Tuesday the workout is a 2k row. It’s not sexy, and for many of us, it’s not something we particularly enjoy, but it’s a challenge, the same as any other workout. Rather than picking our spots and staying in our comfort zones we emphasize taking on our weaknesses, facing them, and improving. It’s easy to choose a rest day, and decide to get a workout in later in the week instead. I’m laying down the challenge right now to all of you to show up and row your best. See you at the box.

August 21, 2012
Skill/Strength:
EMOM 15:
3 reps for quality of Handstand Push-ups or Push-ups
*Add resistance or increase range of motion if necessary
Compare to 120613
WOD:
2,000m Row
This entry was posted on August 20, 2012 at 7:23 pm and is filed under WOD. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
just some words of wisdom from a former rower…
be smart. know what your abilities are and be honest with yourself– i know i can row a 2k in about 7:05 these days, that means i know roughly what split on the erg i should hit (1:46ish). calculate yours and be honest!
don’t let pride get in the way of a good row– just because you CAN row harder on the first 1000m doesn’t mean you should. any rower will tell you that a 2000m row does not start until the 3rd 500m. the first 1000m is just to get you there. once you have 500m left, then unload the tank and step on the gas, there’s nothing to lose.
oh, and lastly… don’t eat anything beforehand.
Great advice Eugene. This one is as much about mental toughness as it is about physical ability.
EMOM 15: Made it most of the way through with HSPUs on 20kg plates. Thanks to Erika for challenging me on this one.
2k Row
05/04/2011: 7:55
11/23/2011: 7:40
12/12/2011: 7:38
08/21/2012: 7:28
Not a big fan of the 2k row, but Erika encouraging me (YELLING) to keep my split pace down (GO FASTER) during that last 500m really helped on this one. Great job to everyone in the 6am who embraced the suck together. Nice work!
What you don’t see is that shorty wanted to punch me in the face. SHAWTY- I am so proud of you. Look at 5/04/2011 and today. That’s 27 seconds shaved off in a little over a year. A second is even a big difference in rowing. You should be so proud of yourself!!
The feeling of wanting to die in the last 500m influenced me to say that. You can’t hold things against people during times like those. After recovering, I’d say I just want to shake my fist at you in a firm manner instead.
i mean…i gave her the finger yesterday. maybe we should stop abusing erika. it’s all out of love, synder, i promise.
i’m still abusing you. SNYDER. sorry. my fingers work faster than my brain
SLEEP WITH ONE EYE OPEN SHEEDY
That’s how you get pinkeye!
Dude… that was awesome to watch! Nice work.
EMOM 15: 10 rounds with 1 abmat, had to add a 5k plate to finish. Next time I’ll make it all the way through with just the abmat.
2k Row:
2 Jul 2012: 8:11
21 Aug 2012: 7:48
Very happy to get sub 8 on the row. Way to go 6 am!
Way to KILL your previous time in a month and a half! Awesome progress.
7:33.8!
Not to shabby, I kinda like this rowing business.
EMON 15: HSPU 2 abmats, till Erika had me use 1 and a 5 kg plate for the last round. I guess it’s time to scale down!
12/11/11 – 10:22
8/21/12 – 9:41
Great tips from Erika, they were definitely useful as this go round with the 2k definitely felt stronger and more consistent than the last time!
EMOM: Weighted Pull-Ups (20# DB) 11 rounds x3, 4 rounds x2
2k Row
05/04/2011: 7:34
12/12/2011: 7:45
08/21/2012: 7:20
So I PR’d it after heading in the wrong direction before. I used the Pace Boat function today for the first time, and really like it. Paced it at 1:53/500m. The erg’s drag factor was 110.
Whoa! That’s a HUGE PR. Nice work!
2k – 6:48.02 it’s a little hard to type as my hands are still a bit shaky. first time pulling 2k and it really is all in your head.
so a question to all the rowers here: i know the damper setting ‘helps’ you get calories while rowing, but does it help/hinder anything when rowing for meters? i rowed this one at 10…is that a dumb thing to do because it doesn’t matter?
signed, the-guy-from-new-mexico-where-nobody-knows-rowing-is-a-sport
Mike–for a 2k, the drag factor should be about 115, which is usually when the damper is at 4 (you can check the drag factor by going to “more options”). That’s because 2ks are supposed to translate to the water, where the drag factor is 115. Since you’re not going to do it on the water I guess you could have the damper where ever you want…the higher the damper is the lower you can get your splits, but also the harder it is on your legs. If it’s a short row (around 20 calories or less) I like having the damper higher, but for a 2k it will burn your legs like crazy. But a 6:48 with the damper at 10 is pretty damn good.
Also…MANDY IS GOING TO ROW HER 2K UNDER 8 MINUTES. I have faith.
Team USAs standards are a drag setting of 130 for men and 120 (I think) for women. When my team has 2K tests the ergs are 120 and 110 respectively, and we are allowed to increase the drag to 130/120. Like Becca said, the idea is to mimmic water when training, so for just erging it’s entirely your preference. And damn, thats an awesome time at damper 10.
Daaaaamn! I’m beginning to think you are not human.
2k — 8:11 sorry becca…you jinxed it. just kidding! actually very happy with this as it is a 13 second PR from my last time of 8:24. Next time Becca! And thanks Erika for all your help!
2k — 7:57 (4 second PR since May 2011).
Awesome tips from everyone! Will keep working at this.
EMOM 15: Used 2 abmats throughout. Will try 1 abmat and a 5kg plate next time.
2K row:
08/05/10 8:36
05/04/11 7:37
12/12/12 7:32
08/21/12 7:31
Only a 1 second PR. I’ll take it, but I really wanted a sub-7:30 time. I was slacking off big time around 600m to go… That’s where my sub 7:30 went. Pissed. But I’ll remember this lesson for next time.
Travel WOD! First time at a different box and needless to say there’s no place like CFF!
Squat snatch: 85#
AMRAP9: 9 thrusters (65#), 9 K2E, 9 Burpees over the bar= 4+18. Quad buster. Then I ate a PB Bacon burger. Yay vacation.
HSPU: Negatives to 3 ab mats, trying to get my butt to the wall. I’m a mess.
2k: 8:45. I should have pushed harder…need to work for sub-8:30 next time.
Yesterday, I visisted CF Dupont in DC. Very interesting there- they’re mostly doing CF Football workouts, and right now they’re trying something new – splitting the sexes for the metcon/strength (women metcon-strength, men strength-metcon). They’re saying that studies and performance by elite CF women show that priming ladies with a metcon leads to bigger lifts, whereas with guys it either doesn’t matter or they do better with strength first (sorry dudes, I don’t remember). The workout was hella fun:
3 rounds:
10 sledge hammer strikes right
10 sledge hammer strikes left
10 med ball throws (like a kettle bell swing but you release the med ball behind you then go chase it)
10 athletic position burpees
Rest 1 min
8:20 I did 16# sledge, 20# med ball
HBBS 5-5-5: 165#/75kg
Last time we did 3-rep squats, I hit low 80s kg, so feels like a pretty big jump. Not sure if it’s the whole metcon-first thing, but it was interesting to say the least.
\end novel
if you’re in DC again, i highly recommend crossfit praxis over near U street (14th and florida/W). pretty good stuff there, and ask for the original sheedy crossfitter!
So bad about posting on here. Need to make it a routine thing…
HSPU – completed with 2 abmats. First time doing them but I look forward to them in future WODs.
2k row – 7:16 (up from 12/12/11′s 7:10 time)
Pretty sure I could have beat the 7:10 time had I looked in my notebook and remembered that I’d done a 2k row before. A challenge for the next time this is programmed…
I’ll be honest. It literally took me all day to get psyched up enough to finally do this WOD. I was signed up for class this morning, cancelled my reservation last minute, thought about the WOD all day and then finally signed up for tonight’s last class. One of the things I’m discovering as I deal with the realities of recovering from a major injury — while trying to get back into my old CrossFit routine — is that there’s a substantial mental aspect to the whole thing, which more often than not, you have to fight through. And I never really anticipated that.
Long story short, I got over myself & finally did the damn WOD.
Of course, it also helped that I really wanted to come in & do the HSPUs today (started w/ 1 abmat for first couple rds, finished w/ 2).
As for the WOD, set a realistic goal to finish under 10:00. Finished at 9:36, thinking my last PR was at 9:40. Turns out my old PR was actually 9:04… Well, at the end of the day, it still felt pretty good.
So, Sam, there was really no need for me to comfort myself with fast food and go to Burger King right after. Promise.
I also spent the day freaking out about the WOD. Because of the “constantly varied” aspect of Crossfit, I don’t tend to stress about the workout because I never really know what I’m getting into. But I rowed in college, so I know EXACTLY what a 2k on the rower is going to feel like physically and mentally, and I have a picture of what should happen in each 250m chunk, where my splits should be, where my stroke rating should be …. I don’t exactly set myself up for success when I strap into the erg.
But, “Long story short, I got over myself & finally did the damn WOD.” As you say, a HUGE part of all this is mental. I did it. It’s done. Next time a 2k rolls around, I can’t argue with the fact that I did a 2k on August 22 and didn’t die or shame my family name. (I think I did accidentally spit on Sam though. Just a little.)
Decided to hang withe the PM crowd for a change of scene. I also came specifically because I wanted to do the 2k row! I like this word and the erg.
Finally made it down and back with the handstand pushups with two an mats. Had to scale down to negitives at half way through.
2k row: 7:55