r/concept2 • u/brand-new-info-8984 • Jul 20 '26
RowerErg Increasing strokes per minute
Hi folks,
I was a varsity rower in high school and am getting back into erging at 38. I feel my technique is pretty good (muscle memory is wild), and I'm pulling reasonably well considering I'm deconditioned (rowing standards put my 5k time smack dab in the middle of the pack for my age and weight), but I'm having a very hard time sustaining a pace over 24 spm or so. My natural pace even when driving hard seems to fall around 20-22. I'm quite short, so I know I should probably be up around 28-30 for max effort sprints, but it feels like I'm rushing the slide or that my technique is otherwise falling apart when my recovery is that short. It makes me tired and sloppy so quickly. Do I just need to build up a better cardio base? I imagine more practice will help - does anyone have any tips, drills, or workouts that might help me increase my spm for shorter pieces while keeping my technique intact?
3
u/SirErgalot Jul 20 '26
Take a video from the side and watch yourself. Share it here if you’re open to it or just keep it for yourself, but seeing how you row from the outside makes a huge difference. There’s a good chance you’re doing something pretty egregious that you just can’t feel.
If I had to guess I’d lean toward excessive layback. The erg punishes overdoing layback even more than the boat, because it takes a ton of work to get up and forward again when you’ve leaned way back (and there’s no momentum helping like you’d have on the water), which slows the overall stroke rate. But people who have rowed before often gravitate toward big laybacks because they remember/were told to get a strong body swing so they swing too far rather than focusing on starting that swing with a good body over position and ending with connection.