Racing doesn’t have to be about who’s in better shape, it’s all about who is willing to fight for that finish line. Who is willing to put it all on the line? Steve Prefontaine (who is still the only athlete in American History to hold every American Track record between 2000 and 10000 meters) once said, “A lot of people run a race to see who is fastest. I run to see who has the most guts. Who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish himself even more.” Though he never won an Olympic gold at the Munich Olympics, had his life not been cut short, he was the favorite to win at Montreal on the next go-around.

What can we learn from Steve Prefontaine? The will to win supersedes everything else when you’re racing. When you are making a push to the finish line, you can push yourself beyond any limit you had previously thought possible. Some of you notice it on the erg machines. You can get one or two splits faster than you ever did before, and it’s usually at the end of the workout during your final sprint.

A champion always knows there’s a little extra in the tank even when every part of your body is screaming that there’s nothing left. A champion doesn’t make excuses, because he or she knows that, Just like Vin Diesel said, “Any racer, any REAL racer knows that it doesn’t matter whether you win by an inch or a mile, winning is winning.” It doesn’t matter if last time you beat them you won by 20 seconds. If they win by .001 seconds this time, they still won. Mike Teiti, Cal Berkley and the US National Rowing Team’s head coach, has always said, “The only thing that matters is who wins LAST.”

What does this mean for me, Mike? It means no crying when I yell at you! . Just kidding! It’s your party, you can cry if you want to (I made a funny!). What this means, is that when it comes down to it, are you going to give in to your pain, or push though it? Are you going to finish your workout harder than when you started? If you’re sore, are you going to avoid Petar’s class? Probably, but that’s just being smart . It comes down to: will you make the hard choice, or the easy choice?

Hey guys, Mike again. I thought I’d talk to you about planning today, and how that affects your workouts, your goals, and your life.

My coach in high school always used to say, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” As someone who has copious experience just winging it, I will tell you that while this is MUCH easier, more often than not, you don’t do nearly as well as you could have if you plan it out.

As far as RowZone, you can plan when you want to come in, you can plan how you are going to do your race pieces, and you can plan that if you go to one of Petar’s classes, if you’re SUPER sore, Petar will make you more sore . As far as your schedule, I can’t tell you how to plan that, because this is a blog and that would be oddly personal of me to single any one of you out. However, I CAN ask (politely, if you please) each and every one of you to come visit me every day! For your pieces, those of you who have had me teach your classes know that I like to try having you guys create a race plan, for how you want to attack every piece.

That carries over into other aspects of your life. Whether your goal is to drop weight for bikini season (I’m trying to get in great shape for my bikini), get stronger, put on muscle, or even just to make sure you’re doing your part to live a long and healthy life, having a plan helps to focus you, and put you on the right track. “But Mike! If it’s that easy, why doesn’t everyone do it?” Well, to quote Mike Tyson, [imagine a squeakier voice with a lisp] “Everybody has a plan ‘til they get punched in the mouth.” As soon as something goes wrong, people tend to abandon their plan as hopeless. Missing a week or two because you’re sick, binging on candy, food, and/or beer (I do this all the time – not just the beer, guys, have a little faith ), or getting an injury are all merely obstacles on your path to your goal.

The next step is to share your plan and your goals with as many people as possible to help hold you accountable for it. Of course, everyone will be understanding if you don’t meet your goal, but you might feel a little abashed (that’s an SAT word) if it’s because you didn’t try hard enough. After that its merely implementing your plan to achieve your goals, while this is obviously easier said than done, you do have the entire RowZone community (both trainers and your fellow workout enthusiasts) to help support you to reach your goals.

So get out there and start planning!

The Rowing Community is a little different from most. You wouldn’t think so, but there’s definitely a bond between anyone that has ever rowed before. I run into kids at school all the time, and because I have something that says crew on it, a lot of people will introduce themselves or ask me questions because they used to row at “such and such” school, or their best friend, or brother, or sister did. In fact, that’s how I made most of my friends at Drexel who are not on my rowing team.

Joining this community is always hard to do. Memberships at boathouses are fairly exclusive, and the sport itself is very expensive. However, the benefits are obvious. Immediately, you are inserted into a network of people who are in every industry, and usually successful, as well. “How do I join this community, Mike?” you may ask. The answer is simple: you already took the first step.

Rowzone offers a unique stepping stone into this community. Many clubs teach you how to row on an ergometer anyway. If you’re serious about joining a rowing club, saying that you’ve pulled an 8-minute 2k, (Or sub 8-minute – the closer to a world record, the better. Don’t be discouraged if you are slower than 8 minutes! There are plenty of rowers who have not broken 8 minutes that belong to a few of the clubs, and even a few on my collegiate team!), looks really good on your application. This step already puts you ahead of a random passerby who wants to try rowing, but has never even tried it.

The next step is getting involved in the fringes of the community. Show up to big races (Dad Vails, Head of the Schuylkill, and Navy Day Reggatas all come to mind) and walk around; Introduce yourself to people you meet; Talk to some boat vendors, like Vespoli and Resolute; See if you actually enjoy watching the sport. I’ve been in races decided by less than 1/10th of a second. Maybe it’s just fun to watch Petar beat everyone in his race by miles and miles. Maybe you think it’s just exciting to be at a big event with a jumbotron! Whatever your reason, you should enjoy the race for what it is, a friendly get together, where they give out medals, sweatshirts, and other fun stuff!

If you really enjoy the atmosphere, and are seriously considering joining a club to see if you have what it takes to compete, remember to ask Petar, Justin, Katie, Dani, Casi, or me to take you through one of the workouts from our practices, and if you enjoy it, feel free to start contacting clubs like Bachelors, Undine, Penn AC, Malta, and Vesper to name a few!

To get a look at some of the community of rowing as a whole, here’s a good website: www.rowingillustrated.com

Check out the boards. There’s plenty of people talking about races, boats, coaches, teams, clubs, etc.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PETAR!!!!!!!

My legs feel as though they have turned to jelly as I descend, one step at a time, from the second floor to the first. I count each stair in my head, to give me something to focus on other than the burning in my thighs. But this sensation is not one of pain or discomfort. It’s actually the opposite.

Twenty minutes earlier, I am sitting on one of 30 ergometers in my crew’s boathouse. As I stare at my monitor, it returns dagger eyes at me. The feeling of putting myself to the test and striving for better than last time, better than the person next to me, is nothing new to me. But my mind is split in two: half of me is determined and ready for the challenge; the other half is nervous to the point of nausea. I push any negative thoughts out of my head.

I set my monitor to 2,000 meters. I know what I’m in for, but I also know how bad I want to set a personal record. This is because I know the result is more than just a number. It has the power to help me realize my future. It could play a huge role in propelling me into the life I’ve been dreaming for as long as I can remember. “Ready, Attention …” My coach’s words snap me back to reality. “…Row!” And we’re off. With each stroke, I am exhilarated.

Eight hundred meters down. My legs are burning and I can no longer feel my feet. My torso is red from the handle hitting the same spot over and over. The sweat drips down my face and onto my legs, but is instantaneously propelled off of them as I slide back up to the catch at lightning speed. My arms want to put an end to this and take it slow. But my head is dissociated from my straining body. I recall something my coach told me a few weeks earlier: “Whether or not you let the goal slip away at this point, it still burns just as bad. So just ignore it and grab your target.”

My erg is now taunting me with 450 meters to go. Inside, I ask myself, “Nicole, are you out of your mind? But my thoughts are soon drowned out by my screaming muscles. I close my eyes and pull as hard as my legs will allow. The time for conserving energy is long gone. Now it’s all or nothing. I choose all.

The meters run down. I have never been so happy to see a zero in my life. I look around at my teammates. Each has the same exhausted look of relief on his or her face. But enough of that. Now it’s time for the moment of truth. I get to find out whether or not I met my goal. I press the button on the monitor and the immense weight on my chest is instantly lifted. The room seems to brighten and I feel a smile stretch across my face. At this moment, every second of struggle in the past few minutes was worth it.

My coach stands behind me and records my score. I feel a large hand on my shoulder and hear him say, “Nice work.” This means more to me than a congratulatory comment from anyone else. He knows how I am feeling at this very moment, as well as how I have been endlessly pushing myself since I started rowing. The smile on my face grows some more.

Now, as my legs try their best to carry me down the stairs to fresh air, I reflect on what just happened. Silent pride resonates within me. As it tries to fade, the soreness in my legs draws it back. This achievement has brought me one step closer to my long-term goal. I know that next time will be yet another improvement if I stick to it.

While we are waiting for our phenomenal new location to open at 1717 Chestnut (2nd floor), you may find yourself having a few more “rest” days than you used to. If you’re not able to make it to the Art Museum workouts that Mike and Petar are running, this post is for you!

We talk often about the whole-body workout of rowing, and the workout described here is meant to keep your total body fitness primed until you can get back on the rowing machine. The challenge?  To move your bodyweight!  Give this workout a try at home, preferably in the morning before you grab breakfast (which you really should not skip, by the way!), or somewhere outside if the weather permits.

Bodyweight Workout:

Go through this circuit 5 times without breaks if you can. The goal is to do as many as you can in each time interval.  Try and stay consistent from interval to interval (e.g., do 30 squats in each of the five 1-minute intervals you complete).

Squats – 1 minute (See the picture, forgive the clearly photoshopped image, and note the good form!  Hips drop back and thighs parallel to the ground!)
Planks – 45 seconds (Do not listen to your abs!  They lie to you!)
Push-ups – 30 seconds (Emphasize your form.  Elevate your hands on a bench, table, or wall, as needed to accommodate your current strength.)_

After:
Hamstring stretches!  At least two minutes per leg.  The overall theme for stretching = stretch until you feel a difference.  It takes longer than one might want, but not so long as we imagine.

Post your reps to the comments section below!

While we don’t have the rowing machines, one of our members said, “I’ll never complain about the rower again” after attacking the Art Museum stairs. Rocky’s got nothin’ on our RowZoners!

If you’re lucky, Mike might train your dog!

This week’s RowZone Outdoors classes are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 9am, 5pm and 6:30pm.

Contact Petar if you want to sign up for any of the classes at 9am

Contact Mike if you want to sign up for any of the classes at 5 or 6:30

If you really miss your erg, remember to contact our friends in Manayunk or Newtown Square to sign up for classes at either of those locations.

Before you know it, we’ll be back on the ergs and workouts will be better than ever!

Justin here!  So this is my maiden post on the RowZone blog, and hopefully it’s the first of many.  For those of you that have ventured down to the Rittenhouse RZ on Saturday mornings, you’ll recall that during the 8am, 9am, and 10am workouts I lead, I am always rambling on about rowing better in order to row faster.  The human body has ways in which it likes to move; there are certain progressions that are stronger and more efficient, and the rowing stroke is no exception to that rule.  The legs, having the strongest muscles in the body, press down flat to start the stroke.  Then, we pivot our body on the seat by “laying back.”  And lastly, we draw the arms in, maintaining the momentum created by the legs pressing and body swinging open.  Sounds simple, right?  But as we all know after our first session on the rowing machine, it ends up being hard to put into practice.  And so we must work on it, every time we row.

With every stroke you take, you’re either building up good rowing technique, or reinforcing some sub-optimal movement pattern.  That’s why I am always wandering around the rowing studio, offering feedback on what we can all do to be more effective.  If that ever gets frustrating, then allow me to appeal to a more respected authority:  Picasso.  The master painter once said, “The more technique you have, the less you have to worry about it.”  That’s my hope for everyone at the RowZone, that by working hard on our technique, technique will become something that we need to worry about less.

So give it your all!  Concentrate on rowing well, and that’ll free your mind and energy to row hard, get fit, and be healthy.

Photo Credit:  http://www.masters-of-photography.com/D/doisneau/doisneau_picasso_full.html

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We are looking forward to an amazing winter with you all!

Sincerely,

Rittenhouse Studio
RowZone Rittenhouse

• Dairy Most milk, yogurt, and cheese contains vitamin D and calcium. These nutrients work together to prevent bone loss.
• Slow-cooked stews Made with lean beef, postrun stews provide iron needed for red blood cell production.
• Green tea A mug will warm you up post-workout—plus, research shows EGCG (a compound in green tea) has anticancer properties that may prevent skin-tumor growth.
• Canned tuna It’s a good source of vitamin D, important in the winter when less sun exposure decreases our body’s ability to produce it.
• Barley This chewy grain (perfect for soups and stews) is high in cholesterol-lowering fiber and selenium, which reduces free-radical damage.
• Winter squash Sharpen your eyesight for dark months with vitamin A superstars, such as pumpkin and butternut squash.
• Onions and garlic These bulbs provide a boost of flavor along with antimicrobial properties, which may help protect you from winter bugs.
• Kale In season in early winter, this leafy green delivers a megadose of vitamin K, which helps maintain strong bones and form blood clots.
• Baked potatoes White spuds are high in vitamin C, while sweet potatoes are rich in vitamin A—two antioxidants that help protect your immune system.
• Citrus Oranges, grapefruits, and other types of citrus fruits (at their peak in the winter months) are high in fiber and immune-boosting vitamin C.