6/27 - W - Session 1

3b, 70'in z1 w/ pwr 20 every 7'. 16314m, 164 watt, 21 SR

14:00    3374    181    21
28:00    3282    167    21
42:00    3225    158    21
56:00    3216    157    21
70:00    3217    157    22

It's nice to see those watts leveling off at the end. I've taken to closing my eyes for 20 strokes while counting down from a hundred. Checking HR and split when I open my eyes for a few strokes every minute. This works out to be a 5 minute interval. It helps keep my HR down where I want it and my body does the rest. My splits end up being better than they usually would be.

6/21 - R - Session 1

3b, 70' in z1 w/ pwr 20 every 7' at race pace. 15912m, 152 watt, 21 SR.

14:00    3303    170    21
28:00    3246    162    21
42:00    3161    149    22
56:00    3111    142    21
70:00    3091    140    22

Long burn. Really wish I'd brought my nice, cozy butt pad that Doc made me. Freaking erg seat. z1 wattages low. Race pace wattages low. Ugly all around but still decent. My back is so tired. My lats and middle back, from holding my shoulders back and my spine flat.

6/14 - R - Session 1

3b, 70' in z1 w/ pwr 20 every 7'. 14,849m, 2:21.0. Obviously not as much press as usual. Keeping it easy in the z1 work. My glutes hurt before I'm even halfway into the w.o.. It's a shame because I get off the water not particularly tired yet I can't seem to row any further. Taking it way too much w/ the arms. Film helped me see this. To much power application at the finish making my boat bounce a lot. Trying to shift drive back to the front-end. I'm pulling w/ my arms when I should only be hanging. Very bad. Messes w/ course, set, and the clean finish which means my run is not as good as it should be either. Gonna drop a spacer from the top to the bottom on both oarlocks to see if I can get a higher finish for a more pronounced down-and-away. My hands stay horizontal thoughout the drive and the recovery. It's as if they follow the same line/path. They need to go down, then up. Since I missed Tuesday and will probably miss Saturday due to travel I've made today Friday's workouts and will do Saturday's z4 tomorrow and maybe have time to go to the gym. If not, maybe a body circuit.

6/11 - M - Session 1

3b, 70' in z1 w/ pwr 20 each 7'. Didn't quite make it today. On the 8th power 20 I pinched something in my back and took it back to the dock at 56' in. Felt good to be back on the Lehigh. It's small but cozy and ridiculously flat. I hope my back recovers, it doesn't feel like it's too bad at all but you never know.

6/04 - M - Session 1

3b, 70' in z1 w/ pwr 20 each 7' (body in SR 18-22; pwr in race pace). First day back in the single. HR 142-144. HR came down to around 130 after power pieces. Hard to control HR after doing low volume high intensity work building up to IRAs. Long burn on my way back to the dock. Hurt real bad, it's been a long time since doing steady state. Light rain all throughout session. Getting on toward the end of the piece I started thunking my catches and really had to concentrate on that. 14348m, 2:26.5 ave, speed coach uncalibrated. Doc had to replace the battery so the stroke rating is back to normal.

5/14/07 - Monday

Session 1: 3b, 70' in z1 w/ pwr 20 each 7' (body in SR 18-22; pwr in race pace). HR was a little low, probably around 130-135. The more I use my HR monitor the more I realise how seriously lacking it is. With no stroke coach and no timer this morning, it was difficult to manage w/ my puny HR watch. Rowed Old Blue today, what a mess. Tracks need to be adjusted into the stern. I'm finishing 8"-10" away from my body and the difference between the oarlock spacing is huge and it might be rigged too high in general. I like that blue Peinert 26. It was my first consistent shell. Forever forsaken is Beattie's heavy Alden. There were no useful tools at the house this morning, I'll have to bring my own. Hopefully the adjustments I need can be made to Old Blue, otherwise I'm out of luck.
Session 2: 1a, 60', Unlucky for sure. Old Blue's tracks can't be moved. Solution: install a thin block of wood where each track is now and attach the track to this. Doc's boat is smooth and just a little too big. I feel like I'm hardly moving but I'm sure I'm going just as fast as usual. Not hardly moving with grace, but hardly moving like my power is not being transferred through to the water. HR solid - 137-(140)-143. Fish & Boat Commission "pulled me over" and gave me a $70 citation for not having a life jacket. Unbelievable. Must focus on catches. The sleeves are extremely different between C2's and Crokers. Roll ups are more uncertain w/ the Crokers. It'll take more time. Watch the skying at the catch, be controlled. You are the master of the oars. They do everything your hands tell them. Be confident in your catch, but don't stay there too long.
Talked to Dad; Fish & Boat Comission going down.
Land: 14:24 2-mile (7:24, 7:00), 3 strides, 63 400. A dilemna arose on land today. I'm experiencing my love for running again. The 2-mile today was for recovery purposes. Work the acid out before I get hit w/ the brick wall tomorrow. Hopefully I'll be okay, Sunday's workout might still come back to haunt me. Not used to land training. The first 2-miles went well, they served their purpose. I started my strides and starting timing another runner. He ran a 2:33 800. Not bad for an old guy jogging in between his intervals. My body felt the call, my muscles cried out in response, to be released. I could feel the itch settle into them like restless leg syndrome. They wanted more. I broke the old guys split in half - 76.5 400. Pretty good. Could I hit 60? This was supposed to be a recovery run. By now I'd run my 3rd strider. How much could a 400 hurt/impact my training? A lot, I knew it, but I also knew that session 2 was going to be off tomorrow. I jogged over to my pack to check session 1: 3b, same as this morning. Not too bad, mostly z1 anyway. I failed on land just then. Every rower knows this exact experience. Coming to the last 500m of a 10k or any long steady state. "I can burng through this and finish it. Who cares about maintaining HR?" or "How fast can I go after all that?" This is analogous to what happened on land, but on the erg I don't fail. I stick through it and don't change. It's a mind game on that machine and I control it. I ran the four. Coming through the 150 my stomach churned: my best friends used to hurl after running these at sub-50 pace. I knew I'd be fine. Last 150 the breathing started. Just like old times, right out of my high school track days. Breathing like a horse, a monster to devour all those I ran past. I didn't hit the 60 I wanted, oh well. Some other day. It's strange. I knew that my muscles would be yelling at me during those pwr 20's tomorrow. Crying out, not in response to the call, but against every inch my quads lever the boat through the water. Until then --