Journey to the Centre of the Four... (A Rower's Journal)

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Dutes

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A Rower's Journal I - Journey to the Centre of the Four...

The Background
18 Months ago I rowed at the Australian National Rowing Titles, finishing 6th in the Open Schoolboys Single Scull. I was 179cm, 67kg. The winner was 192cm, 93kg...
I was also part of the quad that won my school's third consecutive gold medal in the Open Schoolboys Quad Scull.

18 months later the stroke from that quad won a Bronze Medal in the Junior Mens Double Scull at the World Junior Championships...
I was working in a fish and chip shop...

That was the kick up the arse I needed to get back into it. I'd been coaching for 6 months but I decided I needed to get back into the boat. I made inquiries and made the promise to myself.
"I am going to row at nationals again"

I found myself a respected Lightweight Coach, a top quality fitness trainer and sought support from my family and friends.

My coach feels that my best chance of success is to trial for the Lightweight Four. This is the journey...

the journey to the centre of the four!

The Man
Name: Sam
Nickname: Dutes
Age: 18
Height: 181cm
Weight:70kg
BF%: 11%
Best 2KM Ergo Time: 6:52

Real training starts 1st September 2008 (too much other stuff on before then although I will still be training about 5 times a week)

The Dream
To qualify for the Queensland U23 Men's Lightweight Four for the Australian Championships
The reality is that selection this year is extremely unlikely, the real goal is qualifying in 2009 or 2010. Nonetheless I want to at least challenge for selection this year.
To get my BF% down to 5%.

The Deadline
The trials for this year are on 6-7 December in Bundaberg (97 days)

The Obstacles
1) My job as a rowing coach limits me to a maximum of four mornings a week, and more likely three mornings a week.
2) I am a sculler moving to sweep oar rowing, time will need to be taken to adjust to the difference in technique.
3) University studies and class times restrict my available time
4) As I have moved out of home I need a second job in order to pay rent. These hours further restrict my training time
5) My budget is low, therefore i may need to be creative at times with regards to diet.
6) I cannot afford to gain a single gram of weight. I am at max crew average already. If anything my weight may need to go down. Ideally it will remain set at 70kg.

The Tools
I have a full access to a world class gym facility
I have full access to a top quality boat shed
My Fitness Coach is a former Australian Lightweight rower, a coach of multiple Olympians, a number of whom are at Beijing at the moment, more than 5 will be coming home with medals.
My Rowing coach is one of the most respected lightweight coaches in Queensland

The Breakdown
Pre-Competition: (1/09/08 - 7/11/08)
Competition: (8/11/08 - 5/12/08)

The Plan
PreCompetition - Weekly
Monday:
Rowing (4.45am) - Session designed by Rowing Coach
Duration: 120-180mins

Run home from University (6km) (4.10pm)

Squat Jumps
Push Ups
Bridges
Crunches
Leg Raises

------------------------------------

Tuesday:
Fitness (10am) - Session designed by Fitness Coach
Duration: 30mins - 45mins (he absolutely farking hammers me)

Squat Jumps
Push Ups
Bridges
Crunches
Leg Raises

------------------------------------

Wednesday:
Rowing (4.45am) - Session designed by Rowing Coach
Duration 120-180mins

Long Bike Ride (1pm) - 20-40KM (depending on length and intensity of rowing training)
Duration: Varies

------------------------------------

Thursday: Run to University (6km) (7am)

Squat Jumps
Push Ups
Bridges
Crunches
Leg Raises

(Before classes start)

Core Training Session - Designed by Fitness Coach (5.30pm)
Duration: 45mins
Fitness Training Session - Designed by Fitness Coach (at conclusion of Core Training Session)
Duration: 45mins

------------------------------------

Friday:
Rowing (4.45am)
Duration: 120-180mins

Squat Jumps
Push Ups
Bridges
Crunches

------------------------------------

Saturday
Rowing: (4.45am)
Duration: 120-180mins

Fitness Program - Designed by Fitness Coach (varies from week to week)
Duration: 45mins

------------------------------------

Sunday
And on the seventh day he rested...


That will be my weekly training during pre competition.
The training program once i hit the competition tapering period will be posted closer to the date.

The Diet

Any advice as to specifics would be appreciated. I can NOT afford to gain ANY weight, so whatever I eat needs to allow me to maintain my current weight so any gain in muscle weight needs to be offset by an equal weight loss in body fat.



Well thats the program as it stands currently. My current coaching contract expires on 31/08/08. So then I get my mornings back so the following day training proper starts. I will log my workouts in the lead up to the commencement of the program as well.
The program will have to be adapted, however, as a contract with a different club commences on 1/09/08, however that will be just one crew and hopefully just 3 mornings a week (ideally tuesday, thursday and I may have to drop one of friday or saturday trainings from my own program).

Feel free to offer constructive advice, my fitness coach only works with me during the sessions with him and he writes me a program which varies from week to week (I will do that on a thursday and saturday afternoon) so the other sessions (the bike ride, the runs, the squat jumps etc.) i've added myself.

If I miss training (once the program starts), use any sort of insults you want! Make sure it doesnt happen again

And to lead me into this training program

"You're dream isn't big enough if it doesn't scare you"
 
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Wednesday 20th August 2008. Day -11 (108 days to deadline)

Not a great day...

Rowing this morning, it was ridiculously cold this morning. Our coach is at World Uni games so we put the Four out this morning. After far too much pissing around we end up only rowing 7km round trip and doing a lot of roll ups. A waste of a session. I should have just gone out in the single.
It got worse though as the fourth member of our four informed us that he's having to quit rowing till the end of the year to concentrate on his school work (he's in year 12). Which means not only are we know without a four to row at the state titles... I'm without a partner for the pair, an essential boat to row if you want to trial for state selections...
My new mission is to find a new partner for the pair asap, as we need to row at the surfer's paradise regatta on 5th-7th September... my great plan could be scuppered 11 days before real training even begins :(

In the afternoon I worked on a big uni assignment so didn't have time for a long ride before work so to just do some body weight exercises

4x20 + 2x25 Squat Jumps
4x15 + 2x20 Push Ups
6x10 Dips
6x20 Boxing Crunches

moving directly into the next exercise, no rest between sets.

I feel alright, I should have done more today though, but I had a uni assignment I had to work on and then actual work. Oh well, training proper doesnt start for another 2 weeks. If I get up early tomorrow I can go for a run before I coach my school crew in the morning.

Didn't eat very much today. Had a bread roll for breakfast and a small amount of chicken at lunch. Had a piece of grilled Atlantic Salmon and a rocket and pumpkin salad for an early dinner before work.

Tomorrow I want to do a run before coaching, I'll need to rush straight to uni from there so I'll do some squat jumps etc. after my classes around 12.30. I'll have coaching again in the afternoon so I'll go to the gym afterwards and do some stability work, more squat jumps/pushups/dips/crunches, and a long ride.

Thought for the day:
"If you can speak you didn't work hard enough"
 
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Oh rowing. Sometimes I miss it...then i quickly remember all those horrible days on the Erg and I quickly remember I do not miss it at all. Very lofty goals. Goodluck!
 
I have mornings like that where I row out into the middle of the lake only toi realize that I left my worms back at the truck. Nothing to do then but put on the sunscreen, crack a cold one, and kick back.

Best of luck!
 
MrDevine said:
I have mornings like that where I row out into the middle of the lake only toi realize that I left my worms back at the truck. Nothing to do then but put on the sunscreen, crack a cold one, and kick back.

Best of luck!
Click to expand...

lol...different type of rowing...but good outlook :)
 
Dutes said:
Didn't eat very much today. Had a bread roll for breakfast and a small amount of chicken at lunch. Had a piece of grilled Atlantic Salmon and a rocket and pumpkin salad for an early dinner before work.
Click to expand...

What is a rocket and pumkin salad?

Best wishes,

Chillen
 
@Chillen - a rocket and pumpkin salad is a salad comprised of rocket and pumpkin, usually with a balsamic vinegar dressing, but I don't like the taste of balsamic vinegar so I don't use a dressing. I add sun dried tomatoes and a little ground pepper for taste.

@Spartak - yes... the erg... most people who have rowed competitively have a pathological fear of ergs and with good reason. Unfortunately I have to do both a 2km and a 6km erg for the trials. I need to be able to pull a 6:20 2KM to realistically challenge for selection.

@evolution - most definately, i havent worked out a weights program yet though as I've never done a great deal of work in the gym before. I know I'll need to increase my strength though as I'll be competing against people who are three of four years older and with greater experience.
Any suggestions would be appreciated. At the moment I'm thinking of doing squats, DL, upright rows, hamstring curls, lunges, bench and shoulder press but I'm not sure if there are others that I should be doing. Probably Lat pull downs as well but not really sure, I plan to try to make use of it probably on fridays in place of the bodyweight exercises. I need to work out a program first though.


Thanks to everyone for the encouragment!

Thursday 21st August - Day -10 (107 days to deadline)

Didn't get home from work till nearly midnight so didn't get up till 5am and had to go to rowing coaching. After rowing though I drove into uni and after half an hour of being unable to find a park I was forced to give up and go home.
Despondent I decided to go for a run, I ran 6.8km (roughly 4 1/4 miles) round trip, it took 37:17.

In the afternoon after coming back from coaching my year 8's I headed to the gym and made a start on my coach's ergo program

4x500m @ 1:45split with 5min recovery in between
I never did a lot of ergo's at school but I've discovered why rowers in brisbane have such a pathological fear of ergo's... they suck!

After I finished my ergo I started on the swiss ball work my coach had left me

2x20 Swiss Ball Push ups
2x Sitting on swiss ball for 1min (just works on motor skills)
2x 20 Swiss Ball elbow extensions
4x20 (each arm) One arm swiss ball rows @ 10kg
2x15 Swiss Ball bum raises
2x15 (each side) Swiss Ball leg rolls
2x15 Supermans
2x40 Swiss Ball Heel Tucks
2x40 Swiss Ball Wall Squats

I had two lean ham and tomato sandwiches on white bread for breakfast and some boiled calamari, grilled sea scollop, and prawns with a home-made greek salad (lettuce, rocket, tomato, olives, fetta cheese) without any dressing for dinner (a warm-seafood salad).
I had a big glass of milk just before bed.

I ate way too little during the day. I felt absolutely exhausted after the ergo's and although I could feel my muscles working during the swiss ball exercises I didn't feel a real sense of muscle fatigue... instead it was like an all over unpleasant exhaustion. I need to eat more, particularly if i want to do multiple sessions during the day. Any advice on designing a diet plan would be really appreciated!

Tomorrow I have work from 10am - 11pm and coaching in the morning. I'll try and do some body weight exercises in the morning after coaching, we'll see how I pull up though. I may end up taking tomorrow off as I'll be running around all day at work (wait staff member at an extremely busy restaurant) and then doing a decent session saturday. Not too hard though as I have to back up for my cricket grand final on sunday and as an opening bowler I don't want to be going in fatigued. My plan yesterday of what I'd do today changed a fair bit as my coach sent me a program in the morning, still I felt like it was a decent workout, need to make sure I eat enough though so I don't get sick or fatigue.

Thought for the day:
"Food is an important part of a balanced diet." ~Fran Lebowitz
 
Rocket is a leafy vegetable,
i can't post links yet (less than 15 posts) but theres a description of it on wikipedia
 
Friday 22nd August 2008 - Day -9 (106 Days to Deadline)

With rowing (my own plus coaching) now pulling me up before 5am six mornings a week i'm feeling really tired. It takes a bit of effort to haul myself out of bed and down to the shed to coach the girls.
Find myself feeling pretty good after the previous days efforts, not too sore although a little tight in the calves.
Due to traffic I don't get home from coaching till 9.30am and have to start work at 10am so no time to do any exercises.

I ate two no-sugar pancakes with greek yoghurt and and cut up strawberries for breakfast and I have a glass of milk just before i go to work.

Work is a hell of a day, i don't stop running for more than about 1minute until my break after 7 hours. I am completely exhausted. Then after a twenty minute break its back to it. I have two pieces of grilled snapper with a dressingless greek salad for dinner (at 4.30pm) and have three red bulls at various points during the day. Nonetheless I get home at 11.10pm completely exhausted and fall straight into bed. (this was written on the Saturday)

Thought for the day:
"Always be smarter than the people who hire you"




Saturday 23rd August 2008 - Day -8 (105 Days to deadline)

Awake at 4am to drive to Kawana for my girls regatta. Its almost impossible dragging myself out of bed but once I do and hit the shower I'm awake enough to drive to the regatta.
The girls row well although results are very dissapointing. I run alongside my two crew's races (a total of 2.5km) but until I get home do nothing else. I buy a red bull from a servo on the way to keep me awake and have a steakburger for lunch (regatta food is horrible!).
Once I get home I do my body weight exercises as I have to go to work again that night.;

4x25 + (last)1x30 squat jumps
4x20 + (last)1x25 Push ups
3x10 + (last)2x15 Dips
5x30 Crunches

I have a natural peanut butter sandwhich on wholemeal bread, a glass of milk three weetbix and a banana before heading to work.

8 days till training actually starts. Trying to make sure I do something each day though. Still would really appreciate any help with regards to what I should be eating, and also in designing a weights program as I would like to make use of the impressive gym facility I have access to.

Thought for the day:
"Success will never lower its standard to accomodate us. We have to raise our standard to achieve it"
 
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Very serious, very impressive....hard to imagine anyone can give you advice; I wouldn't know where to start. Row on brother, row on!!!!

My buddy was a rower on a 2-man team....they were in the Olympics some 8, 10 or 12 years ago. Huge-talll guy, really cranks on the row machine at the gym (to no surprise).
 
Sunday 24 August 2008 - Day -7 (1 week till training starts - 104 days to deadline)

Technically today is meant to be a complete rest day but I have Cricket Grand Finals today! I wake up feeling pretty good, a little tight in the calves still but otherwise in good nick. Four weetbix for breakfast and I catch the train into the city where I'm picked up by our captain who takes us to the game.

We bat first and make 184 (I score 22 batting at 11 and put on 54 for the last wicket) all out in 46.3 overs.
I open the bowling for us and take 2-47 from 10 overs. Despite snaring the key wickets of their opener, and star batsman we fall short, as they make the runs with 1 wicket and two balls to spare. Its a heartbreaking loss and I come off the field totally exhausted, I fielded at cover all day and my legs feel like lead weights. We all know that if just one more thing had gone our way we could have finished as champions. It's really gutting.

I have a couple of beers after the game and go out to dinner with my girlfriend where I have a 350g sirloin steak with local prawns and moreton bay bug.

I'm asleep by 10.30 as I have coaching tomorrow morning. After the run home from uni I'll probably go to the gym and do another round of the swiss ball program my coach has me on and then do some intervals or hill rides on the bike.

Thought for the day:
"On any given Sunday you're either going to win or you're going to lose. The question is can you win or lose like a man?" - Al Pacino
 
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Monday 25 August 2008 - Day -6 (103 Days to Deadline)

Up at 5am to go coach my girls, they had an alright session but conditions were terrible.
I had uni all day after coaching, after uni I ran home (6.2km). I then went to the gym and did

2x20 Swiss Ball Push ups
2x Sitting on swiss ball for 1min (just works on motor skills)
2x20 Swiss Ball elbow extensions
4x20 (each arm) One arm swiss ball rows @ 10kg
2x15 Swiss Ball bum raises
2x20 (each side) Swiss Ball leg rolls
2x15 Supermans
2x15 Swiss Ball Bench Press @30kg (i don't really trust the swiss ball...)
2x40 Swiss Ball Heel Tucks
2x40 Swiss Ball Wall Squats @20kg

Afterwards i did 20mins of HIIT... i felt like throwing up afterwards and my legs were like jelly... never done it before but its different thats for sure!

I had two mince sandwiches for breakfast but didnt have anything else to eat till 8.30pm when I had a piece of grilled atlantic salmon, 14 grilled queensland sea scollops and a greek salad without dressing for dinner.
Again I didn't eat enough. I'm finding it hard to eat, the more exercise I do the less I feel like eating... i really need to try and force myself to eat but I'm struggling. I feel pretty sore and I have to row in the morning, i'll just have to make sure i eat before rowing as afterwards I have a session with my fitness coach... thats going to be heavy.

Thought for the day:
"We truly great competitors yearn for what we fear." - Monsignor Bonner
 
I know I've already said this, but you're nothing less than awesome.

I have BIG TIME respect for you, Dutes.

I want your permission to live vicariously through you ... I miss training like that so much. It's so exhausting, but it's so incredibly rewarding on a personal level.
 
Dutes said:
Afterwards i did 20mins of HIIT... i felt like throwing up afterwards and my legs were like jelly... never done it before but its different thats for sure!
Click to expand...

Yep. HIIT almost always makes me feel like throwing up. You are apparently doing it correctly :)

Dutes said:
Again I didn't eat enough. I'm finding it hard to eat, the more exercise I do the less I feel like eating... i really need to try and force myself to eat but I'm struggling. I feel pretty sore and I have to row in the morning, i'll just have to make sure i eat before rowing as afterwards I have a session with my fitness coach... thats going to be heavy.
Click to expand...

You have to force yourself to eat sometimes because you're so tired, it's the last thing you want to do. I know all about that.

Dutes said:
I feel pretty sore and I have to row in the morning, i'll just have to make sure i eat before rowing as afterwards I have a session with my fitness coach... thats going to be heavy.
Click to expand...

For the soreness, have you tried an ice bath? Whenever I did a brutal body workout and knew I was going to be hurting the next day, I got into an ice bath for 10-15 minutes. Freezes up EVERYTHING (yep, the sensitive parts end up shrinking into oblivion, even if you're female) and hurts/burns like an SOB for the first 1-3 minutes, but after that, you get used to it. Don't forget to have a fan blowing to keep the ice from melting.

The ice bath sounds horrible, and I guess it is, but the benefit is your body won't hurt the next day. Somehow it helps suck away the lactic acid from your muscles and speeds up the recovery process.

Does your rowing club have an ice bath?
 
i_love-muscle - i'm not that awesome really. The hardest part is getting up in the mornings, once you get into the swing of things you actually feel worse if you don't do anything! But feel free to live vicariously through me ;).
I've tried ice baths before and they don't work for me that well. I find that about 10-20 mins of water running at the end of the day really helps move the lactic acid for me and i feel good in the morning. I don't really have access to a pool nearby though so I might give ice baths another go.

Tuesday 26 August 2008 - Day -5 (102 Days to Deadline)

Up at 4am this morning so I can eat before I rwo, back in the boat myself for the first time since last Wednesday. It's cold and miserable and as it turns out, my coach is sick and nobody else from my crew turns up. Great start.

Undeterred I get out the single and push off just after 5am, I row 10km up river , the first 4km, into a blazing headwind. That 4km feels like 40, at the 10km mark I turn the boat around and do a 10km time trial back to the shed. It takes me just over 42 minutes, a perfectly respectable time in the single. The 20km row takes me less than 2 hours round trip. I'm feeling pretty good after the row, although the conditions weren't great I stuck it out alone and went for my longest individual row in the single, ever. Unfortunately whilst rowing against the head wind that first couple of km up I burst a couple of blisters and by the end of the session my hands and oars are covered in blood. Its more than a little painful.
I rinse my hands in metho' to dry them out and then strap my hands.

My PT rings me at 9 to tell me that he can't make our session today and that he'll see me next week. I really don't feel like a big cardio session so when I go to the gym I planned to do some weights... unfortunately i can barely grip the weights with my hand and so decide to just do the Swiss ball exercises again.

2x20 Swiss Ball Push ups
2x Sitting on swiss ball for 1min (just works on motor skills)
2x20 Swiss Ball elbow extensions
4x20 (each arm) One arm swiss ball rows @ 10kg
2x15 Swiss Ball bum raises
2x20 (each side) Swiss Ball leg rolls
2x15 Supermans
2x40 Swiss Ball Heel Tucks
2x40 Swiss Ball Wall Squats @20kg

Only the push ups hurt my hands. After about 10mins I decide to do some more squat jumps, crunches and bridges so i do a further

6x25 Squat Jumps
6x30 Swiss Ball Crunches
6x5 Bridges @1min per bridge

I have 3 weetbixs with low fat milk and honey before rowing and a further 4 after rowing. I don't get the chance to eat again until dinner when I have boiled carrot, potato, broccoli and asparagus, a homemade dressingless greek salad and some lean beef with grilled mushrooms. It tastes good :D

Not a bad day, my hands are so painful though, and seem to draw all my attention away from any soreness in my muscles. Doing stuff tomorrow will not be fun, i've got to find time to do ergo's plus coaching, plus my three filthy uni research assignments i've been putting off. This week is going to be stressful...

Thought for the Day:
"Procrastination is like Masturbation; In the end you're just screwing yourself."
 
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