Introduction and Goals

[EdwinVanEijk]

Hi there,

Thanks for having me. I was in bad shape like 3, 4 months ago. A change of diet made me feel much better and stronger. So much so that I started training again a few weeks ago. Slowly, once a week, but I have been out of shape for a long time.

I am currently 49 years old. Dropped my weight from 102.4 to 92.4 kilo's over the last months. I measure 1m81 tall. And I started training on the Concept 2 at my gym. First three sessions I did were basically me trying to train myself on a good execution. First time was really poor and I could feel my lower back. So I came here and watched some videos and - as a result - the second session was much better. The thirds one was nicer again. So today I decided to try and row a 500 meter and do it fast. Well, fast for me, that is! The time I scored was a 2:17. Just as a starting point, a reference of any kind.

I am planning to do more training and slowly increase from once a week to like every other day. The goal for now is to train and see if I have muscle pain the next day. If I do, I rest until the pain is gone, give it another two days for recovery and go again. I am hoping to take it to two trainings next week an maybe three the week after that. Maybe training for two weeks, maybe three and rotate between longer stretches at lower speeds and a bit of intervalling. And then, maybe once every 3 to 4 weeks do a quick 500m or (later) 2000m and see where my numbers go to. I'd love to bring my 500m under 2:00 ... and maybe do a 8:00 on the 200m? Just saying because I am performance and goal oriented ...

Anyhow, that's it for now. I plan to use this thread to update you (and keep records for myself).

Speak soon.

[lindsayh]

Hi there Edwin and welcome to the "madhouse"

The beauty of the erg is that it supports accurate goal setting and documents progress really well. Now that you have a plan it will be great to build on it. The best place to post your training is in the "what training have you done today" thread on the training sub forum above here. You will get plenty of encouragement and support as you go. Best of luck with your new project. There is a huge amount of information buried in the threads to help you. Look for "newbie themed ones.

[jackarabit]

Voyage of a thousand satisfactions begins today, Eddy. Good on you! Don’t be a stranger.

[EdwinVanEijk]

Thanks! Tomorrow I will try a 2k!

I'll keep you posted.

E.

[EdwinVanEijk]

Just back from the gym. Took a day of rest between the previous 0,5k session and today's leisurely rowed 2k. Did the 2k in 13:13. Coming week I'll be in India. Let's see if the hotels have an Concept 2. Would be great to put at least one training session in ...

E.

[Allan Olesen]

I am pretty convinced that you would be able to do a lot longer sessions at a slightly lower intensity. Duration beats intensity when training for weight loss and endurance.

Your data are quite close to mine. I am 50 years old and came from 105 kg 5 months ago. I am now at 83 kg.

During the last 4 months I have done several sessions of approx. one hour at somewhat low intensity. Not only rowing, but also walking, uphill walking, running, cycling and paddling. My total volume was 5-10 hours a week with a heart rate between 100 and 130 BPM.

My rowing started around 70-80 Watt with a heart rate of 120-130 BPM, and now I am at 120-130 Watt, still with a heart rate of 120-130 BPM. So at unchanged heart rate I am able to do approx. 60% more work than I was a few months ago. And right now my work output is increasing very fast, so I hope for great improvement over the next months.

Before my workout shift 4 months ago, I mostly used running and cycling for exercise, always at the highest intensity I could manage. I didn't get that many hours because I had to rest between runs and I could only manage the high intensity for 10-20 minutes per workout - just like you just described. This training did not do me much good.

[hjs]

Just back from the gym. Took a day of rest between the previous 0,5k session and today's leisurely rowed 2k. Did the 2k in 13:13. Coming week I'll be in India. Let's see if the hotels have an Concept 2. Would be great to put at least one training session in ...

E.

If you don,t have a c2 any other kind of exercise would do you good.

And in general, try to make your sessions longer, offcourse you can have a good reason for doing what you do now, but if you have no health problems, really get more volume in. Having a bit of muscle pain is not bad. I myself can,t remember the day I did not have some pain. Talking about years here.

[EdwinVanEijk]

Thanks for the info and feedback! Yes, I will focus on longer stretches first. Thanks for sharing your personal story. I'll learn from it.

Regards, E.

[EdwinVanEijk]

So, after a few days of recovery from Delhi Belly (yes, visit to India), I was back on the rower this morning. Did 25 minutes at a slightly lower power setting. Went nice and easy. Strokes per minute: 22. Does that sound like an okay rythm?

Regards, E.

[Dangerscouse]

Yeah, r22 is a good rhythm for endurance sessions.

[EdwinVanEijk]

Did a 30 minute row Sunday morning. No muscle ace! Next row probably on Friday or Saturday.

E.

[EdwinVanEijk]

Did a combination training. First 15 minutes endurance, then a 5 minutes rest. A fast 0.5k after that, then a 5 minutes rest. Finally a 2.5 minutes one notch heavier tow.

That was two days ago. No aces. And when I look back I feel my technique is getting better and rowing becomes already almost a "natural" movement, if that makes sense.

Regards, Odin.

[EdwinVanEijk]

Had my once a week Sunday morning training session. Did a 5 minute warm-up row first. Then a 500 meter race, where I brought my PR down from 2:17 to 2:12. After a few minutes, a 10 minutes low intensity recovery.

I think I'll try to ramp up the number of trainings now. Go to 2 sessions a week. Well, probably after the summer holidays!

E.

[EdwinVanEijk]

An update. Had to stop for a few months, because of plantar fasciitis. Did some YouTube research, found some stretching exercises, and things are much better now.

I also studied technique a bit more and over the last few weeks, in short, once a week 10 to 20 minutes sessions, trained on how to row.

Today, I decided to see how my stretching and (especially) focus on technique translated into performance. First I did a 500 meter pretty much flat-out. Did it in 2:03, which is like 10 seconds faster than before. After a few minutes rest, to get my breath back, I decided to do a slow 2000 meter, focussing on execution rather than speed or strength. Without issue, I rowed 11:21, which is almost 2 minutes faster than before.

With the plantar stuff figured out, and my technique improved, I feel it is time to bring the above advice into practice and start rowing more often, at lower settings, and make many more meters. Starting this week! And the really good news is that I'll be celebrating my 50th birthday in just 4 weeks from now. I asked for a Concept 2! A rowing machine at home would, given my very busy schedule, be a great help because it will allow me to basically train whenever I want. No more gym dependency!

Goals for the future? More meters on the c2, the 0.5k under 2:00 and the 2k in under 10:00. If I can achieve that before summer, I'd be really happy.

Regards, E.

[jackarabit]

Good update, Ed. Detached plantar fascia is no bed of roses and can’t be ignored if one needs to stand up and walk. Happy to hear you found a successful intervention and therapy and are returning to rowing.