Pete Plan 2017

[calalli]

rlboyles - very nice session. I am astounded when I see those numbers.
dyson - that 9500 is very impressive to me. Keep on keeping on with the weight loss.
Mike - I find the same issue with aerobic base, and I really need to build mine up. I am doing some resistance training; not gonna call it weightlifting actually as it is mostly body weight and some dumbbell stuff. The P90 program has done a lot for my cardio and muscle tone but I still have a long way to go.

3/5/17 BPP 6.3 - 7500M - second 7500 this week, plan was to match the rate of 2:11.9 and pick it up at the end. I am starting to worry I am getting into an over-training situation. I was close on the final pace but it was not a good session, dead legs again today and really struggled to finish.


Time Meters /500m Watts Cal/Hr s/m
33:04.5 7,500m 2:12.3 151 819 22
6:35.2 1,500m 2:11.7 153 826 22 127
6:33.7 3,000m 2:11.2 155 833 22 134
6:34.2 4,500m 2:11.4 154 829 21 137
6:38.0 6,000m 2:12.6 150 816 22 137
6:43.3 7,500m 2:14.4 144 795 22 139

[hjs]

@ Dyson - I don't know with lifting how you'll get back to being a lightweight at your height. I got up to 245 at my heaviest and down to 170 at my lightest (at least since my 20s). 170 was around 4 years ago. That was around the time I got serious with lifting regularly - 3X a week consistently. Since then, with rowing on top of it, I've gained 18 to 20 lbs. My waist size is only 1 inch more and I'm roughly 18% body fat. Yeah, I could stand to lose 5 lbs or so, but much more than that and the wife would start complaining "you're too thin...". Your running might offset some of the muscle gains but I found rowing / lifting to pack on the muscle. I never really thought of myself as a "hard gainer" in terms of muscle mass, but rowing has really put a lot of weight on me. The 188 or so I am now looks a lot different than the 188 I hit on my way down to 170 (in a good way).

Lifting or not, if you don,t up your foodintake you won,t gain muscle. And weight is not just height, I am 6.1, around 90kg I am very skinny, my waist is relative small, but shoulders/hips a lot less so.

And you wife has you well under controle , being lean is so uncommon that people don,t like it.

[Rowan McSheen]

Morning chaps.

Cal: maybe dial down the pace by 1-2 sec on the long ss rows? The plan takes us to 10000 and then starts prepping us for going faster. There is time.

For me today BPP week 11 optional 4th session: 25 minutes. No guidance on pace so since I hold my ss rows to UT2 I decided to see how it goes at UT1. I estimated 2:10 as target and turned in 2:09.6, which was pretty even across the piece apart from slacking off a little in the final 2-3 minutes to stay within UT1, all @ 23 spm.

[mdpfirrman]

@ Henry - Oh, absolutely she's the boss! I was "fixed" years ago. Lucky to have any testosterone left to even row... You are right about the eating part too. You do have to continue to eat more to gain muscle. I guess I don't mind that (as long as it's muscle, not fat). And you're right too about the perceptions of what body type should look like. Personally, I'd like to look like a bodybuilder (probably never going to happen). I would have to lean down to 180 or maybe 175 to really be completely ripped. She would say "that's gross...". She likes me to have a little "love handles".

@ Cali - I agree with Rowan (Stu). Just dial it down a bit on the SS work if you're concerned about overtraining. Remember the tip about monitoring your RHR often. The "prescription" for that is slower SS work if you are overtraining.

@ Rowan - nice work on the SS extra day. Yeah, there are really no recommendations by Marston to keep it in UT1 or UT2. That's just up to you based on feel. If you're feeling it, certainly go for it.

I'm finally feeling well enough to debate rowing today in my head. This stuff is still in my chest, though. I think I'll just lift today and take tomorrow and Saturday off and resume on Sunday. Don't know if I can jump back in to the PP, but I'll at least be doing SS work on Sunday.

[rlboyles]

Thank you mdpfirrman - Yes I have a goal. I am in the middle of my 2nd cycle of Pete Plan, then a taper week, then see what I can do for 2000 m at the end of the month. I have no idea what I could do in a 2000 m. I figure keep chunking away at it hard every day and see where it takes me!

My near goal for this Saturday is to get under 18:40 in 5000 m

[Gaucho1]

rlboyles - thank´s for motivation. When I saw all the 500 sub 1:40 I tried to to a PB on the 500.
5 min warming up and then the test:

Time Meters /500m Watts Cal/Hr s/m HR
1:36.7 500m 1:36.7 387 1630 35 154
0:19.1 100m 1:35.5 402 1682 38 133
0:19.0 200m 1:35.0 408 1702 35 152
0:19.3 300m 1:36.5 389 1637 34 160
0:19.5 400m 1:37.5 378 1599 34 163
0:19.8 500m 1:39.0 361 1541 36 166

I just can´t imagine to do it 8 times
Best regards
Dietmar

[rlboyles]

Cool Gaucho1

Did I see in your signature that you're 63 years old? If I'm doing half that well at 63 I'll feel on top the world!

I'm just figuring things out. One of the things I've learned just in the last month is the importance of a long warm-up. I used to row for about 5 to 10 minutes and then go for my workout.

Recently I found this warm-up on the website: http://www.ergrowing.com/rowing-rhythm-workout/

Warm Up:
Warm up for around 20 minutes with some solid rowing (which includes):
After around 10 minutes do a 1 minute pipe opener rating 30 – 32 rowing hard.
Next (after a short break) do 3 x 15 strokes at rate 32, 34 and 36 respectively.
Take around 1 minute easy rowing between each 15 stroke push.
Finally do some easy rowing for 2 – 3 minutes and get ready for the actual rowing session.

So... this ends up being a 20 minute warm-up which is time consuming, but it does a great job of getting your body physiology geared up for a hard workout. Then you can go harder during your workout right from the get-go.
I was a high school wrestler, and I learned through the years that you are never as tired in your second match of the day as you are in your first. You body is already in the zone. Your muscles & lungs don't get that burn.

[Gaucho1]

riboyles - good advice for warming up! I´ll try the next time.
Thank´s and best regards,
Dietmar - getting 64 years old in November

[calalli]

riboyles - I looked at that warmup and think I will incorporate some of that into my routine before a hard interval type row. I do tend to be too cautious warming up as I am worried about burning too much energy.

Dietmar - I had not noticed your age - I am in awe of the pace you can manage and hope to get close to that some day.

Mike, Stu - Yeah I concluded much the same about dialing it back a bit. I need to worry less about beating my last effort and remember I am in this for weight loss first. Thus today's session -

4/5/17 BPP 6.4 5000M: Instructions were to match 7500 pace for 1st half and then pick it up as able. I decided to do a long SS instead, something new again - 60min. I took it slow and easy, more about the calorie burn. I have never rowed so long or so far.

Time Meters /500m Watts Cal/Hr s/m
1:00:00.0 12,591m 2:22.9 120 712 20
12:00.0 2,369m 2:31.9 100 644 21 113
24:00.0 2,530m 2:22.2 121 716 20 122
36:00.0 2,550m 2:21.1 124 726 20 128
48:00.0 2,549m 2:21.2 124 726 20 130
1:00:00.0 2,593m 2:18.8 131 750 20 139

[hepting]

rlboyles - I'd pay some good money for your splits!

Dietmar - nice 500 - and I hear you doing that 7 more times would be rough

BPP Wk 10 #2

3X2000 4 min rest

#1 - 7:33.1 1:53.3 Avg
#2 - 7:32.9 1:53.2 Avg
#3 - 7:31.1 1:52.8 Avg

Had to drag myself to the erg today again... have been fighting some motivation battles last few days but so far I am winning . My target was 1:53.5's - this session felt reasonably good - was able to increase pace a bit each rep this time as opposed to wk 6 (last time I did this workout) where I slipped each rep. Increased average splits from 1:54.9 to 1:53.1 so pleased with the forward progress.

I was talking to a trainer the other day who suggested I try literally lying down between interval reps and totally relaxing. This is directly counter to what I have always been told, and done, which was to row very slowly for a minute or so, stretch a bit get water but to try and keep moving. So aside from some drinking and a quick stretch I tried to take the remaining 3 minutes or so of the rest time to take a nap.... honestly can't say I felt much of a difference between the 2 approaches. I may have been able to drop my HR a bit more by lying down... Fun trying different tactics.

[mdpfirrman]

@ Dyson - very solid 2K X 3. I forget how much rest those are on the BPP. I remember 4 minutes from what I recall. One of the best indicators I've seen of sub 7 is when someone can do 4 X 2K all in a 7:3X pace. You're getting close now, especially negative splitting like you did. Impressive.

@ Cali - nice job on the SS. Smart pacing.

@ Dietmar - there's a plan in the internet called the Eddie Fletcher rowing warm-up. It's pretty similar to what rlboyles mentioned. It has prescribed paces for warming up based on your 2K time. I would say around a 8 to 10 minute warmup minimum for 500 intervals is always smart. The faster the intervals, the longer the warmup required. I don't think I could beat that 500m time. Very impressive. I think I might be able to do a 1:39 or so but not much better. I don't think I've ever done just a 500m by itself to see (only in intervals).

[Rowan McSheen]

I do a warmup of about half the total distance of the intervals. So for tomorrow's 4 x 1500m it'll be 3000m or so. First 1000m gently paddling and getting into the stroke and gradually moving up to steady state pace. From then on, bursts at target pace of 100 or 200 metres finishing with maybe 250-300m at pace or better. I hear what Cal says about dissipating energy but I think it's important to break sweat and get the heart rate up. The harder the workout the more I need to be ready for it. If I struggle on the first interval but do okay on the rest, that means I didn't warm up properly.

For ss rows it'll just be 500-1000m to get into the stroke.

And in any case, it's all metres ... it's all good.

I don't do warmdowns on the erg though. After an eyeballs-out last interval, I just want to climb off the damned thing and get a cup of tea into me!

[IefTheChief]

Evening all. Lots of activity on the machine and on the board, nice!

Three sessions to report here. I think I'll do one more cycle after this cycle 4 and then have one or two week break from the PP and just focus on meters. I haven't lost a gram in the last 3 weeks which is very annoying, still have 5 kilos to go before I've reached my goal. Don't really understand why I'm now in this weight plateau, I burn a lot of calories. Did eat some choc and had some beers, but for sure I burn way more then I take in.

Anyway here we go:

PP C4W2S6, 8,000m SS

37:42.0 8,000m 2:21.3 124 726 20
7:53.1 1,600m 2:27.8 108 671 20
7:20.3 3,200m 2:17.5 134 761 21
8:03.7 4,800m 2:31.1 101 647 20
7:12.8 6,400m 2:15.2 141 785 22
7:12.1 8,000m 2:15.0 142 788 21

This one was after my 19:39 5K PB, a recovery session.

PP C4W3S1, 4x1,000m/5'r target 1:55.8

15:21.2 4,000m 1:55.1 229 1087 27
3:51.2 1,000m 1:55.6 227 1080 26
3:51.3 1,000m 1:55.6 226 1077 26
3:51.2 1,000m 1:55.6 227 1080 27
3:47.6 1,000m 1:53.8 237 1115 29

Felt good, I like this session.

PP C4W3S2 (today), 1 hour SS

1:00:00.0 13,864m 2:09.8 160 850 22
12:00.0 2,732m 2:11.7 153 826 22
24:00.0 2,748m 2:11.0 156 836 22
36:00.0 2,761m 2:10.3 158 843 22
48:00.0 2,798m 2:08.6 164 864 23
1:00:00.0 2,825m 2:07.4 169 881 25

Burnt 750 kCals, I will persevere!

[calalli]

Dyson - Nice 3x2K - I bet the progress does feel good. Lying down between intervals sounds crazy to me. I need to keep moving the whole time or I will tighten up like a drum.
Ivo - a good week of sessions. The weight plateau can be maddening can't it? Sometimes I have found that eating more for a day or two kinda kick starts things a bit. It has not always worked but I think it may trick the body into moving out of 'starvation' mode.
Stu - I worry too much about burning energy on the warmup. I am trying to be more aggressive for intervals. Today I actually broke a sweat in the warmup for the first time; did 2000M before a 6x500, and had a few bursts of 10-15-20 strokes at the pace I had in mind for the session. I think next time I will make those a bit longer maybe 20 -30 strokes, but it felt much better once I got to the workout.

5/5/17 BPP 6.5 6x500 2'r - no exact guidance as to pace so I just tried to stay under 2:00. I did not want to go too hard and I beat my average last time on this by nearly 5 secs, so I will take it. I finished with a 2000M cd at 2:25 just to get a few more calories.

Time Meters /500m Watts Cal/Hr s/m
11:50.6 3,000m 1:58.4 211 1025 27
1:58.0 500m 1:58.0 213 1032 28
1:58.4 500m 1:58.4 211 1025 25
1:57.4 500m 1:57.4 216 1042 27
1:58.0 500m 1:58.0 213 1032 27
1:59.5 500m 1:59.5 205 1005 27
1:59.4 500m 1:59.4 206 1008 29

[ChasinElk]

some oarsome work being done...
havent posted in a bit (NHL Playoffs ) but I'm still training

4/8 8x500m 5mR
1:40/31
1:40.1/29
1:40/30
1:39.7/29
1:39.9/29
1:39.4/30
1:39.8/31
1:39.2/31
avg 1:39.7/30

CG Benches
Power Snatch
DL
Planks

4/9 12000m avg 1:59.4/21

4/10 5x1500 5mR
1:47.4/26
1:47.8/25
1:47.7/25
1:47.4/26
1:47.4/26
avg 1:47.5/25

4/11
Squat
Push Press
Aussie Pull ups
Curls for girls
planks

4/12 30 min row avg 1:58/21

4/13 5k Hard Distance
avg 1:48.0/26
Bench
Sumo DL

4/15 Pyramid
250m 1:39.8/30
500m 140.4/29
750m 1:40.9/29
1000m 1:41.3/29
750m 1:41.2/30
500m 1:40.8/31
250m 1:39.2/31
avg 1:40.8/29

Squats
pull ups
Planks

4/16 12000m avg 1:58.6/21

4/17 4x2000m 5mr
1:48.3/25
1:48.2/25
1:48.4/25
1:48.1/25
avg 1:48.2/25

4/19 12000m 1:59.0/21