UT1/UT2 steady state is not your "easy" day

[@sarahfitts-romig1702]

Great information. I'm loving the day on, day off concept. It is working for me very nicely.

[@kassu1134]

These videos are golden. I managed to burn myself out badly in C2 and it took three years to get back for rowing. First year was horrible, wish could do things differently. Now just ergin zone 2 so can now if nervous system is okay or not. Wish had Travis knowledge back then!

[@TravisGardner]

Forget the past! Only the present and future matter :) Glad you've found your way!

[@ianbarnett6027]

Very interesting. Great video.

[@yinghemeiwang539]

subscribed.Thanks for the info! Would training upper body in gym on de-load days effect the efficiency?

[@TravisGardner]

It would depend on what you're doing exactly. Unless you're training like a body builder or power lifter you should be fine.

[@yinghemeiwang539]

@ Gotcha!! Thanks a lot

[@0liw00d]

Hello Travis. First of all, thank you for the great content you share. I have a question regarding a specific rowing workout we were asked to do regurlarly at uni (in the uk): 30' @ rate 20spm (with max intensity). How would you assess this workout and do you regard this as usefull for a recreational rower? We used to do this once a week on the erg during the winter and it's definitely not UT2 effort. If im going as hard as i can through the whole piece i usually end up at my max HR. I really like this workout even though it's max effort but i wonder wether it may not lead to bad habits and bad form ( tendancy to overload at the catch for me) and thus maybe not do it so frequently. Thanks!

[@TravisGardner]

Hi Olivier, thanks for the question. I've seen this workout referenced by many athletes and while I understand the function of it, I would generally not use it myself. (mainly because there are better way to accomplish what it is doing). 30 min rate 20 max effort will put most athletes in UT1 for the majority of the time, crossing into AT sometime after 20'. The low stroke rate is going to emphasis a very strong leg drive which has it's usefulness, but I'd argue this could be achieved with better results with other workouts (kzbin.info/www/bejne/emnKlGOAqs2Las0 being one, doing AT 4-6 beats lower than normal is the other). I would definitely not suggest this for a recreational athlete, especially one that prefers to pound rather than tap along at race effort. This workout will simply reinforce that bad habit. It will also lead to injury if an athlete is technically weak (especially in the back - anytime you are rowing a low rate max effort the back is a risk from poor technique). If you like it, and you've been a high performance athlete in the past, I think you'd be fine doing this once every 1-2 months to help measure progress. It will highlight improvements in aerobic endurance, threshold, and muscular power.

[@joshuagilfillan5084]

Is heart rate variability a good indicator of recovery?

[@TravisGardner]

I don't know enough about it to comment with any authority.

[@AxelPRC]

PREACH!!!!!

[@conorbrown1782]

Would it be disadvantageous to do weights on a de-load day, or should it be done on a load day?

[@TravisGardner]

hi Conor, it depends on the session type. There are as many weight workouts as there are for rowing. I usually do strength on my unloading days but then again I'm not doing cross fit type circuits. I generally lift for either light conditioning or max strength and there is plenty of rest between sets in both instances.