INDOOR ROWING NEWSLETTER # 16 ======================= 7-July-2000 ======================= _________________________________________________ C O N T E N T S 1. Indoor Rowing Training Camp 2. Tel's Tales #1 - Technique 3. Eight Hour Team Row 4. British Olympic Fantasy Rowing Competition 5. Tel's Tales #2 - Weight Management 6. Coxless4.com 7. Top Tip 8. E-Commerce 9. 100 Metre Challenge 10. Henley Royal Regatta 11. Concept Ranking Spotlight 12. Tel's Tales #3 - Training Guide _________________________________________________________________ ========================================================= Indoor Rowing Training Camp ========================================================= Somewhat unsurprisingly, the biggest number of training queries we get relate to either how to improve your 2,000 metre times or to technique (see Tel's Tales #2 below). Well what if there was a magical place across the waters devoted to indoor rowing, a place where the world's leading indoor rowing coach would be on hand night and day to deliver personal advice to help you improve your rowing and get you fit and trim for whatever the world decides to throw at you. Well, if there wasn't this article would be leading nowhere, but fortunately for us both, there is. The world's first ever Indoor Rowing Training Camp is taking place from September 30th to October 8th in Banyoles, Spain. There are still a few places left on it, so if you're interested and would like more information just send an e-mail to webmaster@vermonthouse.co.uk or check out our web-site at http://www.concept2.co.uk/v4/race_training_index.htm. If you've already sent in your deposit for the Training Camp, we'll be sending out the flight details etc. shortly. ========================================================= Tel's Tales #1 - Technique ========================================================= Smythe-Jones wiped back the sweat that ran down his face. For six long weeks he had hacked his way through the thick undergrowth that ran parallel to the arterial road, searching for living proof of the white god worshipped by the natives, a god said able to provide the answer to any question on indoor rowing, no matter how arcane or recondite. Bursting into a clearing he saw a tall, distinguished white man sitting on an ornate carved jade throne. Smythe-Jones stood stock- still; idly he noticed that the man appeared not to be bothered by the infernal heat. As he felt his breath rasp in his throat, he saw the man's face crease under the weight of a wide grin. "Wotcha geezer! All you had to do was send an e-mail to webmaster@vermonthouse.co.uk!" Bill Pike: I really enjoy your newsletters, especially any ideas and tips for improving times. I started on the Concept 2 almost a year ago at the age of 30 and just under 15 stone (I'm only 5ft 9ish!) and could only row around 1,000 metres. Since then I have seen the milestones go by as I managed to row 1,500m, then 2,000m. Then it was 2,000m in under 8 minutes, then 7.55, 7.50, 7.45 and so on. My PB is now just over 7.20 and my weight is now down to around 12 stone 9 pounds - and hopefully I will eventually get to around 12 stone. My stroke rate is usually quite slow starting at around 20 and speeding up to 25ish before the flat out bit at the end. I was therefore surprised to read that the top guys are so fast at around 35 strokes per minute. I know that all the best rowers are tall (simple physics, levers etc.) and so I am unlikely to set the world alight comparing myself to the heavyweights. However, to get into the lightweight category I've got to lose almost another stone which, whilst probably do-able will take a while. I am curious to know if you have any data by height rather than weight. Being realistic, the Holy Grail looks like a PB of 7.00, which if I can hit the lightweight category will do me. If you have any tips/ideas then please let me know. Terry O'Neill: Congratulations are in order for getting into shape but a slap on the wrist for allowing yourself to balloon up to 15 stone. A couple of things in direct answer to your questions. First, if you are thinking of going down to lightweight go to your doctor and have a fat test. This is a simple process that involves the use of skin fold calipers so the doctor can determine what percentage of your body is made up of fat. At your age your percentage body fat should be around 12-15% of your total body weight. Whatever it is above that would be safe to lose, so you can work it out before you start in order to see whether you can safely make the lightweight limit. You are right to say that taller people have an advantage of leverage on the machine but, contrary to popular opinion, it is not because they can row longer but because for a given stroke length they can remain in the most effective range of their muscular efficiency. Muscles can exert less power when tightly compressed as a shorter person would have to do to row a long stroke. For this reason, especially on the Indoor Rower, shorter people should row at a higher rhythm and a shorter stroke and not try to overreach and get into weak positions. There are no records kept relating height to performance, but your target of 7 minutes is reasonable and achievable. I guess from your letter that you have not read the Training Guide (http://www.concept2.co.uk/v4/training_prog.htm) or are not following it. I sincerely recommend you get onto it as the bloke who wrote it knows what he's talking about. ========================================================= Eight Hour Team Row ========================================================= Just a quick note to remind you about the eight hour sponsored team row that's taking place tomorrow, Saturday July 8th, at Salisbury Leisure Centre. Organised by Colonel Martin Grubb, the event is raising money for the British Olympic Appeal and will be run under Concept 2 100,000 metre rules (see http://www.concept2.co.uk/v4/team_chall.htm). Open to everybody who turns up with sponsorship, if you fancy a crack at it contact Colonel Grubb on 01772 433558 or Salisbury Leisure Centre on 01772 339966 for further details. ========================================================= British Olympic Fantasy Rowing Competition ========================================================= The Vienna World Cup regatta took place over the weekend of July 1st. All seven of the British boats in our competition took part in an event that saw victories for the men's coxless four, the men's eight and the women's quad. First place went to Ally Meredith who got four right and wins a set of Concept 2 Slides. In second place Tony Owen also got four right but got pipped to the post on the tiebreaker, while Oliver Quickert was one of a large group of people on three right but wins third prize by virtue of his tiebreaker. The next round of the competition is in Lucerne, and if you haven't entered yet the deadline for this is midnight on July 13th. For more information and details of how to enter, just go to http://www.concept2.co.uk/v4/fantasy_index.htm ========================================================= Tel's Tales #2 - Weight Management ========================================================= Quell Fromage! He who laughs last laughs longest or what? You might remember that me and my mate are engaged in an (unspoken) competition to see who could complete a million metres first. You may also remember I told you about my mate taking his rowing machine on holiday so he could get in front of me, then he was ill all through his hols and couldn't train, and how pleased I was because I got 100,000m in front of him? Well, I was in the garden the other day trimming the hedge and had to climb onto the garage roof and balance holding the trimmer in one hand; all of a sudden I felt this terrific pain shoot down my back. I looked like a question mark as the muscles in one side of my back went into spasm and I knew this was a "couple of weeks off" type of injury. So now I'm well behind schedule and looking for another scheme but I definitely won't finish in the 10 weeks of the original plan. Weight Management Programme. To anyone following the weight management programme in the Training Guide here is a little idea to spice up your life. The thinking behind the original plan was that anyone who was really overweight may either have not done exercise for some time or never. So the weight loss plan was all low intensity and increasingly long sessions which presents little risk of injury to the untrained. However, if you have completed phase 1+2 of the weight management programme you can start to introduce some of the sessions from the 2,000m programme. Here's how to go about it. Go to the 2,000m training programme at the same number of sessions you are currently completing on weight management. Look at the sessions under the heading Pre-competition and Competition. You can mix these into your weight management regime by substituting a 2,000 metre session for weight management. You will find these sessions shorter but harder and the rate at which you will burn calories will increase. However, if you have not done phase 1+2 you may not have the physical conditioning to benefit from a higher intensity session. Also these sessions increase the variety of the programme, and although they may hurt, the fact that you are on the machine means that this is a price you are prepared to pay to get fit. ========================================================= Coxless4.com ========================================================= This September Steve Redgrave will be competing in the coxless fours at the Sydney Olympic games. His attempt to win a fifth gold medal and become Britain's most successful ever athlete will undoubtedly create a media feasting frenzy unheard of in the rowing world. In order to help provide more information on Steve and the other members of the four – Matthew Pinsent, Tim Foster and James Cracknell - they've recently launched a web-site dedicated to their attempt. At http://www.coxless4.com, not only can you find detailed biographies of the four, but also a host of other features, such as diary pieces, screensavers, a media archive and a soon to be announced competition with an Indoor Rower as the star prize. ========================================================= Top Tip ========================================================= Talking of the coxless4.com web-site, they've got a question and answer section on their web- site. Working along staunchly traditional lines of you asking and them answering, the section has been updated so far on an almost daily basis, so if you've got any thing you'd like to know, just drop 'em a line. This week's top tip comes from their web-site and was answered by James Cracknell: Question: I feel that I am very strong in the boat but my ergo [rowing slang for an Indoor Rower] score does not reflect this, have you any tips? Answer: As horrible as ergo tests are, try not to treat them any differently to a race and pace them as you would a race. This should make sure that you get the most out of yourself. Do not pick a score that is unrealistic, pick ones that push you and will be hard to achieve but don't put pressure on yourself by setting a target 10 seconds better than you have done before. Small steps. Remember, if you've got a Top Tip you'd like to share with the world, just send it to webmaster@vermonthouse.co.uk, otherwise we might have to nick it off somebody's else web- site again next week. ========================================================= E-Commerce ========================================================= Ker-Rakasha! That's the sound of LastMinute.com's share price rocketing downwards. Cha-Cha- Chunka! That's the sound of 20% being wiped off the value of Amazon.com. Nay! Nay! That's the sound of naysayers claiming that e-commerce will never work and cackling that only the maddest of mad fools would start nowadays. Bearing in mind, however, that the most common query we get after "You never phone, you never write, what are you? Ashamed of your mother?" is "Why oh why oh why can't I order from your web-site?", we've decided to throw our hat into the ring. You can now buy everything from Indoor Rowers to Heart Rate Monitors to those nifty C2 T- Shirts that are the talk of your local gym without leaving the comfort of your own home. Which of course you could do by phoning us up on 0115 945 5522 anyway but hey! It's the Internet! Like an attractive but ultimately insecure woman who's just been dumped by her boyfriend, we've decided to celebrate the occasion by going for a haircut, which in the world of web-talk means we've changed all the colours on our site along with jigging some of the sections around. Go to http://www.concept2.co.uk today and help us serve our children meat on a Sunday. ========================================================= 100 Metre Challenge ========================================================= Last newsletter we announced that we had a secret weapon to reveal in our informal quest to find the fastest time you can achieve for the 100 metres. So secret is this secret weapon that we're going to have to keep it secret for another fortnight, sorry. However, we will be winding everything up next newsletter, so if you've not got your time in yet, either e-mail it to the usual address or enter on-line on our web-site. We'll try and put all the times up on our web-site at some point. At the moment, in leading place for the lowest split is Stuart Maze who's done 14.8 seconds for the 100 metres and a lowest split of 1:10; for the Women, Anna Bailey is currently ruling the roost with 18.0 and a lowest split of 1:26. While we're on the subject, we got an e-mail from Antony Scott recently who's had a couple of shots at the challenge, however "I had to slack right off during the last 50 metres or so because I was pulling so hard my bum was lifting off of the seat and I ended up not sitting on it. Any tips for getting the power down more effectively. I know I can go faster. At the time I became unattached from the seat I was doing 1:14 split and had to slack off to about 1:18 or so." Over to Tel O'Neill: "Antony, that is really going some; without watching you I can only guess what is going on. If you are lifting off the seat that would indicate the thrust is too vertical instead of horizontal. Try raising your feet; this may feel a little uncomfortable for a long row but for the short dash it will provide a more horizontal drive. It will also restrict body swing which in absolute terms is not a good thing but for the dash and the higher rate it really is all about the legs. The other thing is that if the body is swung forward, the tendency is to lift the body over instead of unwinding especially at the higher rates and this lift can bring you off of the seat." ========================================================= Henley Royal Regatta ========================================================= 451 crews competed at Henley at the beginning of this month and most of the biggest names in British rowing were there to stake their claims for this year's Olympics. In the Steward's Challenge the Redgrave-led coxless four continued their domination of the event, beating the Australian crew who will be amongst their closest Olympic rivals by two-thirds of a length. The race was notable for bringing to a close Redgrave's remarkable Henley career, leaving him with a near unbeatable record of 64 wins from 67 races. Greg Searle and Ed Coode claimed they were on track for Olympic glory after winning the coxless pairs title. The duo are stepping into the shoes of Redgrave and Pinsent and will be bidding for Britain's fourth consecutive Olympic coxless-pairs title at Sydney in September. Their victory over South African's Ramon di Clemente and Donovan Cech made it a first win of the season for them. In the women's single sculls Britain's Debbie Flood caused a major upset to defeat former world champion Maria Brandin of Sweden by one length, a result so unexpected that according to Radio 5 Live's Mike Phelps, "it was like Henman winning Wimbledon." Debbie first came into rowing a couple of years ago after using the Indoor Rower to help her fitness for her then main sport of judo. Since then she's gone from strength to strength, winning a gold at both the 1998 World Indoor Rowing Championship and on-water in a double scull with Francis Houghton in the 1999 Nation's Cup, the world U23 rowing championship. ========================================================= Concept Ranking Spotlight ========================================================= This newsletter it's Nottingham's Chris Brett's turn in the spotlight. Chris came to indoor rowing after knee injuries prevented him from running. In a Boy's Own type scenario he was spotted training in the Loughborough University Fitness Suite (where he's studying part-time for a PhD in Medical Image Compression) and told that his ergo times were "quite promising". Since that time he's been rowing with Loughborough Students Rowing Club as well as a short spell with Nottingham Boat Club. "I have a real love-hate relationship with the ergo as I like to see how hard I can make my sessions although at the same time I can never really say I've enjoyed a flat out piece. My favourite sessions are finishing a 2,000 metres, long (over one hour) steady state pieces, especially if doing them with a lot of other rowers, and last but not least The Loughborough Death Sesh. This was taken and slightly modified from a killer session page on Rachel Quarrel's web- site (http://users.ox.ac.uk/~quarrell/new.html). It basically consists of holding your desired 2,000 metre split for as long as you can until you miss it for three strokes in a row. You then fall off and rest for 5 minutes and then repeat. You are supposed to continue until you can't even get down to the desired split. In practice I find that after 10 repetitions (and over an hour of pain) most people enter a flu-like state and need to totally rest for 24 hours." All this training's obviously paid off, as at the moment Chris is lording it over several of the categories in the on-line world ranking (http://www.e-row.com/ranking/home.asp). He's third overall for the 2,000 metres with 6:07.4, and in first place in his 30-39 age group. In the 5,000 metres he's first overall with 16:27.3, while he's also hogging top spot in the 500 metres with 1:19.8. According to Chris his most satisfying performance was his distance of 17,502 metres for the 60 minutes row, as he put over 1,000m on his Personal Best. ========================================================= Tel's Tales #3 - Training Guide ========================================================= So we write our fandabidosi Training Guide, stick it on the Internet and then kick our feet back thinking that we've answered virtually everything you'd want to know. However, just like saying "I'm sorry I'm late for dinner darling, I've just had a sex change" it appears we've created more questions than answers. Frank Birch: I'm 46 and have been a runner for some 30 years. I've been using a Concept 2 at my local gym for 6/7 months now and have been working on building a solid foundation for the next 5 months of pre-competition, and competition training a la the Concept 2 training manual. I feel slightly bemused at the way "example" training sessions are presented in the manual. Repetition, distance and number are specified as are target strokes per minute. Are you able to give some type of guidance as to what type of speed sessions during the pre-competition and competition periods should be conducted? For example, what would the difference be between a 3 x 6 mins session during pre-competition and a 4 x 6 mins session during competition? Obviously the former would be slower with shorter recovery than the latter but are you able to give any additional advice in this area, perhaps relative to your expected race pace? Terry O'Neill: Glad to here you are finding both the machine and the training guide useful even if I need to clarify the training examples. In the Training Guide we have identified 5 different training bands. We also explain what benefits you can expect from each band. The bands are determined by how much lactic acid the exercise elicits. Because you are unable to determine the level of lactate unless you are in a test environment we have given two other indicators as to the intensity of the training. The first is the heart rate which is the most reliable after actually measuring the lactate in the blood but does require a heart rate monitor. The second is strokes per minute which has a greater degree of error but requires no additional equipment. From the start of a training programme the changes are from high quantity at a low intensity to low quantity at a high intensity. You may find that some sessions that appear in the preparation period also appear in the pre-competition period and that sessions in the pre-competition period will appear in the competition period. As we move on we do not want to lose the benefits from the sessions we have carried out earlier and so they are revisited but hopefully if the programme is working the quality of the work will be better. So in answer to your specific question, what would be the difference between 3 x 6 mins in the pre-comp. period compared to 4 x 6 mins in the competition period, it would be in the metres covered in that time. ========================================================= And So To Bed ========================================================= With just enough time left to give the results of the Durham 24 hour that's been mentioned in the last couple of newsletters (Kev Adams and Rob Cousins rowed 317,194 metres at an average split of 2:16.2 and raising over £1,300 in the process for cancer research and Durham Amateur Rowing Club) we're off for another fortnight. Remember, if you've got any stories, tips, questions, feedback, suggestions or recipes for a good prawn vindaloo, just drop us a line at webmaster@vermonthouse.co.uk _____________________________________________S U B S C R I P T I O N If you're on this mailing list by accident, reply to this e-mail with "unsubscribe" as the subject header. If you're receiving multiple copies of this e-mail, reply with "multiple" as the header _________________________________________________________________ Concept 2 Tel: (0115) 945 5522 E-mail: info@concept2.co.uk Web: www.concept2.co.uk Printed from: www.concept2.co.uk/news/newsletter_archive.php