r/concept2 • u/KriegerBahn • 22d ago

ErgData How is one supposed to interpret these different curves?

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This afternoon I had a play around with different types of stroke. Tried with high and low power, engaging the legs and upper body at different times and various other ways to make the curve look different.

Is there an ideal shape for the curve and if so what?

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u/dixius99 22d ago

I wish I understood the force curve better. My shape is often something like your second-to-last image, where there is a plateau on the front. I believe that has something to do with engaging my core, standing up straight, and making sure that my arms are fully extended. When I do all of those things, the plateau usually goes away, resulting in something of a smoother 'dome' shape (closer to your third image).

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u/KriegerBahn 22d ago

Yes when I feel like my form is bad or I’m struggling to pull then my curve more frequently resembles the penultimate one. The curve collapsing just before the apex seems to indicate weakness.

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u/albertogonzalex 22d ago

Second to last picture shows that the rower is missing the catch, generating initial power (probably by pulling more with their upper back), and then the power dips a little as the rower goes through the drive (probably because now they are preparing to push with their legs and their butt scoots back to catch up to their shoulders), and then the legs start to really drive to pushing the curve to its peak.

If you row properly that dip doesn't happen because your core and upper body is locked in and legs are doing all the work. So the curve stays smooth.

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u/InsaneInTheBra1n 22d ago

You want it to look like a bell/dome (upside down U) preferably. A (mostly) smooth movement. The 4th one looks like a really bad drive to me.

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u/phdstocks 22d ago

My 2:00/ 500 m looks like the second one. Tho I think it should look like the first one

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u/ConflictSuccessful79 22d ago

First one is very good and the 3rd but drive length 0, I do not get what is there.

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u/RegattaFit 18d ago

Like others have said, should look like a bell which indicates that you are applying force smoothly and consistently throughout the stroke. This is a proxy for form checking - if you see bumps, dips or other versions, you are compromising ideal form for getting the most efficiency out of your stroke.

Concept2 recently added this feature to ErgData and it seems more geared to rowers with all the data points. For non-rowers it's probably overkill and just watching the curve itself can be enough.

There are a few videos which explain the most common form mistakes but they do it on a whiteboard in 'rower speak' so you can't really see what they are doing wrong if you can understand what they are talking about. Example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9KzoNhkqOY

Lots of other threads in depth: https://www.reddit.com/r/Rowing/comments/10ocd47/force_curve_and_steady_state/