Rowing requires a ton of oxygen. Every major muscle group except for the
Pectorals is called into service when rowing.
When rowing hard and fast the demand for oxygen is huge. Big Diesel workouts are one way to build that
capacity.
The maritime diesel workout that all rowers know well is the
3 x 20 minute row. Good crews can easily
cover over 12 miles in this workout. We
will be doing the mini diesel version of 2 x 20 minutes. As we build our capacity we will crank these
pieces at just below race pace. But this
time through we are going to focus on steady work output and good
technique.
Inevitably in these workouts you will hit a point maybe in
the third minute of your second piece or the eighth and ninth minute of each
piece, where the fatigue will tempt you to round your low back or let your shoulders,
rib cage and head drop forward thus choking off your lungs room to work. If we can build the mental discipline and
resolve of character to say, that “this level of inattention and physical sloppiness
is not how I row”. If we can cultivate
that focus and precision for 40 minutes of duress, then when it comes time to
rip off one 2000M piece, those dance steps will be automatic and the only question
becomes how much wood you want to toss on the fire. Good luck.
Workouts:
Primary – 2 X 20 minutes.
Pieces 2: 22 spm, first 5 min, 24 spm, next 5 min, 26 spm, next 5 min,
28 spm, next 5 min. 2nd 20
minutie pieces: spm u pick; fan setting
= u pick; rest interval – 4 minute (if alone).
If sharing a machine we will do video reviews between pieces. Work effort is between 65%-85% of your 2K
race pace.
Secondary – 8 X 3
min: spm = above 26 spm; experiment with fan settings; Rest =2min. At 75-85% of race pace.
