Long distance rows

[hjs]

no the ones they read on gets the most used. its moot, they are all just ass boring, agree with Carl.

You cannot help but plug the Rowperfect on here.

But seriously the "movement" aspect of the rowperfect has nothing to do with it, The typical user still going to get bored with it.

That's nonsense Carl.
The movement has everything to do with it.
You go to a gym and see what exercise equipment people tend to spend more time on. It will be the equipment that they get least bored on and enjoy the movement.

Lucky for C2 that Rowperfect isn't a large enough company to have an erg positioned in gyms across the world next to every C2 erg. Why do think that people need visual stimuli to stay on a C2 erg? Because they are sooooo boring to use. A Rowperfect is far more enjoyable to erg on than that old outdated designed heap of junk that your trying to justify using. Until people wake up to this I'll keep these unshameful plugs going.

[bobkwan2007]

Machines, regardless of what they are--ellipticals, ergs, treadmills, climbers, bikes, are all BORING! A dynamic erg might keep me amused for a few weeks with the change in motion, but eventually it's still goes back to being boring. If you're rowing day in and day out, the best thing is to use some kind of external distraction--movie, music, rowing partner to chat, etc.

[jvincent]

Another vote for the "all machines are boring" camp.

When I am on the rower in the morning the music video channel is on. If I am on the treadmill then the music is on the headphones.

[Oldcolonial]

Big TV, Kick ass sound system and a good movie or serialized TV show on Blue Ray are key to me. I have rowed my way through Mad Men and the first couple of seasons of Boardwalk Empire.

[bobkwan2007]

Big TV, Kick ass sound system and a good movie or serialized TV show on Blue Ray are key to me. I have rowed my way through Mad Men and the first couple of seasons of Boardwalk Empire.

+1 for the big TV, but I prefer a good set of wireless headphones. Without them, you'd have to crank the volume up pretty high, and at 5:00 AM, I don't think my family, nor the neighbours would appreciate that. Complete season of shows on DVD or Bluray are great. Gives you some incentive to get on the erg.

A dynamic erg would work better for watching TV, admittedly, because you're not constantly moving back and forth from the TV. So maybe RockinRoland has a point.

[Cyclist2]

Getting caught up... I agree that ALL indoor simulation machines are boring. I can't ride a stationary bike more than an hour, and when I'm not training for a bike race or ride I usually opt off the bike in the garage. The erg is slightly less boring, plus the workout is superior.

[leadville]

I may be a rare one here.

My shortest row on the erg is an hour; I go up to 2.5 hours, usually listening to a book on tape, sometimes just focusing on technique for parts and then going to a podcast. I try to row ten perfect strokes at a time, and see how long I can maintain my concentration. use the erg to not only train the physiology, but mental discipline. anyone who's a serious competitor can row hard, it is rowing well over long and/or hard workouts that is really tough.

[carlb]

I'm curious about how you guys do the over 30 minutes pieces. Any suggestion to overcome the boring and maybe someday begin to think in a half marathon piece.

You could try Fartlek's, Swedish for speed play. Each 1000m is broken down into 200m faster, 200m slower, 600m on pace. That keeps me busy watchng the monitor for changes, and changing speed, so the time goes by a little faster.

Example target pace 2:08
1000m warmup
200m at 1:58 - faster
200m at 2:15 - slower
600m at 2:08 - workout
repeat

Breaking the long into intervals with a break of 30 to 60 seconds for some water and stretch. E.g. 2500m, or 10 to 15 min. The short term goal is something to look forward to.

[Atorrante]

I'm curious about how you guys do the over 30 minutes pieces. Any suggestion to overcome the boring and maybe someday begin to think in a half marathon piece.

You could try Fartlek's, Swedish for speed play. Each 1000m is broken down into 200m faster, 200m slower, 600m on pace. That keeps me busy watchng the monitor for changes, and changing speed, so the time goes by a little faster.

Example target pace 2:08
1000m warmup
200m at 1:58 - faster
200m at 2:15 - slower
600m at 2:08 - workout
repeat

Breaking the long into intervals with a break of 30 to 60 seconds for some water and stretch. E.g. 2500m, or 10 to 15 min. The short term goal is something to look forward to.

Thanks. I"ll try this and add it to the buffet of workouts that is what is functioning for me right now. Everyday I plan for a piece and the variety not only fight the boreness but it add to the efectiveness of training.

[SaBhava]

Hi,
here is another suggestion: embrace boredom! Nowadays, people seem to be very afraid of being bored. Everywhere you turn, people switch on gadgets to be entertained. In my opinion all that constant input is too much for most people. I mean, besides cancer and obesity mental illness is really the number one killer in all developed countries. Boredom is like mental hygiene.

I really like indoor rowing because the mind simply has nothing to do. When I started indoor rowing three years ago I listened to audio books a lot while rowing (BTW great way to be entertained). I was doing 40 min of rowing three times a week.

Recently I discovered that it is much for me to just be bored and do nothing but watch my body doing the motions right and my pace. After 40 min I feel nicely exhausted and relaxed - ready for another day in modern information society!

Cheers,
SaBhavas

[Yankeerunner]

I may be a rare one here.

My shortest row on the erg is an hour; I go up to 2.5 hours, usually listening to a book on tape, sometimes just focusing on technique for parts and then going to a podcast. I try to row ten perfect strokes at a time, and see how long I can maintain my concentration. use the erg to not only train the physiology, but mental discipline. anyone who's a serious competitor can row hard, it is rowing well over long and/or hard workouts that is really tough.

Agreed.

One hour is not short for me, but I occasionally do full marathons and have done them both with and without TV or movies. Either way I end up concentrating on the monitor and assessing body parts and trying to make whatever pace I'm trying to maintain as relaxed as possible.

One of the recurring themes with the Wolverine Plan is how fast an hour or more of Level 4 seems to pass by. I'm sure it's because more concentration on maintaining pace and stroke rate is required, thereby shutting most external distractions and amounting to something like meditation or self-hypnosis.

Not boring, but mind-clearing.

[enrage]

the solution:

It's all in your head. Change your thought process and your reality will adjust itself around you.

That's my feel good hippie statement for the day.

[bepah]

the solution:

It's all in your head. Change your thought process and your reality will adjust itself around you.

That's my feel good hippie statement for the day.

I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggonit, people like me! - Stuart Smalley

[eliotsmith]

I agree wholeheartedly with enrage and SaBhava. How easy it is to feel that we need something for our mind to do other than focusing on what our body is already doing.

I find concentrating on my breathing to be both enriching and at times maddening, but I continue to try to improve my focus and the honest attempt itself keeps me going.

Eliot

[enrage]

I agree wholeheartedly with enrage and SaBhava. How easy it is to feel that we need something for our mind to do other than focusing on what our body is already doing.

I find concentrating on my breathing to be both enriching and at times maddening, but I continue to try to improve my focus and the honest attempt itself keeps me going.

Eliot

there is an untapped mental physical mediation to it that most of us don't even tap in to. I find that outdoor runners that don't use music while running, tend to find their zen, balance or calmness through their physical activity.

early man were hunter gatherers and they didn't have their ipods or tv's to while chasing their food or while swimming across the lake.

We should all listen to our genetic dna and learn to appreciate the sound & feeling while our body is doing a physical activity. I believe there is something there that each of us can learn from in order to help us with our stress.

Breathe.