loco,

I honestly can't tell at this point if you're trolling or just very stupid wrt this subject. ILP is both, so I probably shouldn't try to create a false dichotomy here.

Please let me know of elite rowers that are 5'8 200. There are literal world record holders who're almost lightweights! How is that possible?!? (Hint: You are wrong.)

DM, more weight in indoor rowing is a good thing. Everything else equal, a 5'8 200 person will be a better rower than a 5'8 160 person (equal strength being the important bit here)

Edit: After 5 minutes of thinking about it, I'm not certain about it anymore.

arjun,

My entire point is that gaining a bunch of weight for some random reason is not going to make you a better rower. The idea that loco can't complete this challenge with Monte unless he gains 20lbs is completely absurd.

There is a dude >6ft who competes at mid 160s. Weirdly he has a WR. In loco insanity world, this could never occur since rowing should be dominated by 200lbs+ mass monsters, not just a bunch of dudes with insane technique who happen to be 6ft+ (5'10 if lw).


Also, wrt your example, you'd be wrong ldo. Unless somehow hauling 40lbs around doesn't magically tire someone out.

9/28
PP W1D4 - C2 Row: 20:00/4862 m (2:03.4/500 m; 20 spm)

20 minutes at a slightly slower pace than my d1/3 pace was what was programmed, so I slowed down the stroke rate a bit and tried to focus on technique. Kept it pretty consistent, as per the five minute splits:

1207 m - 2:04.2/20 spm
1208 m - 2:04.1/21 spm
1221 m - 2:02.8/21 spm
1226 m - 2:02.3/21 spm

Was supposed to do back today as well, but had a bunch of kids stuff/errands/prep for the wifeacore's birthday tomorrow, so no dice on that.

Monte,

Have you attempted the stroke technique work where you attempt to row the same split utilizing different stroke rates? I think this is a little spergy, but prob grinds out technique super well.

Height. I'm sure no one non-insane really needs these links, but watevs

https://www.britishrowing.org/gb-row...d-class-start/

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/acti...up-rowing.html

@Monte

SPM is good to think about. But, first of all, let's make sure we're on the same page. Resistance should be 3.5 or maybe 4 at a max.

Why - argument by authority: ok, so this (below) is British Rowing's training plan for newbs who have already done some form of exercise at some point in their lives, but not recently. I'm not advising it as a plan: its end goal is "end goal of rowing 2, 000m"

But look at the resistance recommendation on p.1. Probably the most important objective of the whole document is to try to get people rowing "correctly" whilst learning to exercise a little. And it's this resistance level info and the 'look at our youtube videos re form' that they tell you. (Eg., Stroke & recovery should be in planes - not up and down over knees, even if the latter can be performed faster.)

https://www.britishrowing.org/wp-con..._Plan_P3-7.pdf

I strongly dislike the "crescendo" SPM recommendations in the BR plan in my previous, but ... look .. rowing is frantically boring, esssentially, and even more so on an erg. So, you will eventually go crazy if all your rows are steady state 8minutes/2k, 20.5 SPM. Which means it's more or less compulsory to go crazy and have some fun varying (or change) the SPM on some of your longish continuous sessions and/or doing intervals at various rates of speed x SPM. (But don't **** about with the resistance level - that's a no-no!!!).

Ofc, a mixed regime will improve/change your performance (but at what?), but then you can start typical H&F programme debates

TV or podcasts.

Def have read something by a bro who didn't do anything during long cardio sessions to get used to the boring monotony of the grind.

Prob why real events last <10min.

I'm an aspie **** so I generally check the machine and then set it to the resistance of water. But everyone do their own thing.

This is a whole nother subject for "rowing on machine fast as possible" which deals which how you slant on spm. So whatever.

Thremp,

Re: varying spm while keeping pace constant, I haven't done anything along those lines yet - I might in the future to change things up, though. Thanks for the rec.

tchaz,

As per thremp's last post, I read somewhere a few years back that a drag factor of ~120 was a decent target; a resistance setting of around 4 on both of the machines I use routinely gets me there, so that's what I use.

Re: boredom, I'm a podcast guy. That plus playing mental games with myself about the pace for the next 500 meter split generally keeps me going, but whether that keeps working as my time on the erg increases to 40+ minutes is anyone's guess.

Great - whatever got you to the right answer is good. Good stuff.

I see too many lifters putting the resistance to 10 and doing 500m at 35 SPM for one rep. I've no idea what that does for them, but it looks pretty silly.

glgl. Random > 30 mins piecesare fine, but grinding that is kinda boring imo. (But no worse than a gym-bike.) But my tekkers with keeping the earbuds in over that span is pretty poor tbh.

--

Ultimately, what is the goal of the rowing? Is it generic-low-impact-cardio in order to in the future be able to run about with the ever faster minis? (Fine, ofc) Or, do you want to get in a boat? Or, don't want to get in a boat, but want to be in a place where you could if the city you live in had better weather? ... ?

tchaz,

With you.

Speaking for myself. Lots of people erg because it is esoteric cardio that requires some technical competency and seems slightly more interesting than sitting on a bike for 3hrs. Peloton isn't helping.

tchaz,

Pretty much a combination of your option 1 and what thremp said. Indy has a rowing club, and I can't say I'd never want to get on the water, but right now it's just a different way to try to stay in shape and improve my work capacity. I'm under no illusions of grandeur about what this may lead to, but that I'm built, at least superficially, like the few people I know that have rowed semi-competitively and I'm kind of passable at it without working super hard is a nice change from the barbell arts.

Well, if you put a 40 lb wt vest, the 160lb dude, then instantly becomes a 200lb dude with equal strength. So, ez game. Loco can just strap on an 20lb vest or whatever, and problem solved.

I hit some 500m reps at 1:49/1:50/1:51 today, first time ever on the Erg The lactate was problem (or H+ ions, whatever you want to call it). I will not touch the ERG for now, but I will do a little bit of cycling for the lactate issue I have always had. I am concerned I will bust my back with rowing, so not really looking to get into it. But I would imagine learning technique and picking the right damper would knock out 15s off my 500 and that's all the power I would need to eventually post a good 10k.

Want to make sure this guy doesn't sneak up on me to taketh my fittest man title. Lucky for me, front squats/leg press/ core/ rows/pullups/deadlift variations have never left my repetoire. And now I will make sure they never leave.

Take it easy Monte, you old. Even with good technique, you might bust yo shiet up. . Rowing has slight flexion, over and over again. Thousands of times. Will your 40 year old back hold up? Take it easy bro, the swimming pool is over there.

loc-huahua,

Your yips of encouragement are, as always, appreciated.

9/29 W4D3
Squat: wu, 225x5x3
RDLs: 185x9x3
Single Leg Press: 3x9

35 minutes; session RPE remains light. Not really going to push this too much, at least not yet.

9/30
EZ Curl: 3x12
Incline Curls: 3x15

PP W2D1 - C2 Row: 21:50/5500 m (24 spm)

Legs feeling a bit fatigued, but we move on. Stroke rate was a bit high as a result, and I had to row a bit easier for 30 seconds every minute or so in the last third of the piece. Still got through it.

I am guessing your kids aren't on the iPad all the time playing social games (or whatever the appropriate term is) like Minecraft and Roblox, because you seem like a better parent than that. Anyways, I am not, so mine is. Very conflicted about it. One one hand it seems like a bad idea for a lot of reasons; but on the other hand his spelling and reading have improved dramatically because of all the chatting. Plus if nothing else, it gives him a common interest to socialize with peers.

How do you approach the whole gaming/social media world, if you don't mind me asking?

Basically they're not involved; little to no TV during the school week, no access to a phone or screen, and other than Netflix cartoons they don't even know much about what's out there (at least I don't think they do). My wife "doesn't believe" in video games - I'm not necessarily fully against them, but the boys get engrossed enough when their aunt stops by and lets them play {iPhone game du jour} that I'm hesitant to really fight any sort of battle for "productive" games at home. That we don't own a tablet probably helps; they get some time with an iPad at school for certain activities, and that seems like enough for now at least.

Putting the toothpaste back in the tube on that sort of thing seems impossible, though. If it's controlled and supervised, I can see the positives.

10/1: W4D4
OHP: wu, 115x6x4
CGBP: 155x10x3
DB Incline Fly: 3x12
Skullcrushers: 3x12
Rope Upright Row: 3x12
Overhead Rope Tri: 3x12

50 minutes.

Still k.

10/2

PP W2D3
C2 Row: 21:53/5500 m (1:59.3/23 spm)

1100 splits:
1 - 1:58.6 22 spm
2 - 1:58.9 22 spm
3 - 1:59.5 23 spm
4 - 1:59.7 25 spm
5 - 1:59.8 25 spm

W4D5
CSR: 3x12
Lat Pulldown: 3x12
High to Low Hammer Pulldown: 3x10
DB Pullover: 3x10

~55 minutes.

Skipped the interval day because I figured having what will eventually be the longer sessions after my lower body days is going to be less and less desirable moving forward. Tried to keep up a consistent pace and stroke rate, but tired out at the end.

10/3: W4D6
Deadlift: wu, 265x4x4
Front Squat: wu, 125x8x3
RFESS: 3x8

45 minutes.

Meh. Its probably not a real thing anyways, just something I want to be true so I feel better about it. You are definitely right about the not being able to put the toothpaste back in though. We have tried to an extent, and seen others try, and the results in all cases aren't promising.

10/4

PP W2D4
C2 Row: 20:00/4889 m (20 spm)

W4D6
DB Hammer: 3x12
Bayesian Curl: 3x12

~40 minutes.

Used a different C2 which turned out to have a busted memory function, but started out at around a 2:05 pace for the first 4 minute split down to exactly 2:00 for the last four minutes - given stroke rate was consistent, that probably speaks to more consistently warming up being a good idea. Oh well.