[old] Leena** » November 30th, 2005, 11:01 am

Hi everyone. New here. New to rowing. I started last May on the water, contintues learning all summer and started competing in the fall. I've only been erging regularly for a few weeks now. And I have questions. Hoo boy do I have questions. The most pressing is my tailbone. It really hurts, not when I'm rowing so much, but all day long after that. I don't think I'm pulling improperly, as my coaches have been really good about emphasizing technique. I'm guessing it's more an issue of... having a bony butt to put it bluntly. Would it be worth it to invest in some padding? Can I throw a towel on the erg seat? Or will that just make me slip? Anyone else have this problem? My other erging concern is my inability to row at a high spm. For some reason, I do much better the lower my spm is. I can go a lot further at an 19 spm than I can at a 22. And that's about as high as I can get while still keeping a ratio and a decent wattage (on the erg anyway, boats seem to be different) My master's coach gave me workouts for the winter, but they require me to get up to a 26. I'm bewildred about how to do that, lol. So, any advice on how to reconcile pulling hard with pulling fast would be greatly appreciated! As for me, I'm 29 years old. I started rowing as a way to get back into shape after my breast cancer went into remission (You are never too young to get breast cancer; everyone check your breasts right now! /public service announcment). I love rowing so much though. I love how it is nice on my joints and how it works so many different muscle groups at once. It's so relaxing. And I've met a lot of nice people. nice to meet you all! - leena <table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'>QUOTE(LindaM @ Feb 25 2005, 12:09 PM)</div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>Hi All you newbies and lurker potential newbies - C'mon, take the plunge! We're nice. And we want to hear from you. Tell us what you are thinking. Ask your questions. Share your successes. Tell us about those stumbles too. What hurts? What feels great? What do you want to get from rowing? Why does rowing work for you? And that's just for starters. </td></tr></table>

[old] Alissa · Post by **[old] Alissa** » November 30th, 2005, 11:31 am

<table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'>QUOTE(Leena @ Nov 30 2005, 07:01 AM)</div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>The most pressing is my tailbone. It really hurts, not when I'm rowing so much, but all day long after that. I don't think I'm pulling improperly, as my coaches have been really good about emphasizing technique. I'm guessing it's more an issue of... having a bony butt to put it bluntly. Would it be worth it to invest in some padding? Can I throw a towel on the erg seat? Or will that just make me slip? Anyone else have this problem? </td></tr></table> Hi Leena. On the tailbone thing, I'm wondering if you've tucked your pelvis under too much so that you're sitting on your tailbone instead of your "sitz" bones? You should be looking for a "neutral spine" orientation as you sit on your sitz bones (neither tucked under nor extended back), then rotating the entire torso forward or backward from the hip when the the back swings. If you're tucking under too much, your coach should be able to help you monitor the angle of your pelvis to get it to a more neutral position--which might help (if that was the problem, of course). I have no thoughts on padding, but have heard others here suggest towels or bubble wrap. Best wishes--and glad you're here! Alissa

[old] Leena · Post by **[old] Leena** » November 30th, 2005, 11:56 am

You know what Alissa? I think that could be it. I tend to crunch myself up at the catch, especially. Thank you so much!

[old] loonylady · Post by **[old] loonylady** » December 1st, 2005, 8:58 pm

<table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'>QUOTE(Leena @ Nov 30 2005, 11:56 AM)</div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>You know what Alissa? I think that could be it. I tend to crunch myself up at the catch, especially. Thank you so much! </td></tr></table> Hi Leena, I just wanted to welcome you and invite you and all the other new rowers to join our virtual rowing team, Ducks in A Row. I'm new myself and it took me a little while to discover the virtual teams but once I found them, I joined the Ducks and find it very motivational. It's crazy how rowing on a team with people I don't know against more people I don't know is motivational but somehow it is. We have quite a bit of competition from some of the other virtual teams and can use all the new members we can get. Carol

[old] woolsmith · Post by **[old] woolsmith** » December 3rd, 2005, 12:03 am

Hi Leena, I just wanted to welcome you and invite you and all the other new rowers to join our virtual rowing team, Ducks in A Row. I'm new myself and it took me a little while to discover the virtual teams but once I found them, I joined the Ducks and find it very motivational. It's crazy how rowing on a team with people I don't know against more people I don't know is motivational but somehow it is. We have quite a bit of competition from some of the other virtual teams and can use all the new members we can get. Carol [/quote] Carol, I loved your note. And you're exactly right--the whole thing about rowing on a team of people we don't know, rowing against more people we don't know...it all sounds a bit "quackers," hey? And I keep getting right out there each week and doing it all over again. We fell behind a notch in the rankings today, but now we're back up by only 10k. Leena, for the sore bottom thing: in addition to getting the right position like Alissa mentioned (made me sit up and take notice, too. Thanks, Alissa!), a double layer of bubble wrap sometimes helps, and the padded seat cushion that C2 sells for pretty cheap is really good, too. And after awhile, it all seems to get better--it must be because those glutes are getting built up and providing more padding or something, but now I don't notice the "tailbone burn" until I start getting over 12k in one sitting. Wow, breast cancer in your twenties. It's not common, but it seems to be getting more so for some reason. Scary. And interestingly, the American Cancer Society isn't pushing the breast self exam campaign any more. It's *not* because they don't think anyone should be doing them. It seems that after all the money and effort they put into that campaign, they didn't feel like they were getting the kind of return they hoped for. A lot of women either weren't doing them at all, or they weren't doing as well as ACS had hoped, and a lot of women were missing breast lumps. However, a lot of women WERE finding lumps, so women should still check, imho. Anyway, now ACS is putting more of a focus into research and finding better ways of testing for early detection and for better ways of treating breast cancer. I can't even get any of the free info pamphlets for BSE from ACS any more. Fortunately, you'll see some other women's-related groups carrying the torch for breast self exams, i.e., Oprah and women's magazines, etc. So you're right, Leena: Ladies, KEEP DOING THOSE BREAST EXAMS! It's one more weapon in the arsenal. In any case, I'm glad you're in remission, and I'm glad you're a Duck! Welcome to the DIAR Duck Pond. --Jen, whose pond in WI is getting a tad frozen. I'll have to use my bubblewrap for landings now.

[old] rowak · Post by **[old] rowak** » December 4th, 2005, 4:34 am

Hi everyone. New here. I started rowing on water in June. I was instantly hooked the first time I got in the boat. I went to practice 4-5 times a week the entire summer. I got a novice crew together and raced in 2 instate regattas. The first race was a 5K. We had 4 novice and 4 expericenced in a 8+. Our time was 22.40. Then we had a 20 minute break and did it again in 21 something??. I have never worked so hard in my life!! Then a couple months later we had sprint (1500m)races. There were 3 novice 4+ boats in the race. We were lane 1. Well lane 2 crashed into us 2 times in the start! The third boat was gone. Well, my boat got really pissed and we started yelling and hooting and hollerin and took off. We caught up to the third boat. They did beat us still, but we caught up! The boat that crashed us was 1:20 behind! Our water then froze and we were not in a boat for 2 weeks. We planned on a out of state regatta. I used the erg a few times in that 2 weeks. I could not get into it. I used the elliptical instead. I wanted to keep up my endurance. It's amazing how fast you can lose it. We raced in the Frostbite (Seattle) and HoTL. We came in 1st in the sprint race! We beat the second place boat by 10 seconds (which i am told is a lot for a sprint race). The funny part is our average age in the boat is 31.5 and the other boats had college/highschool kids. That made our day!! In the Head race we got 4th with the time of 21.58. Not bad, but we will do better next year. Sorry to go on and on!! It just has been a great summer and fall! When I try to talk to non rowers about, I swear, the eyes start to glaze over. lol... ok, btw, I am 31. 4 boys (3 sons and a husband). I have lost 32 pounds since June gained nice biceps, endurance and a new love!. After our water froze, I had to start erg'n. At first I did NOT like it. I love being out on the water. The smell, sounds, view. aahhh... And then to erg and stare at a wall?? WTH?? But a friend linked C2 site and a challenge. lol... now I am sold. I put together fast paced music and really, just lose myself now while erg'n! I mix up my workouts with lifting, erging and hot yoga. Oh, and I have to use the gym's C2 erg. I have made a promise to myself. If I keep up erg'n the entire winter, next fall I will reward myself with my own C2. I even have the perfect spot for it in my living room

L ~ in Alaska - (can't wait for Mothers Day 2006! If the water is not still stiff, that will be our seasons first row!!)

[old] cuserower02 · Post by **[old] cuserower02** » December 4th, 2005, 6:05 pm

hi everyone! I'm new to the C2 website, but not necessarily new to rowing...more like, just coming back after a long sabbactical! I rowed in college and it was the best shape I'd ever been in my life...the training was intense, and I was on a team with Junior Olympic champions that really motivated me. Granted I was just a walk-on, and relatively short in comparison to the rest of the rowers (5'7"), it was still a great experience. I'm now just getting back into it, doing between 7-10k meters a day, and I've noticed horrible upper back muscular pain. I'd posted about this in another forum but as women, have any of you experienced this too? I'm thinking it's posture...any ideas? What's this Ducks In A Row thing of which I hear so much? Can someone give me some info on it - it sounds fun! Thanks!

[old] woolsmith · Post by **[old] woolsmith** » December 4th, 2005, 9:52 pm

Hi rowak and cuserower02! Ducks in a Row (DIAR) is a women's virtual rowing team. There's no real competition, just more people on the team means more meters for the team. There's a "University Team/Club Standing" board that shows which team has the most total meters rowed. So if ya wanna join DIAR, we'd love to have ya's! The instructions to join are given in one of the permanent posts at the top of the Women's Forum page. Any meters you log into your online logbook get automatically added to the team totals. It's really a neat system C2 has set up. If you have any questions, give a holler, and someone will get an answer for you. There are lots of really, really nice folks in these forums. We have a really nice group of women in DIAR, too. Rowak--as much as I like rowing on my erg, I'm afraid to row on water because I'm afraid I'll like it as much (or more--love to be outside!), and then I'll have to get my own scull or...is it a wherry? Like a scull only a tad more heavy and, uh, stable? I live up in northern WI, and we have lots of lakes up here...I want my own on water rower, waaah! In any case, welcome to the Duck Pond! Cuserower02--You sound like you have the experience to have the technique down (I've been rowing a few months now, so that makes me an expert, right? ), but I'll throw out a few things anyway: If you can find one of Xeno Muller's posts, he has some links in his signature at the bottom of his posts, and one of those is a video clip of his technique that you can move through frame by frame. Might be good to study how he does his drive. He's an olympic gold and sliver medalist in single sculls. I know it's easy to fall into some bad habits--I live by bad habits. I know I have to keep checking in on my technique because I'll get sloppy, especially when I'm getting fatigued. Are you doing any stretching after you row? If not, might give that a whirl. I have a couple of yoga DVDs that I love, and they've really helped to loosen up some of my joints as well as giving me a good muscle stretch. They're great for working to improve posture as well. I thought my flexibility in some areas was pretty decent until I tried some of these beginner yoga DVDs! I'm doing much better now. I've always had problems with arm/shoulder strength and flexibility for some reason. I'm betting you already know all of this, so hopefully, someone else who is better at this than me will jump in with some helpful info (Ducks, help!!). Are you getting pain more in one side or the other, or is it equal on both sides? Are you watching TV and looking off in one direction instead of straight ahead? Do you carry a bag or backpack (or a child??) on one arm/shoulder? Are either of you two doing the Holiday Challenge? Happy rowing! --Jen in WI