What is a decent 500m split to maintain?

[SwordSmith]

I bought my rower a couple of months ago now and have been using it reguarly but I don't know what 500m split pace is good to maintain. I prefer to row on resistence 10 because I like to do more resistence type rowing rather than a faster pull speed type rowing. I am currently sitting on a 2:07 500m split pace with resistence 10 what would be a good split pace to set as a goal for further down the road that is attainable?

[ShortAndStout]

Long story short, it depends on your goals. You might also ask, how good is a running pace of 9 minute mile - at marathon pace this is good, as a 100m sprint, not so much. So define what success looks like for you first and what you want to work towards.

Some metrics to consider: How long you row, the SPM (strokes per min) of your row, and your intended intensity. Factors that affect this are your age, height, weight, previous fitness experience, etc.

A lot of rowers train for the 2K, others train for marathons or higher. As a beginner my 2K was/is 1:55/500m roughly, which is about 7:45 total. If you're rowing casually after work or as an augment for the workout, your speed matters less than your exertion - 10 or 15 minutes as a cardio augment during a different workout will be good for you regardless of how fast you go.

[rOw]

You maintain a 2:07 split but for how long? 1' ? 5' ? 45' ?
Split and damper setting are not really linked.
By the way, nobody would advise you to set it on 10.

[p_b82]

As the C2 the damper setting just sets the drag - not the resistance - the difference is therefore purely the rate of deceleration of the fan.

Generally speaking, unless you're doing very short sprints, a drag factor between 100-140 is where most people end up; I personally use ~120 whether I'm going at 17spm or 40spm.

Others have covered that your question has insufficient information for any-one to make any recommendations for you though I'm afraid.

Although I will say that if you're thinking about rowing as a pull, then you might want to reset and think of it as a push - most the effort is from the legs, then trunk, and finally arms; the pull part is the smallest and weakest component of the stroke.

FYI my HM pace is 2:16@r20 I did a 2k at ~2:00@r20 - both are on/were PB pace so for me it's very good, compared to some others, it's snail like - it's all about context

[MudSweatAndYears]

Firstly: on a C2 *you* create the resistance, not the damper. In other words: a rower with decent technique rowing at a damper setting "1" can be rowing with higher resistance than a beginner rowing at damper setting "10". My advice: stop training with these excessive damper settings.

Secondly: if you are competitive and a speed target motivates you, you might do what I did wen I started indoor rowing. I set a target pace of 2:00 /500m and tried to maintain that pace over ever longer pieces. A 500m in less than 2:00 proved relatively easy, but it took quite some months of training before I rowed a 5k in less than 20 minutes. Via a 6k and a 10k at sub-2:00 pace I reached a >15k in an hour-of-power. Now (years after I started indoor rowing) I am landing a 2:00 pace half marathon. A full marathon at this pace I will probably never reach.

[H2O]

The UK C2 Training guide has a training pace table on page 75 for the various training intensity bands and training programs for various goals nearby. The paces work for me more or less.

[Carl Watts]

Firstly learn about "Drag factor" its not all about where the damper is set, that can be irrelevant and changes dramatically with dust build-up inside the fan housing.

2:00 pace has always been the benchmark for me on longer rows, anything that starts with a "1" is a real bonus