Dial It In 
Tabata x 4 Rounds
r20 / r24 / r28 / r30
Rest around 2 minutes between each round
DF 122

Start at around 90% of your 2k pace at r20 and go with feel. Use your strength, build into it and go by feel as you progress through each interval. Finish strong with big sets under fatigue. Targets for the last round are 110-115%. 

Rate Control 

5 Rounds

2:00/2:00/1:00 rest

Stroke Rate: 22/26

DF: 131

Score: Total meters during last interval.

 

You'll row two minutes at r22, then two minutes at r26, rest for a minute and repeat for five total rounds. The goal is to maintain the same split even when the rate changes. Didn't see the note about recording total meters during LAST interval. I chose to go for it during the FOURTH interval and challenge myself to maintain the pace I set during first THREE intervals in the LAST interval. If I did this again, I'd go a bit faster on the r22 rounds (~5k split) because it was actually tougher to hold back during the r26 work then push harder at r22. 

Humpday 
Two Rounds of 6130m 
Rest ~2 minutes between.

6130m with a high resistance/damper (ascending)
6130m with a low resistance/damper (descending)

We are going to take on the challenge of the greatest hump in the United States: 'Denali' in Alaska. Standing 6,130 meters tall, you'll need to climb it. From here, you have a choice: either leave the erg there and bail out, or hop back on row back down. Threw on a couple episodes of The Office and just picked away at this one.

Power Practice 
6x 1:30 work / 1:00 rest
Stroke Rate: 20
DF 126

Just hold the rate. That's it. Try to push the pace a little more each time, but just nail that 20 and go to work. Match or beat your previous split each round. I am pretty comfortable rowing at lower rates, with r20 being the sweet spot before my technique starts to degrade. I have a hard time not pausing at the finish when rowing at r18 or lower. Made too big of a jump with my split from round to round. Start a bit faster, around 5K pace (2:07.5) and improve by 1-2 meters each round for more of a challenge.

Rowling Warmup (Day 22) 
Warmup: Rowling
You'll row 10 'frames' 

Goal is to have your final stroke roll over and land your meters on 100m every time. Penalty: 1 burpee for every meter +/- 100m each round. 

Workout: Drivetrain (Day 9)
AMRAP 30:00 
100m + 1 v-up
200m + 2 v-ups
300m + 3 v-ups...
Carry on in this manner, adding 100m and 1 v-up with each round, for 30 minutes. 

Warmed up with Rowling before making up a workout from earlier. I was only able to get EXACTLY 100m once and a few rounds I was WAY off, but did not punish myself with the burpee penalty. 

For Drivetrain, I chose v-ups for the off-rower work and set a goal to complete 10 full rounds. I finished the 1000m row, my last stroke coming with :02 to go, but no v-ups that round

'Oh Deere' 
50 calorie row
50 calorie assault bike
200m farmers walk, 44-pound KB in each hand
50 calorie row
50 calorie assault bike
200m farmers walk, 44-pound KB in each hand
50 calorie row
50 calorie assault bike

This was a grind. Held a steady pace on each bike and row, finishing under four minutes every time. Carries were from the garage to streetlight outside of Dominique's house and back. Set down the kettlebells at the turnaround each time, took 10-15 breaths and walked back home. 

5 sets of: 
10 strokes for peak watts
Rest AT LEAST 5:00 between sets

We're not looking for the highest average in those 10 strokes; we're looking for the highest single stroke in each set. I was reaching my MAX somewhere in the first 15 seconds, usually around 8-10 strokes in. Was pumped to break 500 watts (1:28.7 split)! 

Row Conditioning 

4-3-2-1 minutes 

1:30 rest between each

26-26-28-34 stroke rate

Pace: start at 2k plus 10 and get faster

Drag: 118

Whoops! I messed up the programming and set the final interval to four minutes, causing the screenshot to look a bit weird. Put in a good warmup, working to r34 for a couple of 30-second intervals.  At such a high rate, you need to shorten your stroke and keep the body moving from 11 to 1. 

Damper Dandy 
19 rounds OTM + :30 rest
Rate: 20

Day 16 of Rowvember. Damper starts at 10, work your way down to 1 and back up to 10. Change the damper each round. YOUR JOB is to hold a steady pace and rate. Interesting how the ratio changed as I went down and up the ladder while holding the same rate throughout. My sweet spot is around 120 DF which is around a damper of 5. Anything at damper 8 or higher required almost a 1:1 ratio, where damper 1 and 2 felt like 1:3 or even 1:4. 

For load: 
Deadlift 3-3-3-3-3 reps

Used 269-pounds across all sets

We are hitting 5 heavy sets of 3 deadlifts. Allocate a decent amount of time to build up to 80-85% of 1-rep max, and then start the heavy sets. If you are moving well, increase the weight each round and aim to hit a new PR around set 4 or 5. You may also stick to the same weight across the board or pyramid up and down in load. Remember, the stimulus is to lift heavy, safely, and have fun doing so!

 
Rogue Claw Challenge
Max time holding one hex head dumbbell in each hand

32 seconds with 20-pound Nike dumbbells

AMRAP 18 Minutes 

12 Calorie Row

Rest 2:30

Pacing: Send

What can you ramp those calorie per hour numbers to without logging rounds of crappy movement? Finished six full rounds. With sprints this short in duration, you need to modify your stroke somewhat. Keep those heels planted and focus primarily on the body swing. Shorten those strokes and focus on body moving from 11 to 1. Lean forward and reach with the hands up into the machine. 

ErgZone Challenges S2E5: Odd WOD 
5 x 5:00 /:90 rest
Rate: 19, 21, 23, 25, 27

Scoring: 
1. Total Meters
2. Best SPI

You must finish each interval at the prescribed average rate (or below); finishing above will invalidate the result. Held a consistent SPI across all intervals. You are scored not just on total meters, but best SPI. Try this again and really go for it on the first round, 180 WATTS at r18 would give you a double-digit SPI. It would be curious to see what effect this kind of power output would have on the remaining intervals. 

Two Rounds: 
25 Calorie Row
25 DB Floor Press (50)
-Rest 3:00-
Two Rounds:
25 Calorie Row
25 Push-ups 

Find a pace on the row knowing that you'll tire and rest on the pressing and be smart about breaking up the pressing movements. The row should ideally be 90 seconds or less (~2:00/500m pace).

Workout 84 - RowErg - Alternation Fluctuation 
Warmup Into Workout:
30 X 1 Minute Intervals
 
Stroke Rate Targets
22-24-22-24-26-24
26-28-26-28-26-28
26-24-26-24-22-24
22-24-22-24-26-24
26-28-26-28-30-28

Use the first six intervals to warmup before increasing the power. This is a great workout to practice changing rates and finishing strong after a longer duration row. Get those watts at 185 or above for the last three intervals (28-30-28). 

Distance: 3000/2000/1000 meters 
Stroke Rate: 22/24/26
Split: 2K+ 16/14/12
Rest: 1:30

Nice sweaty session out in the garage on a 70-degree November day. Missed my targets ever so slightly on the first two intervals, but was happy with the effort overall. 

3 Rounds for Max Calories 
3 minute row
2 minute assault bike
1 minute butterfly abmat sit-ups
Rest 2 minutes between rounds

1: 42/28/20
2: 44/29/21
3: 45/29/19

This was a lung burner 😵‍🔥💣! First round on the rower was a little conservative (2:10.6 pace), nudged up the last two rounds to 2:07 and 2:06. Happy with the effort on the bike considering I don't ride much anymore - each round was ~65 RPMs. The legs were definitely feeling heavy during that last round. Keep moving through the sit-ups, it is only a minute and you'll have two minutes of rest afterwards. 

Election Day 
4 x 700m / 90 seconds rest
Rate: Open

In honor of the recent election, you'll row 4 rounds of 700m (for our 47th president). The goal is to go faster each round, using the number of electoral votes Trump received (295=2:09.5) for your first round and the number Kamala received (226=2:02.6) for your last. 

Crossfit 230517 
Complete as much as possible in 15 minutes of:
Row 500 meters
Max set push-ups

Push the row a bit while staying consistent. The goal is to finish 5 rounds of each movement. This workout demands that you use your legs on the row - otherwise the push-ups will be that much more difficult. Use the force curve to keep you honest. I don't have the same stamina with bodyweight movements anymore. It's clear that I need to work on my muscular endurance and shed some extra weight.

CrossFit | 240902 
For time:
200-meter row
20-second plank hold
400-meter row
40-second plank hold
600-meter row
60-second plank hold
800-meter row
80-second plank hold
1,000-meter row
100-second plank hold

24:51

Expect the plank holds to be much more challenging after rowing. Your goal should be to push the pace on each row and go unbroken on the plank holds. I was able to hold the 60-second plank unbroken, but had to break the 80 and 100-second planks into three sets. My midline is officially trashed! 

Row Conditioning  
Duration: 15 Minutes (15 x 50 sec Easy, 10 sec Power)
Rate: 24

In every race, there is an element of controlled chaos. With that in mind, today's Rowvember workout asks you to row a controlled 15 minutes,  but every 50 seconds to go all out for 10 seconds before bringing it back to a nice controlled sustainable pace for the turn of the minute. While this was not rate-capped, I opted to keep everything at r24, focusing on the change in ratio needed to go between easy and powerful strokes while holding the same rate. 

Row Recovery 

5000m row 

This was the WOD for Rowvember today. Took advantage of the sunshine 60-degree November day and rowed out in the garage while watching RedZone.

ErgZone Challenges S2E2: Upside Down
Thirteen one-minute splits with no rest
Rate change every minute: 30-28-26-24-22-20-18-20-22-24-26-28-30

• You choose the wattage/pace for the initial split (first minute).

• Your goal: replicate the same SPI (Stroke Power Index) for the subsequent 12 minutes.

• Your second goal: do it as fast as you can.

Scoring: One point for each split you meet the target SPI (watts divided by rate)

Score: 8 / 2:12.6

Imagine a rate pyramid and then flip it upside down. On this challenge, we start at the highest rate, back it down, and climb back up to finish. All that while keeping a consistent SPI. And there is more; you must do it as quickly as possible. I screwed up during the r28 thinking the average watts being displayed were for that split only so I ended up a few beats slower than the target. Warmed up with :30 on / :30 rest for 10 minutes, working up to a r30 during the last two rounds.