Halfway through the third week
Another morning row... I spent the first row just listening to the music - a long set of Dire Straights. Then worried my way through the second thinking about work and what I have to do next week - build a new virtual server, move the mail filter server, write a very important grant - I think my heart rate was up because of that instead of the exercise. Broke my mind away from that subject during the rest period and started the third set almost confident that I was going to complete this challenge. That set me off thinking about how I'm going to train for the next challenge - the Erg Armageddon - in February. This current challenge is just endurance since it doesn't matter how long it takes to do the 200K, as long as you do it.
Today's pieces: #1 - 4311 meters, #2 - 4275 meters, #3 - 4346 meters. Still above my target of 12,500 meters per day. And amazingly enough, still on track with four days of rowing per week.
The Armageddon is all about speed - a short burst of all the speed you have. The old guys (They call us 'Masters" to make us feel better) only have to race 1,000 meters. The college rowers do a full 2,000 meter course. My pace has been 1:40/500 for that last five or six years so that means 3:20 total for the race. Three minutes at full power - doesn't seem like much does it?
How do you train for it? Long pieces for pure strength training? High rate pieces to get your legs used to moving that fast? Actual race length sessions at full power? Most likely some combination of all of those. Im not so sure about the full length race pieces. I'm afraid that if my body recognizes what my head is intending for it to do, there might be a revolution!
This afternoon another club member and I will go out to the storage facility to finish winterizing the safety launch. Two hours in an unheated barn working without gloves with grease and oils - sounds like fun.
No rowing tomorrow - a scheduled day off plus I'm giving blood tomorrow. I think I'm two pints away from seven gallons now so only one more after tomorow. I rowed one evening last summer after giving blood at lunchtime - bad choice! I don't think that I'll be tempted to try that again.
Today's pieces: #1 - 4311 meters, #2 - 4275 meters, #3 - 4346 meters. Still above my target of 12,500 meters per day. And amazingly enough, still on track with four days of rowing per week.
The Armageddon is all about speed - a short burst of all the speed you have. The old guys (They call us 'Masters" to make us feel better) only have to race 1,000 meters. The college rowers do a full 2,000 meter course. My pace has been 1:40/500 for that last five or six years so that means 3:20 total for the race. Three minutes at full power - doesn't seem like much does it?
How do you train for it? Long pieces for pure strength training? High rate pieces to get your legs used to moving that fast? Actual race length sessions at full power? Most likely some combination of all of those. Im not so sure about the full length race pieces. I'm afraid that if my body recognizes what my head is intending for it to do, there might be a revolution!
This afternoon another club member and I will go out to the storage facility to finish winterizing the safety launch. Two hours in an unheated barn working without gloves with grease and oils - sounds like fun.
No rowing tomorrow - a scheduled day off plus I'm giving blood tomorrow. I think I'm two pints away from seven gallons now so only one more after tomorow. I rowed one evening last summer after giving blood at lunchtime - bad choice! I don't think that I'll be tempted to try that again.
Hey Jim,
Loved reading your blog. I'm not a rower but it was fun to see the non-work side of your life.
Keep rowing "master"
Dan
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