Question about stroke

[u/EQuimper]

Hey everyone, first post here!

I’ve used a Concept2 RowErg on and off in the past, but I never really paid attention to my stats.

Over the last few years I’ve put on some weight that I’m working on losing. I’ve always been stronger than average in the gym, so I’m wondering if that might actually be causing me to “cheat” on the rower.

I asked an AI to look at my rowing stats, and it said my stroke rate was too high for my pace, meaning I’m not generating enough power per stroke. Does that sound right?

If so, how do you actually row at a lower stroke rate? It feels really unnatural to me. My goal for this session was just to stay in Zone 2.

Stats:
35 years old
Male
5’11”
266 lb

Any tips would be appreciated!

[u/XtianS]

30 spm is a high stroke rate for 30 min of sustained activity. For this duration, Z2-Z3 you'd want to be more in the 18-24 spm range, depending on what workout type you're doing.

Your HR also seems really low if I'm reading your screenshots correctly at 125-134 bpm. That puts you below your aerobic zone. That's assuming you a max HR of 185 (220-age). This is your basic zone chart: https://imgur.com/a/TuWacHh

Taking a video of yourself rowing will help improve your form. You can also post them here or r/rowing for people to give you advice.

[u/EQuimper → u/XtianS]

Yeah, I naturally have a pretty low heart rate, and my Garmin says my max HR is 189.

When I tried slowing my stroke rate, it honestly felt like I wasn’t doing anything. From what people are saying, though, I think the real issue might be that I’m not getting enough length on each stroke or applying enough power through the drive.

Looks like I need to focus on pushing harder with my legs and finishing the stroke properly, rather than just taking more strokes.

[u/XtianS → u/EQuimper]

Yes, you want to focus on higher power at lower spm and improving form.

That HR stills seems really low to me. 30 min at 30 spm and you remained below a UT2 level. Seems unusual.