Focus vs. Distraction

[Cyclist2]

I have subscriptions to YouTube channels for cycling and rowing videos. On UT2/UT1 rows I watch general scenery rides/rows. I use their music (or my own on my cell phone if I don't like theirs). For more focused rows/rides I use the specific workout versions of the videos; there are unlimited numbers of cycling workouts, and more rowing types all the time. I use either rowing or cycling videos for either rowing or indoor cycling - I like both.

And I don't really "watch" them, just glance or catch interesting parts, something else to look at, like the passing scenery on real rides and rows. If I try to watch something like a movie, I have to concentrate so hard on the movie due to noise and my poor hearing that I lose focus on the workout and miss most of the movie, too. Audiobooks or podcasts, while interesting, are a non-starter for me for the same reason.

[gouldilocks]

My rower is outside so a) is out of the question - for me it is a mix of b), d) and e).
Most of my sessions are on ReRow so racing against my previous self keeps me quite motivated
Paul G

But now I have to know, when you did your epic 24 hour row, what was your plan? No movies? Nothing but music? How did you do it? That is amazing!

I have only had the rower outside in the last year since I moved house.
I did the 24 hr row in 2009 along with 2 other Free Spirit members at a golf club - we had music going, a spare erg where supporters could come and join us for a time, and we had a few quizzes amongst ourselves - I have to say that I found the row to be much harder mentally than physically - from the physical point of view it is all about pacing.

Paul G

[Rowan McSheen]

When running, never with headphones because they reduce spatial awareness. In urban settings I'd rather have my wits about me for traffic and other pavement and road users. Away from town I'd rather listen to the birds or, since I'm on the coast, the sea.

When erging, always with headphones (the neighbours complained about my music but I've grown to prefer phones to speakers now). For a long slow session something similar music-wise, like old-school ska and rocksteady. For intervals, something more driving and rock-oriented. I keep thinking I should try out one of these podcasts or progs on YouTube but never seem to get round to it.

[Carl Watts]

Tried motivational music for a couple of years and then the Concept 2 Model C rower turned into an expensive clothes drying rack for a while.

Then I discovered the E-Row software back in the early 2000's but by then it had died and by then people had moved to RowPro.

Basically I cannot row without doing my rows online with RowPro or its just too boring. Unless there are others online to row with, the current 45 minute sessions just would not happen. I still play music as well through the PC, just one of a few playlists of my favourite .mp3's pumping out of a 2.1 set of speakers and a subwoofer.

RowPro comes up via HDMI on the PC to a full HD 32 inch Sony TV a few feet in front of the rower. Probably the main data I look at these days is the DPS or distance per stroke data on screen.

ErgData on the old Samsung mobile is keeping track of the total stroke count. A Garmin HR strap is a must have item, usually a quick check of the resting HR before the start of the row to make sure I'm not over training and a check on the average post row.

Training sessions really don't need a lot of focus but there is always a goal and a target distance to hit before the row starts.

Rowing say the 6 x 500m sprints is a different story, it requires focus to hit your target times within 0.2sec

Lots of stuff going on so maybe I just need to be distracted. In any case its worked for the last 10 years so its just a case of getting a setup that works for you long term.

[pagomichaelh]

I have subscriptions to YouTube channels for cycling and rowing videos. On UT2/UT1 rows I watch general scenery rides/rows. I use their music (or my own on my cell phone if I don't like theirs). For more focused rows/rides I use the specific workout versions of the videos; there are unlimited numbers of cycling workouts, and more rowing types all the time. I use either rowing or cycling videos for either rowing or indoor cycling - I like both.

And I don't really "watch" them, just glance or catch interesting parts, something else to look at, like the passing scenery on real rides and rows. If I try to watch something like a movie, I have to concentrate so hard on the movie due to noise and my poor hearing that I lose focus on the workout and miss most of the movie, too. Audiobooks or podcasts, while interesting, are a non-starter for me for the same reason.

I do similar - I'll mostly focus on the monitor, but I'll have rowing scenery videos (esp. those Austrian ones with snow on the mountains, LOL), while listening to driving 60s rock for audio when I need to change my focus. Really anything I can do to relax concentration for a few seconds, then it's back to awareness.

Rather than trying to concentrate on every aspect at the same time, I'll (mentally) concentrate on how my hands are handling the oars for ten strokes, then breathing for ten, leg drive for ten, etc. The looking at the scenery, or actually listening to the music, fits in there as a mental rest break.

[ampire]

I watch junk sci fi on netflix with subtitles and no sound, fan too loud to hear it anyway.

[Andrewjfast]

Nice thread, you read my mind today, I'll play.

My First 6wks stared at the mirror from the side and 1/2 watched YT (Darkhorse or Training Tall) videos on form and how to program workouts and 1/2 focused hard on the PM data. No music first month, then added it when possible or not watching a video on technique.

2nd half of my career (yes today is my 3 month anniversary of rowing more than the occasional 5m warmup/cool down with, apparently, 0 idea how to actually row), I added some more follow along 20-40m videos, then figured re-runs or certain shows you don't have to focus much on would be ok... and now I'm cranking to Winter Soldier, Invincible, and any action movie that grabs my interest and I'm coming up on 700K lifetime which is >50% watching stuff and less focused than my early rows.

I did a HM after 4 wks and maybe 200k and my hips/groin/hamstrings about died (like those early LONG cycling rides used to do) and vowed to toughen up my sit bones and log some serious miles and ding loads of 30-45min workouts seems to have helped my base. Need to redo my TT's and see if I'm better or worse off since I agree, FOCUSED effort is all you can count on to improve performance. Glad to see people with crushing PBs follow that formula and i appreciate the kick in the pants to not let ALL my workouts be TV focused. played competitive soccer and tennis into my 20s then triathlons for a decade, you'd think I knew better than to slippery slope my way into Cardio Fun time 6 days a week.

Will see the disparity in effort once I re-test but with 50% focus on Video and 50% on the PM and constant vigilance on my splits, the overall workout/burn has been excellent I must say.

cheers all

[mrhartysir]

I'm a new rower and find the timing and sequence of movements to require my full attention.

At first I assumed I could watch Netflix and row, but on top of the loud rower preventing me from hearing a thing that was said, I couldn't focus on the television since as soon as I did my rowing degraded.

Then I tried music, but after rowing for a while I realized I hadn't heard a note since 100% of my focus was on having a consistent and proper stroke.

Now, after rowing a total of about a dozen times, I don't bother with any distractions. I just choose a SPM and pace I want to hold, close my eyes, and row, peeking at the monitor every 20 or 30 seconds to see how I'm doing and adjusting accordingly.

It's the closest thing I do to meditating.

[OregonERG]

I'm a new rower and find the timing and sequence of movements to require my full attention.

At first I assumed I could watch Netflix and row, but on top of the loud rower preventing me from hearing a thing that was said, I couldn't focus on the television since as soon as I did my rowing degraded.

Then I tried music, but after rowing for a while I realized I hadn't heard a note since 100% of my focus was on having a consistent and proper stroke.

Now, after rowing a total of about a dozen times, I don't bother with any distractions. I just choose a SPM and pace I want to hold, close my eyes, and row, peeking at the monitor every 20 or 30 seconds to see how I'm doing and adjusting accordingly.

It's the closest thing I do to meditating.

I think that is a good way to develop your stroke. I am glad that as a runner I didn't use music (in the form of a "Walkman") during the late 80s or 90s when I was developing. I really was focused on the stride, the breathing, and my own rhythm. Not "tuning out to music" on every run certainly made me a better runner.

But here I am, 30 years later, and if I couldn't listen to podcasts or watch Netflix, my training volume would drop from like 50 min. per day (average) to about 30. That would be a pretty big loss of meter/miles just due to boredom.

[mromero680]

I usually listen to podcasts but there have been times when I was so focused on rate or pace that I didn't realize until the end that I forgot to turn it on! The instant feedback is enough sometimes but most days I need a distraction.

[fischmeister]

Right from the start I always rowed with music via headphones. A great way to listen to well-known tunes (when concentrating on technique and not really needing distraction) or to discover new music (when doing long steady work and needing distraction). Then I tried watching TV or youtube - that didn´t work at all. The concentration totally went away from rowing. Then I discovered Zwift - and have done very few rows without Zwift since. I can still focus on technique because a good technique makes my avatar go faster, and at the same time there is sooo much going on that time really flies. My average daily kms have increased drastically, can´t wait to get back on the erg for my next Zwift adventure.

[ampire]

At this point 2 years in, I've found I don't have to concentrate on form so much as I did as a beginner. When I started I didn't use any form of distraction but now I have over 3 mil meters on slides and 4 mil life time meters so the stroke is now pretty natural and ingrained.

When I started on the slides, after about 6 months without slides, I had to relearn my form. I couldn't use any distraction besides music with a reasonable bpm because if I became distracted I would bang the end of the slide. That doesn't happen now with another year and a half of sliding, so I put on a netflix movie or show with a reasonable amount of action on subtitle. I have a computer monitor in front of my rower and I put my cellphone with the Ergdata app on below it. I can see the pace and watch the show at the same time without having to look slightly down at the PM5 below my netflix sight line.

[mrhartysir]

...
Now, after rowing a total of about a dozen times, I don't bother with any distractions. I just choose a SPM and pace I want to hold, close my eyes, and row, peeking at the monitor every 20 or 30 seconds to see how I'm doing and adjusting accordingly.
...

I think that is a good way to develop your stroke. I am glad that as a runner I didn't use music (in the form of a "Walkman") during the late 80s or 90s when I was developing. I really was focused on the stride, the breathing, and my own rhythm. Not "tuning out to music" on every run certainly made me a better runner.

But here I am, 30 years later, and if I couldn't listen to podcasts or watch Netflix, my training volume would drop from like 50 min. per day (average) to about 30. That would be a pretty big loss of meter/miles just due to boredom.

Running is, for me, the one exercise I do with music. The only thing I have to watch out for is having music at a BPM that's slightly too slow or too fast. I love running to songs with a BPM [beats/minute] that perfectly matches my pace, because songs that are just off my pace screw me up and get me taking too long/short or too few/many strides.

In time my rowing stroke will become as natural as my running stride. Unfortunately, last night I figured out what drag factor is and now have to relearn how to row with my bad habits ingrained in my brain [I had no idea it was actually harder to row with a drag of 130 than a drag of 190... who knew?] It'll be quite a while before I'm able to row without concentrating the entire time, like you can.

Are there lists of songs to row to for a certain SPM like there are songs for running a certain cadence?

[estragon]

Usually I listen to podcasts. I'll sometimes watch a Netflix or Amazon Prime documentary on computer. At the weekend I'll try to time my longer rows to coincide with a football (i.e. 'soccer') match. Off the erg I listen to audiobooks a lot but I find them too passive for rowing. I prefer the energy of podcasts which is more distracting, especially where several people are talking and disagreeing about something. It's horses for courses but (not being a serious, competitive rower) I find just staring at the PM5 for more than a few hundred metres very boring indeed. Each to their own.

[Dutch]

I just have music via an mp3 player same songs for each row just going round and round about an hours worth, just in the background. Still in that phase where stats and stroke still interest me and constantly working out things.
If I am going for something timed 1k to 3k then is the ben hur rowing scene 4min 18 secs downloaded from youtube on repeat, as an mp3 file and that reaches the spot needed when you need to up a gear especially with a pace boat going.