New (out of shape) rower, hello

[jamesg]

Drag factor: anything near the erg can interfere with airflow and reduce the DF. I'm all in favor of that, and 92 is fine, I get a nice quick stroke without having to pull too hard.

[RhodyMMM]

Hello all, I think I will join in on the thread. I too am trying for weight loss; I do row at a rowing club once a week and then try to do two or three more sessions at home. Bobpond, to you question about the stroke rate and counts, one of my coaches told me to do a total count of 4: drive, 2, 3, 4. That gives you a good recovery before the next drive. I find that my most efficient rate is about 18 spm. I get my split to be about 2:15/500 meters and I can hold that pace for a longer period of time than if my stroke rate is higher. I like the metronome idea! I row to music, I have a play list that seems to help me stay at 18-20 spm. Make sure you are really driving with your legs, that will give you more power.
I am 55 years old, finished 6 months of chemo (with many complications) for breast cancer one year ago today, and rowing (on and off the water) has done wonders for regaining (and improving!) my physical strength and psyche.
Martha

[DanielJ]

Martha, 2:15/500 @ 18 spm is not bad at all. I guess you're already quite strong. And you say "one of my coaches" so I guess your technique is pretty solid too.

I don't like the metronome idea, though. With good technique, you'll just get into your own rhythm and it really doesn't matter if your rate slips up to 19 or down to 17. As one becomes adapted to the rowing motion, timing the stroke will be easy, and ultimately second nature.

I prefer to listen to the flywheel, the sounds of my sliding back and forth etc. to dictate my timing. I know what 16 spm sounds like, what 18 spm sounds like, what 20 spm sounds like etc. Wolverine Plan Level 4 workouts are great for this.

[iain]

Re HR, people's HRmax varies hugely and is unconnected with fitness. One persons 180 is the same as anothers 145 so any age related formula is meaningless. So long as you can talk comfortably then the work is not too intense.

Bob, the stroke rate also burns alot of calories. The amount is dependent on your technique, but for someone of your size you would use around 30% more calories (in addition to your BMR) at 24SPM and 2:45 pace than at 16 SPM 2:35 pace (assuming the strokes are as long as each other). That said, 24SPM is quite high for a larger beginner and I would suggest 18-20 at first and atleast until you have the technique off pat and start to increase the pace somewhat. 30min continuous is a great start. THree is ot much difference with taking short breaks, so I suggest that you increase the rowing by splitting it into shorter intervals taking a couple of minutes rest between them and taking the opportunity to drink.

- Iain

[Bobpond]

Thanks for the feedback. I appreciate it. I can't follow all of the advice yet I don't have the conditioning but I will when I get there.

I really like rowing. I'm taking tomorrow off and then next week will be my first full week I am planning on six days a week.

I'll probably use the metronome to continue reinforcing "drive, 2, 3, 4" for the next week then it should be ingrained enough.

Martha what a great story. Physical activity should be prescribed to aid in recovery. Good for you for getting yourself moving when it had to be very tough. It's going to take me a while to get that fast.

Iain, I can do 24SPM for brief periods. At this stage in order to be able to put in the 30 minutes I need to have a slower rate and the long recovery. Even at the slow pace I am using I am not at a "conversational" pace. One to two levels above that. I was a runner many years (decades) ago so I am familiar with distance work. With the shape I am in now, it takes me the same effort to walk moderately as it used to take to run 6 minute miles. I'll keep plugging along here with 30 minutes at the pace I need to make the time. I just have to patient and work myself into better condition. I got maxHR from the polar software. I'm not giving HR a lot of importance, mostly just using it to keep myself from pushing too hard. When I wear the monitor this week doing a heavy set of deadlifts I'll have a better idea of max and we how far off the calculation is.

I'm setting the PM5 display to the force curve and watching that to ensure leg drive. I am losing a fair amount of potential because of my size, I can't get forward far enough at the catch so I'm losing a few inches of leg drive, and I can't lean forward to the 1 o'clock position so I am losing some back involvement. Would "drive length" on ergdata help me monitor that? If so what should I be shooting for?

Thanks again,
Bob

[jamesg]

A stroke length of 1 meter, with average handle force 40 kg, if rowed at rate 20, gives power 130W; more than enough to get you onto the long hard road, as your HR will tell you. Whether those numbers suit you or not depends on your height. Going for length by taking time to warm up is a good thing, because it helps flexibility and allows leg engagement.

NB there is some slack at the catch, so a 100 cm net length stroke will mean the handle has to travel overall about 120 cm.

[Bobpond]

I have been experimenting with different damper settings. At a drag about 140 and a rate of 16 I dropped my average /500 by 10 seconds over the 30 minutes. I also did 5 intervals of 30 seconds at 24 followed by two minutes of easy 16 during the last 15 minutes.

Last night I decided to lower the damper down to 3 and try a pace of 20. It felt OK and I got into a HR about 140 and stayed there for several minutes. Around minute 15 I increased the effort, trying to lengthen my stroke and really concentrate on leg drive, back extension and staying smooth throught, this got my /500 to 2:45 with what felt like little effort.

At this point my HR jumped from 140 to 160 in a couple of seconds and kept going up. I thought the sensor went crazy. I actually stopped and double checked but it was right. My breathing was not very labored. I felt fine. I kept going and did a few one minute at 24 intervals followed by two minutes slow a few times in the last 10 minutes. HR maxed at 188. I was a little unhappy because I had slowed down a few times to try and get my HR down and as a result did not improve on this 30 minute row. I felt really good after, and HR was down to resting * 2 in about 10 or 15 minutes.

Now, I'm pretty sure I have seen 191 on my pulse watch while deadlifting, so I wasn't really concerned, and I thought I saw someone mention this rapid jump phenomenon in another post, but it did seem weird.

Tonight I'm going to try the 30r20 at DF 140 and just try to stay steady and see how that goes.

This is fun, I get to exercise and be a numbers geek at the same time...