Rowing over 300lbs

[50wyldeman]

Hello all I am new to this forum even though I have been a member over a year, I am finally ready for the next step forward in my life. Ill try to be brief but give a bit of Background first.
I am 53, 6'1 and currently 315 pounds ( Down from my heaviest of 385 and my current high of 355 just over a month and a half ago. )
I have watched and will re watch the video on proper form and also again on the rower itself . My questions for you all are.

I tend to do best with a training partner of some sort, and presume given the size of the community here there are ways to both track and motivate each other ? I also am curious as tomorrow is going to be day 1 if you have any input on good self motivation directly regarding the rower? ( I.E. Using the games, tracking your daily data and writing it down, or some other way ) For me it will absolutely mean music during the rowing but other than that I'd love to hear your thoughts.

I hope you don't mind me asking these basic questions and thank you to concept two for giving us a community like this.

[MiddleAgeCRISIS]

That's awesome. Well done for making a start.

I started 315 days ago and looking back the time has flown.

That's the trick.

When you are in the middle of a row , it can seem like time stands still but when you finish , it seems like nothing.

I started with a goal of 100 days which felt like infinity but i broke down into manageable chunks of winning. So 30 days was a result.

I rowed one day and the next day I told myself i knew i could do it and rowed another.

In terms of getting results - i would wear a heart rate monitor. Your times might not get quicker but your heart rate should improve for the same speed.

I would check out Maffetone training.

In terms of intensity - you can try really really hard and injure yourself or you can gently / slowly do a distance and do it daily.

I row slow, I've lost weight.

In terms of technique - i basically rowed badly for 150 days but i didnt get injured and i lost 48 lbs. If you rock back - you will hurt your stomach - you can build this in later.

On the catch , your tum might get in the way , dont force it.

Dont bounce your arse off your heels . Remember shins dont go past perpendicular to the rail.

Daily rowing / without rushing / 100 days / you will smash it!

[Dalos]

Motivation is going to be highly personal I think.

For me I'm a numbers / stats guy, so tracking anything and everything has been good. (RHR, HRV, UT2 pace, Weight, Body fat % / LBM, plenty of data broken into spreadsheets). Even seeing small incremental gains is a big boost. I know I;m going to have to deal with the end of that when I reach my target bf%, weight and the beginner gains are over though. A lot seem to have issues / drop off then.

I find watching something distracting, even on the long slow rows, but having never listed to a podcast previously that has been my go to activity.

Big one is forming habits as well, I recall reading that it takes about 12 weeks consistently doing / not doing something to break or form a habit, but once made they are fairly firm. It will take the pressure off 'forcing' yourself if that's an issue. Evening knowing this will come in time is useful to know. No issue for me with the exercise, correcting my diet though is more of a hurdle.

Engaging with a community helps as well, either posting regularly to keep yourself honest to just incinerating with folk doing the same thing.

Final one for me is that I enjoy the rowing / activity itself, feeling of putting the power down. cycling and swimming bore me to tears and much as I love running that's out for me. Going in with the mindset of planning to enjoy it may help though.

Only 6 weeks in myself, but thoroughly enjoying myself.

[Ombrax]

Even seeing small incremental gains is a big boost.

I was going to post the same thing, but I see that Dalos beat me to it. In my case I have two primary motivators for rowing: 1) I know that it's good for me, and 2) When I seen the various improvements over time (either in my body or rowing pace and distance) it provides lots of of motivation to keep doing it.

Congratulations to the OP, and good luck. As I've said here before, if you put in the time and effort you are 100% certain to be rewarded.

[Tony Cook]

I started erging in earnest less than a year ago and whilst my goals, initially, were rehab from surgery and maintain/improve fitness in my ageing body while in lockdown the most useful thing I did was find and follow as many Dark Horse Rowing Youtube videos as I could find. Starting with technique then warmups and 20/30 min sessions.
Sorted out my technique - I didn’t have a clue when I used to jump on a C2 in the gym - and built up my tolerance for just sitting on the seat.
I recommend anyone new to this to find and follow such videos - see also Training Talk and British Rowing for equally useful videos. I found them a way of keeping interest while learning how to do it and before you knew it 20 mins had done. I’d then do another 10 mins or so of just rowing.
It meant that when I moved onto a proper training programme I was at least rowing with something resembling proper technique, not leaking power and not risking injury (in my mind!! Not independently verified).

[Dangerscouse]

You've made great progress so far, well done.

Motivation is a tough one to advise on, as it's an issue for some and not for others.

What you really want to focus on is discipline. You'll always do something when you're motivated, but discipline will pull you on to the rower even when you're not feeling motivated. Some of my best sessions have been days I didn't want to row.

Learn to enjoy the process, and not focus on specific targets. If you achieve your targets you can quite easily lose interest, but if you enjoy the process, you'll only have ups and downs, but no tangible end.

[50wyldeman]

Thank you all very, very much for your kindness support and advice. Today was my first day on the rower I did two 500m rows with a 5 min rest ( I am fat...... cardio is my Kryptonite, but hopefully not for long). I am having some significant pain in my upper inner thigh ( its there a lot so not unique to rowing Fwiw) I will likely have the boss video my lack of form compare it with the ones I have watched and the resources you have shared here ( Did I say thank you yet, because, seriously , thank you ).
I was unable toi get my first row to log but I screen grabbed it .
I will also try to adjust resistance to where it belongs, the negatives for me are that My ROM is pretty hampered by my gut, and the inner thigh pain is a bummer I think exacerbated by my compensating a touch for my gut.
I will look into maybe finding a team as further motivation once I am committed and am certain my form is here it belongs .
I am so grateful to this community I am certain this is the beginning of a new point for my life physically once i sort adding a pic I can upload my real first "workout"

[mict450]

....I am having some significant pain in my upper inner thigh ( its there a lot so not unique to rowing Fwiw)

Not surprising. If you're thighs are large, you may have a tendency to stand, walk, run, etc with your legs abducted. Don't exacerbate the problem by splaying your knees outward to accomodate your belly attempting to lengthen your stroke at the catch. The problem will solve itself as you lose your gut. Best wishes on your erging adventure.

[Tsnor]

Normal that you will need to change form a bit vs someone half your size. You will have a large leg strength advantage from carrying 300lbs around. Just don't hurt anything in the meantime while your back, etc catch up with your legdrive.

Here are some videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDJEgtM3t2Y trainingtall

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxpSfL3CFtA darkhorse

Welcome and good luck.

[Soulsurfer]

Thank you all very, very much for your kindness support and advice. Today was my first day on the rower I did two 500m rows with a 5 min rest ( I am fat...... cardio is my Kryptonite, but hopefully not for long). I am having some significant pain in my upper inner thigh ( its there a lot so not unique to rowing Fwiw) I will likely have the boss video my lack of form compare it with the ones I have watched and the resources you have shared here ( Did I say thank you yet, because, seriously , thank you ).
I was unable toi get my first row to log but I screen grabbed it .
I will also try to adjust resistance to where it belongs, the negatives for me are that My ROM is pretty hampered by my gut, and the inner thigh pain is a bummer I think exacerbated by my compensating a touch for my gut.
I will look into maybe finding a team as further motivation once I am committed and am certain my form is here it belongs .
I am so grateful to this community I am certain this is the beginning of a new point for my life physically once i sort adding a pic I can upload my real first "workout"

First off, let me tell how much WE all admire you! It is tough, more for some than other, I am sure. I put on a good 15KG since the start of the pandemic. Bad habits took no time to sneak back in, along with a sedentary demeanour. It took me about 21 sessions of rowing six days on, one day off, to develop the habit. I now feel guilty if I don’t row. I had to start small at 10 minutes, and could barely finish without being out of breath. 45 min is now a breeze after 33 days.

Keep at it. WE are all here to cheer you on and encourage you. Lastly, consider a caloric deficiency to increase your effect on weight loss. We use an app called Carb Manager to track our intake and I removed about 600 calories per day. I am not starving - believe me.

The key to success is to track EVERYTHING! There will be some terrific days and some crappy ones too, so just keep rowing.

Peace out - JP

[mict450]

JP brought up a crucial point that all of us neglected to mention: caloric restriction. Weight loss is all about what you do in the kitchen, & not the gym.

[50wyldeman]

JP brought up a crucial point that all of us neglected to mention: caloric restriction. Weight loss is all about what you do in the kitchen, & not the gym.

I probably should have addressed this a bit in the initial post , my apologies.

I am currently doing keto (70/20/5 ) and aggressively using IF to my advantage, I generally am eating in a 6~4 hour window then fasting the rest of the time, I am using ACV in the fasted times and am doing all intended "physical work" with purpose in the fasted state for now.
My health has dictated my life in a very bad way and I am over it , I Went on a very strict elimination diets 7 weeks afgo and although I am free to re introduce certain things I have chosen to only reintro eggs so I can get to my macro I desire just for Breakfast I know this is not flawless but for now it is serving me well in that regard ( weight loss). At my peak ( ~24 mos ago ) i was 385 using Keto I got to 300.1 and then gloriously self destructed. I have spent the last two years in fare worsening health and finally , as noted went on the advice of a new physician to do the elimination diet. It was ALARMING as someone who has a high pain tolerance AND was still in enough pain daily to impact my life I was absolutely stunned at the improvements in pain and vigor. Pain is still a very real part of my day BUT it is so much better now I feel empowered to do the level best I can for myself and My wife and kids . At the risk of being over confident , I do believe this time the adjustments will remain a part of my life going forward.

I also realize that in time a proper and religious effort on caloric intake and meal planning will be very needed I am however changing so many things in such a tight window that I am just riding this early phase out until I feel like I have plateaued weight loss wise and then will adjust again with a Dietitian .

I learned the hard lesson that you cannot out work bad input ( food ) .

I have been watching a lot of Thomas DeLauer and am appreciating the way he explains the reasoning behind the concepts he presents. I also have been watching Training Tall, Darkhorse and I think C2 Australia. I watch youtube more than tv these days............

To all that have taken the time to read this and comment or offer advice THANK YOU, if I could have achieved this alone I would have , but this community may have been a huge missing link for my success the support is amazing .

I tend to write "stream of consciousness" so I hope this all made some sense to you guys. Be well. I think if it is agreeable I will update here a bit for now to keep me excited and in the mode of learning

[JoeCruse]

I have a lot of respect for what you are working to accomplish for yourself and your family, and just wanted to wish you the best in this endeavor. Way to go!!

[mict450]

Sounds like you got this, 50wm. We're rootin' for you!!

[jurgwhitehouse]

Your current situation sounds very similar to mine a few years ago. I was metabolically broken, pre-diabetic, over-fat. The erg saved my life.

A few things that worked for me:

Do something every day. You don't need rest days. Use discipline and routine because motivation isn't enough. Even if you're too tired or fatigued, do something - even if it's a 5-minute row followed by some light stretching.

Rowing fasted before breakfast stimulated a lot more fat-burning for me. Also, early morning rowing is best for discipline. Lay out your workout clothes the night before. My rule is to always get dressed into my rowing clothes when I wake up. Getting onto the erg is often the hardest part. Remember that black coffee has zero calories!

Keep the intensity low. Very low. I noticed that anything too hard just meant that I had to replenish with more carbs. Keto and hard exercise doesn't mix.

Eat your daily allocation of carbs immediately after a workout. It'll get shuttled directly to your muscles without stimulating an insulin response.

Don't confuse over-weight with over-fat. You're going to gain muscle mass with rowing, so don't be a slave to the scales. I was 115kg in 2017 before I started rowing. I dropped to 90kg with keto, IF, and 10-15 hours/week of low-intensity rowing. Then my ego took over when I realized I could be competitive. I'm now back to nearly 115kg. It ain't all muscle but I'm definitely a different shape now. Put simply, the best measure of progress is how much your gut gets in the way on the rowing machine.

Get a big fan. All that extra body insulation makes rowing miserable in the heat. Wristbands and a headband are a must.

Injury is your enemy and you have to do everything to avoid it. Look after your back, don't row for longer than 15-20 minutes at a time because it's not healthy to be in that cramped position for any longer then necessary. My favourite is 3x20 minutes with a 1-2 minute break in-between: time enough to get up, shake out stiffness, grab a drink, wipe off the sweat.

Although your fat loss is still predominantly about food intake, think of exercise as a way to add to flexibility to a restricted diet. That doesn't mean 'rewarding' yourself but be mindful that you need to get the caloric balance right. Trial and error. For example, being hungry before bedtime can affect sleep, which means you can't exercise as much tomorrow, which gets you into a cycle of despair. Rowing every day is going to increase your need for food, but as long as that extra food is keto-friendly fat & protein, you're all good. Personally I found <50g of carbs/day to be utterly miserable but 100-200g was about right. That's not strictly keto but it worked for me.

Get support from friends & family because you cannot do this alone. Discipline, keto and endless rowing can be alienating to those uninterested in your goals. Cut out those people who think they're being kind by telling you to relax, go easy, eat cake.

Keep a personal training diary. Upload everything to the Concept2 log. Take a photo of your erg screens. Note how well you slept, any aches & pains, how hard the workout felt, etc. Be sure to post ALL of your workouts here and/or on Instagram & Twitter and you'll soon realise that you're not alone. For me, this was the biggest motivation and source of inspiration. Don't be shy. Likeminded people will naturally want to support and help others going though the same personal struggles.

I'm looking forward to seeing your progress. Best wishes.