2000m row time

eilo1

Did my first 2000m row today on a concept 2. Just wondering what a good time for a female is. I did in 8.49 and it nearly killed me!:o

jugger0

eilo1 wrote: »

Did my first 2000m row today on a concept 2. Just wondering what a good time for a female is. I did in 8.49 and it nearly killed me!:o

I think <7:30 is pretty good for a female rower... i know <6:30 is good for a fella, what setting did ya have it at? well done for doing it anyways! a lot of people prefer to arse about on the treadmill then go near the rower.. its the best cardio machine in the gym by a mile imo. I was at around 7:30 ish when i started and kept doing it before my workouts and managed to get it to 6:42, keep it up!

eilo1

jugger0 wrote: »

I think <7:30 is pretty good for a female rower... i know <6:30 is good for a fella, what setting did ya have it at? well done for doing it anyways! a lot of people prefer to arse about on the treadmill then go near the rower.. its the best cardio machine in the gym by a mile imo. I was at around 7:30 ish when i started and kept doing it before my workouts and managed to get it to 6:42, keep it up!

Thanks for the reply, it was on 10.

It was really tough, I just lay in a heap on the floor for a good 5 minutes afterwards!

Ill be keeping it up for the next few weeks anyway Id love to get down to under 7!

jugger0

eilo1 wrote: »

Thanks for the reply, it was on 10.

It was really tough, I just lay in a heap on the floor for a good 5 minutes afterwards!

Ill be keeping it up for the next few weeks anyway Id love to get down to under 7!

Tell me about it! i usually go into the aerobics room and lie in a sweaty pile, if you manage to get it under 7 you should probably start rowing for a club, that would be excellent.

StudentC

eilo1 wrote: »

Thanks for the reply, it was on 10.

It was really tough, I just lay in a heap on the floor for a good 5 minutes afterwards!

Ill be keeping it up for the next few weeks anyway Id love to get down to under 7!

Hi

2k rowing tests are fun, aren't they

Regarding the setting - it doesn't matter much whether it's at 10 or 1 - it's like gears on a bike. So if you put it at 10, it'll feel 'heavy', but each pull will get you a long distance, whereas at 1 it'll feel much easier but you won't get very much distance per pull. Play around with it a bit to see what suits you - if you're strong and powerful a higher resistance number (6-10) with a lower stroke rate might suit you, whereas if you're not so powerful but you're aerobically fit, a lower resistance (1-5) and a higher stroke rate might get you a quicker time. Does that make sense?

Another way to do it (and more useful to compare between different ergometers in different gyms or whatever) is to use the 'drag factor'. This is in the menus somewhere (I can't remember exactly where) - the machine tells you what to do to adjust the resistance lever to get it right. As a general rule, heavyweight women (that's 59kg+) would use a drag factor of about 120, whereas lightweight (less than 59kg) would use around 110. But that's not a hard and fast rule.

Regarding how long a 2k takes - the first thing is to get your technique right and your time will really come down. Have a look on youtube for some videos to help you. And also as well as doing straight 2k pieces, play around with reps of 100m, 250m, 500m etc. As a very rough guide, most women rowing in clubs in Ireland at a decentish level would probably be trying to get in the 7:20 - 7:40 range, 7:00 - 7:20 would really be pretty decent, and then as far as i know, there's only been a handful of women here who have got under 7 minutes. So 7 minutes might be pretty ambitious - but sure what's wrong with ambition

The concept 2 website itself is pretty good for technique videos and ideas for different sessions.

The Guvnor

I think your time is good for a non rower.

2m12 per 500m.

I would always set the rowing machine at about 3 or 4.

I think sub 8m is very good for most ladies.

Very few women have gone sub 7m anywhere - certainly less women have gone sub 7 than men have gone sub 6.

King of Kings

jugger0 wrote: »

I think <7:30 is pretty good for a female rower... i know <6:30 is good for a fella, what setting did ya have it at? !

are you using a standard to judge this? or just giving your opinion?

jugger0

King of Kings wrote: »

are you using a standard to judge this? or just giving your opinion?

Just what ive been told by my mates who row.

King of Kings

jugger0 wrote: »

Just what ive been told by my mates who row.

grand - i wasn't having a go - I just wondered where it came from.

The Guvnor

Just to put this into perspective as we have a 1000m thing going on 7m30 is 3m45 which is handy enough.

I can imagine many men in gyms having an issue with achieving this - it's not as easy as it might first appear!

eilo1

well I had my second 2000m row today and did it in 9.45 :(:(

I got awful cramps in my wrist flexors, the whole way down my fore arm. It was excruciating!

Does anyone have any tips on how to prevent this!?!??

The Guvnor

Your technique is letting you down.

I would imagine you have the machine set at 7-10 on the fan.

You are also using your arms too much - rowing is 80% legs and a bit of back - the arms are just hooks - gently holding onto the handle.

Hard to explain but there is a 1000m thread which some of us are avoiding which has some good technique pointers.

eilo1

The Guvnor wrote: »

Your technique is letting you down.

I would imagine you have the machine set at 7-10 on the fan.

You are also using your arms too much - rowing is 80% legs and a bit of back - the arms are just hooks - gently holding onto the handle.

Hard to explain but there is a 1000m thread which some of us are avoiding which has some good technique pointers.

Thanks for that!

I do use my arms a lot, Iv had lots of trouble with week glutes and hams over the past few year and am working on strengthening them. However I can do feel them starting to cramp when I continually push through the legs so I switch to the arms.

Looks like I have lots more crab walks and hamstring curls to do!

G86

The Guvnor wrote: »

Your technique is letting you down.

I would imagine you have the machine set at 7-10 on the fan.

You are also using your arms too much - rowing is 80% legs and a bit of back - the arms are just hooks - gently holding onto the handle.

Hard to explain but there is a 1000m thread which some of us are avoiding which has some good technique pointers.

+1

I mainly get the drive from my legs when I'm rowing, and I never get any kind of sorness in my arms from it. Make sure you're sitting upright too, I saw a girl rowing in my gym recently and she was bent over like a bridge with every pull - that can't be good for your back!

The Guvnor

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056153112

Some advice in this thread near the start.

TommyKnocker

I found the video below very useful for understanding the technique required for indoor rowing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqVmMd7FdAA