Critique my technique

[PaulS]

I'm new here, and I've obviously got a lot to learn.

However I do know some basic physics and I'm completely mystified by the quoted watts per stroke. The watt is a unit of power, i.e. rate of doing work, converting energy etc. Since it's a rate with respect to time, power can be measured instantaneously or averaged over a time interval (much like speed can be). So when you folk say "... you should pull 14-15 watts a stroke ..." does this mean that the average power is 14-15 watts over the entire stroke? If so, then if your strokes were even and consistent throughout the row, then that's also going to be an average power of 15 watts for the duration of the row.

In terms of work output, that's 15 Joules per second or about the same work rate as would be required to raise a 75kg (165lb) person up a flight of stairs at the phenomenal rate of ... wait for it ... 2cm (0.8 inch) vertically per second!

(Weight of a 75kg mass is approx. 750N and 2cm/s is 0.02m/s)
Work done against gravity per second = 750N x 0.02m = 15J

Given how hard I find it to pull a rate of 1:39 /500m, this sounds an unlikely comparison. I would have thought the average power involved in rowing would be in the 100s of watts.

Be grateful for a clarification.

Ranger tends to talk about some rather strange things, without regard to reality, or basing them on widely known terms and standards in rowing or science. There is a lack of not only accuracy, but precision also. Don't worry about it.

Now he will attack me, for answering your question, and I will have to put up with his unwarranted insults for a while.

Cheers.

[HardGainer]

Thanks PaulS.
I'm learning things on here already

[jamesg]

HG
Dividing Watts by strokes/minute, you get Work, measured in Watt-minutes; the amount of work you've done on average in a single stroke.

The idea, which may or may not be a good one, is that by keeping Work high for every single stroke for the rest of your life, you can train strength, endurance and technique all at once.

[johnlvs2run]

does this mean that the average power is 14-15 watts over the entire stroke? If so, then if your strokes were even and consistent throughout the row, then that's also going to be an average power of 15 watts for the duration of the row.

Yes that is correct.

The average watts per stroke, are the same as the average watts for the row.

[tennstrike]

So you are rowing, what, 24 spm or so most of the time?

At what pace?

ranger

At 24 spm, this would be 1:39-1:42 pace.

If I were you, I wouldn't regard a stroke as done well, i.e., with "good" technique, unless it were this effective at managing force/power/work/relaxation/etc. within the drive.

ranger

A 1:40 pace at 24 spm is 12.5 meters per stroke. Wouldn't a much more reasonable spm be in the neighborhood of 30 spm, yielding 10.0 meters per stroke?

[csabour]

So you are rowing, what, 24 spm or so most of the time?

At what pace?

ranger

At 24 spm, this would be 1:39-1:42 pace.

If I were you, I wouldn't regard a stroke as done well, i.e., with "good" technique, unless it were this effective at managing force/power/work/relaxation/etc. within the drive.

ranger

A 1:40 pace at 24 spm is 12.5 meters per stroke. Wouldn't a much more reasonable spm be in the neighborhood of 30 spm, yielding 10.0 meters per stroke?

technically that is the optimal spm to row that pace, but it depends on the person rowing it. The problem with the low spm is the stress on the muscle and so the muscle will tired before your heart(which is far longer lasting).

so by upping the cadence, less pressure is exerted by the muscle and the rower falls back on their cardio which is the backbone of all rowers.