What Was Your Work Out Today?

hobbitses333 wrote: »

10 mins brisk walk to and from the gym...2000 m row on 100% resistance + 1 min cool down.

Please lower the resistance!! You'll hurt your back likely if you don't. Think of the "resistance" on a rower as the water simulation. The technical term is Drag Factor. It's meant to simulate how low the boat would go in the water based on your weight. By putting it all the way up, you're telling the machine that you're a six foot, six inch tall man.

Most gyms, even the trainers don't have a clue about rowing machines. I do indoor rowing competitively and I set the machine at my gym down to the very lowest setting (it's a Matrix Machine, which are terribly hard to pull at a higher drag factor).

It's great you're rowing, just wanting to keep you from getting injured -- very easy to do at highest settings.

Today was redo of last week's terrible attempt at the CTC Rowing Challenge for this month. My last attempt, I just died and ended up at a 1:50 something pace, which is terrible. My 2K Personal Best is a 1:47.7 pace, so I wanted to do better than that.

Today, I hit below my 2K PB pace. Not great for a short sprint (666 meters), but I'm happy just to knock a few seconds off of last week's awful attempt. Not quite back to sprinting form (not close really) but I'm slowly getting there. When I was at my fastest, prior to the back injury, I would have been closer to a 1:39 or 1:40 pace. So still a work in progress, but I'm just back to lifting and sprinting without fear of reinjuring the back. Back feels great. It took nine months, but hey, I'm happy to finally not have pain.

Did the Warmup on the AirBike for 10 minutes and finished up with 2000 meters, going hard every 3 or 4 minutes for a minute (two more sprints or so).

10 min of yoga then 25 min riding zone 2/3. Then 20 min short intervals pushing big wattage (zone 6/7) - at least for me - (240-289-340-420 watts) but very short- descending in time but increasing power intervals.

Walked 2 miles (dog plus to and from lunch) to round it out and get crap out of legs.

hobbitses333 wrote: »

MikePfirrman wrote: »

hobbitses333 wrote: »

10 mins brisk walk to and from the gym...2000 m row on 100% resistance + 1 min cool down.

Please lower the resistance!! You'll hurt your back likely if you don't. Think of the "resistance" on a rower as the water simulation. The technical term is Drag Factor. It's meant to simulate how low the boat would go in the water based on your weight. By putting it all the way up, you're telling the machine that you're a six foot, six inch tall man.

Most gyms, even the trainers don't have a clue about rowing machines. I do indoor rowing competitively and I set the machine at my gym down to the very lowest setting (it's a Matrix Machine, which are terribly hard to pull at a higher drag factor).

It's great you're rowing, just wanting to keep you from getting injured -- very easy to do at highest settings.

@MikePfirrman Thank you for the concern, I have been rowing for over a year now. You are completely right my "trainer' at the gym set me up for injury teaching me nothing of technique and both of us not realizing how much I would LOVE rowing. I experimented on my own and noticed a few differences in efficiency of power so I looked it up and learned technique through Youtube.

Rowing with a 4 count I have worked my way up to 100% over the year for progressive overload reasons. I started at 40% just trying to get to 2000m in 10 minutes or less consistently and adding to the resistance to reset that goal of training. With the odd 5000m row in there, best time 25:27 at 100 %. I went to 5000m because I just didn't want to stop and like to do it from time to time to shake things up. I stretch and am very aware of my optimal body mechanics from years of physical labor. It never occurred to me to take it down a notch...To me that sounds like a 7500 m row for the fun of it on a lower setting. Thanks for the inspiration!

Don't think of taking it down a notch. I took a few years understanding drag factor until one ex time trialer Biker explained it in very simple terms. He said basically, "who asks a biker that wins a bike race what gear they had their bike in?". Think of Drag Factor as the rower's bike gear. You can ride a bike up a 1/2 mile hill in first gear and practically stop in the process, or you make it where you can pedal more efficiently.

I sat next to a young kid last week on the rower next to me. He was much stronger than I was. I was doing a "slow" row for me (around 2:05 pace on their rowers at LA Fitness) and he was struggling at 4:20 pace (practically not moving). My strokes were long, fluid and easy. His Drag Factor was all the way up, he was pulling the chain (or rope in this case) around two feet max and his upper body was doing all the work. Choppy, inefficient and slow would describe his work. Velocity X Force = Work. Power = Work over time. Old physics equations.

If you raise the drag, you're doing more force. But if you can't pull that force as often and with the same velocity (especially over time), your speed/distance (work) is cut significantly.

Another way to think of drag factor is lets say you have to move 50,000 lbs in 2 hours. Will you move 1000 lbs 50 times? I don't think most would attempt that. But how about 100 lbs 500 times? Sounds a lot more possible. Essentially, it's the same amount of "work" broken up differently.

YouTube does have some very good info. Glad you're using some resources other than your trainer. Dark Horse Rowing has some very good tutorials. So does Concept2. There's an Australian C2 video of a female on a dock breaking down the stroke that's very informative. If you can get your hands on a Concept2 machine, their monitor is great for learning -- ErgData is a great app and even the monitor itself has power curves on it that show you if your stroke is efficient.

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Ninety minutes (first time) of pool exercise ranging from lunge squats to hip exercises to jumping jacks and jogging in place.

15 min stretching, warm-up cardio on rowing machine 10 min, elliptical 5 min, strength training lower body 90 minutes including dead lifts, balance exercises, weighted lunges, squats (single, double on bossu), jumping/hopping, mixed in some push-ups for fun in between, rested and then my partner wanted to play table tennis so did that for fun for 60 min.

hobbitses333 wrote: »

@MikePfirrman thanks for the information and resources So good!

I will ease up on the intensity. I go by watts and distance. Will be interesting to set different goals. Maybe find a consistent watt and improve. I went from barely able to do 5 minutes straight at 40% and I could barely walk after workout to a 10 min 100% warm up after one year. I am slow compared to you. 2:30

Assuming you're using a Concept 2 rowing machine, please please please read their page on drag factor and damper settings. They also have two other articles, one about myths people believe and the other about the drag factor various olympians set their ergs to, that would be helpful. Even if you're not using a concept 2, those three links will probably be very useful.

Today my workout was my morning session and a 5km run as well as my workwalk (5km total)

Tuesday - not quite as crazy as usual.

30min stair workout with trainer. Muscular endurance based today.

Zumba class

20min fartlek session taking in my challenge hill

Insanity class

Boxercise class

aokoye wrote: »

hobbitses333 wrote: »

@MikePfirrman thanks for the information and resources So good!

I will ease up on the intensity. I go by watts and distance. Will be interesting to set different goals. Maybe find a consistent watt and improve. I went from barely able to do 5 minutes straight at 40% and I could barely walk after workout to a 10 min 100% warm up after one year. I am slow compared to you. 2:30

Assuming you're using a Concept 2 rowing machine, please please please read their page on drag factor and damper settings. They also have two other articles, one about myths people believe and the other about the drag factor various olympians set their ergs to, that would be helpful. Even if you're not using a concept 2, those three links will probably be very useful.

Words "concept 2" automatically raise my blood pressure.

I'm 25 years post college and finally don't have erg stress dreams.

My favorite was from a longtime ago:
I had a 10k erg test. When I showed up - as dreams will - the test suddenly was the starting line (although in the dream this made sense and was still just an erg test). Out of nowhere a large cushy bus with super clean comfortable seats appears and I am given the option to "take the bus" to the end of the erg piece which in the dream is the course finish line. Which I do and meet everyone at the finish....we all cheer the test being over. And I'm happy to have finished having taken the bus.

"Taking the bus" became teamslang for throwing an erg piece.

15 minutes stretching, cardio/warm-up: 10 min rowing, 5 min elliptical. 60 minutes strength exercises: abs, back, arms, chest... and kettle bells get-ups. Playing soccer game later est: 60 min

10/21/19
6-8 am:
Yoga
Sun Salutation - 10 Rounds
5 Tibetan Rites
Meditate

6-7 pm:
Strength
Pull-up - E2MOM (21m)
5 rep every 1m20s (75)
Core Strength
Pancake Sit-up - 3 x 10 (30)

10/23/19
6-8 am:
Yoga
Sun Salutation - 10 Rounds
Read / Write / Meditate
Yoga
5 Tibetan Rites
Strength - GTG
Dead Hang x 60s x 3 (3m)
Handstand Wall Hold x 60s x 3 (3m)
HSPU x 3 (3)
200 Jumprope Skips (1/2lb Rope) x 3 (600)

Yesterday was active rest day. Walked dog for 30 min in morning and again after work.

Today was long at least for me during work week: 75 min peloton power zone ride

5 long zone 3 intervals - 12 min, 9 min, 6 min, 9 min, 12 min - with 4 min zone 2 in between each. All watt based not heart rate.

Not too bad except last interval. Last interval was hard but I finished it.

30 minute Steady State (slower) row and then 20 on the AirBike Pro (still relatively easy).