It's not a race, it's a journey...

[Soulsurfer]

Day 21 of rowing 6 days a week. I't getting easier. I now stop for water at the 16+ min mark. As long as go at a steady pace, I can do this...

[KeithT]

Day 21 of rowing 6 days a week. I't getting easier. I now stop for water at the 16+ min mark. As long as go at a steady pace, I can do this...

Having trouble seeing the screenshot clearly but 21 days of rowing 6 days a week is good stuff, keep it going.

[mitchel674]

Kudos to you for your dedication!

I am going to go out on a limb here and humbly ask you to please consider posting a video of your rowing technique from the side view. You didn't ask, but I suspect you have an issue with your technique which would be worth identifying and addressing now. Your 3:20 average pace for these pieces you listed reveals a significant lack of power which is likely due to a problem with your rowing stroke. I suspect you may be shooting the slide which can be fixed and improve you pace.

I'm one of the slowest rowers on this site. My steady state pace is typically 2:20. I say this not to discourage you, but to encourage you to take the time now with your new dedication to rowing and consider your form.

[Dangerscouse]

Kudos to you for your dedication!

I am going to go out on a limb here and humbly ask you to please consider posting a video of your rowing technique from the side view. You didn't ask, but I suspect you have an issue with your technique which would be worth identifying and addressing now. Your 3:20 average pace for these pieces you listed reveals a significant lack of power which is likely due to a problem with your rowing stroke. I suspect you may be shooting the slide which can be fixed and improve you pace.

I'm one of the slowest rowers on this site. My steady state pace is typically 2:20. I say this not to discourage you, but to encourage you to take the time now with your new dedication to rowing and consider your form.

Good suggestion. A bad technique can leak so much power.

[MiddleAgeCRISIS]

Day 21 of rowing 6 days a week. I't getting easier. I now stop for water at the 16+ min mark. As long as go at a steady pace, I can do this...

Well done , that's a fantastic result. I have read some of the comments in the other posts which are very supportive and helpful.

I'd just like to add - if what you are doing is improving your fitness and you are staying supple and its manageable at that pace then dont get rushing to change what you are doing.

It's going to sound heretical but i've rowed 6 million metres at 20km per day for 300 days and i've done it at 3 minute splits when i should be doing it at 2m splits. I am occasionally increasing my quality / technique but my priority is sustainable volume.

That is a superb effort to get to where you are, don't lose motivation by setting goals that injure you or arent sustainable.

If you can get a heart rate monitor , although your pace may not be declining , your heart rate for the same pace is probably loads better.

Awesome work!

[Soulsurfer]

Kudos to you for your dedication!

I am going to go out on a limb here and humbly ask you to please consider posting a video of your rowing technique from the side view. You didn't ask, but I suspect you have an issue with your technique which would be worth identifying and addressing now. Your 3:20 average pace for these pieces you listed reveals a significant lack of power which is likely due to a problem with your rowing stroke. I suspect you may be shooting the slide which can be fixed and improve you pace.

I'm one of the slowest rowers on this site. My steady state pace is typically 2:20. I say this not to discourage you, but to encourage you to take the time now with your new dedication to rowing and consider your form.

Hi Michel,
No slight taken whatsoever on your reply. I purposely row at about 20spm to maintain good form and keep my heart rate under 115BPM. I could go a fair bit fast at 25spm, but this is actually deliberate. Please bear in mind that I am coming back from zero rowing for almost a year - actually zero anything. I am very concerned about keep my back straight as possible and minding my form as per Austin from TrainingTall. I am also 68 and horribly out of shape presently.

[Soulsurfer]

Day 21 of rowing 6 days a week. I't getting easier. I now stop for water at the 16+ min mark. As long as go at a steady pace, I can do this...

Well done , that's a fantastic result. I have read some of the comments in the other posts which are very supportive and helpful.

I'd just like to add - if what you are doing is improving your fitness and you are staying supple and its manageable at that pace then dont get rushing to change what you are doing.

It's going to sound heretical but i've rowed 6 million metres at 20km per day for 300 days and i've done it at 3 minute splits when i should be doing it at 2m splits. I am occasionally increasing my quality / technique but my priority is sustainable volume.

That is a superb effort to get to where you are, don't lose motivation by setting goals that injure you or arent sustainable.

If you can get a heart rate monitor , although your pace may not be declining , your heart rate for the same pace is probably loads better.

Awesome work!

Thank you Mr. Crisis
I use my Apple Watch to track HR on the health app. Trying to keep is below 120bpm on the max and averaging today 106 with a max of 117. Still a big believer of LSD training (Long Slow Distance).

[MiddleAgeCRISIS]

I would also recommend taking stock of how your muscles feel to the touch. So grab your calf muscles / your quads and see how they feel.

When i'm tight my muscles feel hard / flat / shiny and i have to manage this to avoid knee pain / hip pain.

I recommend taking a look at the maffetone website as there is a lot of heart rate stuff to digest.

Ive trained at a similar heart rate level ( im 46 ) and my RHR is now down to 52 bpm ( over night) vs mid 60s previously.

[JoeCruse]

Nice, JP! I'm in a similar boat to you, just10 years younger, though.Have not lifted a weight or done any other exercise in 10+ years, and with BP issues and now a slowly rising blood cholesterol level, I knew I had to get back to some measure of fitness. After a few false starts, I'm rowing 4x weekly since October of last year, and my log looks a bit similar to yours. I started with 10 minute rows and trying to get form close to what I see in training videos, and then from there, gradually, slowly up both time/session and session 500M pace. I was well over 3 minutes on 500M pace for a while; finally crept down as I got to 20 minutes per w/o. I would stay with a w/o time for about 2 weeks before bumping up, going up 2-3 minutes for each increase. Just very slowly, until I could do 30 minutes per session. I get up at 4AM and row before I go into work, and am not sure if I'll have the time to get to 1 hour sessions, and I refuse to get up any earlier in the day, lol. But I will work to slowly and continually shrink that 500M pace. I want to go faster and longer, right now, but I know that is a recipe for disaster, especially with the miles on me in my upper mid-50's, and this is all about health and fitness, for me, now.

Keep it up!!!

[mitchel674]

Kudos to you for your dedication!

I am going to go out on a limb here and humbly ask you to please consider posting a video of your rowing technique from the side view. You didn't ask, but I suspect you have an issue with your technique which would be worth identifying and addressing now. Your 3:20 average pace for these pieces you listed reveals a significant lack of power which is likely due to a problem with your rowing stroke. I suspect you may be shooting the slide which can be fixed and improve you pace.

I'm one of the slowest rowers on this site. My steady state pace is typically 2:20. I say this not to discourage you, but to encourage you to take the time now with your new dedication to rowing and consider your form.

Hi Michel,
No slight taken whatsoever on your reply. I purposely row at about 20spm to maintain good form and keep my heart rate under 115BPM. I could go a fair bit fast at 25spm, but this is actually deliberate. Please bear in mind that I am coming back from zero rowing for almost a year - actually zero anything. I am very concerned about keep my back straight as possible and minding my form as per Austin from TrainingTall. I am also 68 and horribly out of shape presently.

Thank you for taking my comment in the spirit is was intended. I certainly was not suggesting that you increase your rate in order to increase your pace. I am merely suggesting that you could be losing power with poor technique. 3:20 pace is 43 watts. I suspect some tweaks in your technique could improve your power. Good for you to be focusing on your technique at this early stage. Kudos for your efforts!

[Soulsurfer]

Nice, JP! I'm in a similar boat to you, just10 years younger, though.Have not lifted a weight or done any other exercise in 10+ years, and with BP issues and now a slowly rising blood cholesterol level, I knew I had to get back to some measure of fitness. After a few false starts, I'm rowing 4x weekly since October of last year, and my log looks a bit similar to yours. I started with 10 minute rows and trying to get form close to what I see in training videos, and then from there, gradually, slowly up both time/session and session 500M pace. I was well over 3 minutes on 500M pace for a while; finally crept down as I got to 20 minutes per w/o. I would stay with a w/o time for about 2 weeks before bumping up, going up 2-3 minutes for each increase. Just very slowly, until I could do 30 minutes per session. I get up at 4AM and row before I go into work, and am not sure if I'll have the time to get to 1 hour sessions, and I refuse to get up any earlier in the day, lol. But I will work to slowly and continually shrink that 500M pace. I want to go faster and longer, right now, but I know that is a recipe for disaster, especially with the miles on me in my upper mid-50's, and this is all about health and fitness, for me, now.

Keep it up!!!

100% agree, Joe. I think the toughest thing is to fight "force vs form". I could also "brute-force" my way through the workout, but that is a recipe for injury. I am lucky to be retired and not concerned about pursuing the "almighty dollar", but then again, I worked my whole life to get there too. Now is the time to do this. As my best friend, wife and partner-in-antics, and I agree, we need to be in fit shape to spend as much time touring Europe as possible. I was so dismayed to see how far I had fallen from my previous 45-60 sessions at the gym, on the C2. I am feeling way better now.

I would also recommend taking stock of how your muscles feel to the touch. So grab your calf muscles / your quads and see how they feel.

When i'm tight my muscles feel hard / flat / shiny and i have to manage this to avoid knee pain / hip pain.

I recommend taking a look at the maffetone website as there is a lot of heart rate stuff to digest.

Ive trained at a similar heart rate level ( im 46 ) and my RHR is now down to 52 bpm ( over night) vs mid 60s previously.

Quads and calfs feel pretty firm. LOL abs still feel like chocolate pudding . my RHR in the morning is around 55 and has been for years. I am definitely not fooling myself. There is no such a thing as a silver bullet, then all of a sudden you wake up fit. Heck, I have always hated working out all my life. If I could've paid some to train this old body for me, trust me, I would. No, this is something which I must turn into a habit. Having the C2 in our apartment is great because we are the only ones using it and no need to worry if the last person wiped it down with disinfectant.

It's all good. Every day is "payback time".

[Ripples]

Good for you, JP.

Tsnor has written some good posts about the benefits of slow and steady.

As you said, it's all good.

[faach1]

Nice JP, agree with what others have said. Keep going!

[MiddleAgeCRISIS]

Quads and calfs feel pretty firm. LOL abs still feel like chocolate pudding

It's all good. Every day is "payback time".

Hiya , sorry i didnt explain my point very well on this. Just to clarify.

If you grab your calf muscles say, and give them a good squeeze , it's possible to get a good indication of how supple they are - so are there any knots or does the muscle feel rigid and hard.

In my case , i used to have adhesions in my calf muscles and foam rolling and my percussive massage worked well to loosen me up.

Now my quads currently / when i run my hands down them they feel rock hard / flat and shiny and this is a problem for me from doing so much rowing.

The outcome for me us when i walk, my knee caps get pulled to one side and it hurts.

Historically my understanding of my muscles was based on warming up and stretches , but ive realised that you separately have to manage your fascia and keep your muscles soft and flexible.

Apologies for the terrible explanation. I guess simply put - i recommend a foam roller or percussive massager to avoid getting tight on top of normal stretches.

Cheers Rob

[Soulsurfer]

Quads and calfs feel pretty firm. LOL abs still feel like chocolate pudding

It's all good. Every day is "payback time".

Hiya , sorry i didnt explain my point very well on this. Just to clarify.

If you grab your calf muscles say, and give them a good squeeze , it's possible to get a good indication of how supple they are - so are there any knots or does the muscle feel rigid and hard.

In my case , i used to have adhesions in my calf muscles and foam rolling and my percussive massage worked well to loosen me up.

Now my quads currently / when i run my hands down them they feel rock hard / flat and shiny and this is a problem for me from doing so much rowing.

The outcome for me us when i walk, my knee caps get pulled to one side and it hurts.

Historically my understanding of my muscles was based on warming up and stretches , but ive realised that you separately have to manage your fascia and keep your muscles soft and flexible.

Apologies for the terrible explanation. I guess simply put - i recommend a foam roller or percussive massager to avoid getting tight on top of normal stretches.

Cheers Rob

Hi Rob,
I now understand. Calfs and quads feel very, very firm with no knots. This is coming from them feeling like mashed potatoes. No soreness either. I am trying to push a bit harder as I went for 35 min today. Definitely going to look into the roller thing. Any recommendations on Amazon®?