Just 30 mins a day?

[aussieluke]

At the start of this thread Luke asks whether anyone else has followed a simple programme based on 30 minutes training per day. The answer to that question is undoubtedly yes.

The broader question. perhaps, is what can I expect from training 30 minutes per day? Or, can I maintain sub 7 form on 30 minutes training per day?

The answer depends a lot on your natural ability and what training can do to improve that. Age will also be another factor.

A few years ago I was in a similar position and only had time to row around 40 minutes per day max. I was active but not especially fit when I started out. When I started I hadn't been erging for more than 12 months.

I developed a programme based around rowing 10K in a variety of ways: negative split, 2K easy/2K hard, 1K easy/1K hard, easy start/hard middle/easy finish etc. Every Friday I would row a 30 minute piece at 24 spm. Apart from the 30 minute piece I rowed everything as a "Just Row".

My target was to row >8000m in 30 mins at 24 spm, which I did. I didn't row a 2K at the time but for sure with that 30 mins sub 7:00 was possible. (I will try to find the logcard that coincides with this period and add more detail if I can.)

I can also add that my first ever sub 7 was on the back of the 40 min fitness programme from the UK site. This is often overlooked but it's good HR plan that borrows from the IP.

Great stuff, Roy. Thanks!

[aussieluke]

I'm joining this party a little bit late, but I really like the idea of trying to come up with a 30 minute a day plan that optimizes the time that you spend.

I agree with the people that have voiced the need for some intensity as part of it. I also think that the variety would keep things interesting. Here's my idea.

It's the "Micro Plan"

A three week cycle. With 4 "hard" days and 3 easy days.
The hard days are intended to provide a weekly balance of power, threshold work, and enough lighter work to facilitate recovery and maintain aerobic endurance.
Start off with a 2K test just to get yourself calibrated.

Here's the sequence

- Power day: 10' warmup, 3 x ( 5 x 15" hard! / 45" paddle) / 2' rest
- Easy day: 30 minute row at a moderate pace. If you use HR, stay below 75% HRR. If you don't use HR, do it at about 55% to 60% of 2k test watts
- Short interval day - cycle between these workouts
-- 7x2'/3' rest (14' work / 18' rest = 32')
-- 5x3'/4' rest (15' work / 16' rest = 31')
-- 4x4'/5' rest (16' work / 15' rest = 31')
- Easy day: 30 minute row at a moderate pace. If you use HR, stay below 75% HRR. If you don't use HR, do it at about 55% to 60% of 2k test watts
-Long Interval day
-- 4x6'/2'rest
-- 3x8'/3'rest
-- 6'/7'/8' w/4' rest
- Easy day: 30 minute row at a moderate pace. If you use HR, stay below 75% HRR. If you don't use HR, do it at about 55% to 60% of 2k test watts
- Hard Distance Day: 30 minutes, no rate cap. (can substitute a hard 30R20 depending on your mood)

What do you think?

Thanks Greg, some great ideas in there!

Definitely like the idea of some easy days, some hard days, and some intervals days.

Also guess there's no reason I couldn't do the classic 8x500m / 2:00r and 4 x 1000m sessions too

But also like the idea of simplifying it by time based intervals - 7x2', 4x4' etc

[G-dub]

[quote Ireland beat the All Blacks for the first time in 111 years last night in Chicago!! - matched the Cubs)

Lindsay, I was at the game. Greatness

[maestroak]

Steve who uses the Maestoke handle (or something like that) would say it works. And he does (or did) it all at pretty much hard r 20. Has some good times to show for it. I think it depends on goals. Like it seems like you want to stay fit, enjoy your life, and push yourself a little. 30 quality minutes should provide that. There is a book that I'd for read for running that uses a 3 quality session format with cross training thrown in and it has one HIIT session for speed, one hard r20 type session for strength and one long session for aerobics. That would seem to cover the systems well. Throw in a run or two and weights and you should do great.

Yeah, my training has centered around that number for years. I went through a period of doing longer pieces, but I think for me it was diminishing returns. In fact I even backed off a bit more and started doing 25 minutes pieces during the week and 10Ks on the weekend. I travel so much even that isn't consistent. For awhile now I've just been doing it all at just under 2:00/500 at about 25/26 spm. I messed around with other things as you point out, I did r20 for a million meters at that same pace. I also pushed harder than 2:00 pace for awhile rowing like 1:56 for my 30 min pieces. At the end of the day, I started to feel like it was overkill. I wasn't getting any noticeable gain and was definitely overtraining sometimes. I think my best 2K is behind me so for now there is not much motivating me to make incremental improvement. Still confident I can pull a sub7, which as Jim points out is pretty good and I'll take that until I find some new motivation.

-Steve

[aussieluke]

Very interesting thanks Steve!

Did you do any interval work at all?

I think I need to be pushing a little harder and not really be doing much work below 2:00 pace / 200w

...ideally like to build my power and be doing at least 10w/stroke most, if not all of the time.

[hjs]

Re 30 min a day.

Paul Smith used the 8k 10 meter per stroke method. This means higher rate and pace. Almost everything strapless and every session with speedbumps.
Paces based on a 1min on/off test to failier. A few guys did very well on this. And got hammers in Boston.

Nothing slow, no low rate, nothing long, seldom strapped in. Basedwork is 8k 10 10 mps with "bumps"

[aussieluke]

Re 30 min a day.

Paul Smith used the 8k 10 meter per stroke method. This means higher rate and pace. Almost everything strapless and every session with speedbumps.
Paces based on a 1min on/off test to failier. A few guys did very well on this. And got hammers in Boston.

Nothing slow, no low rate, nothing long, seldom strapped in. Basedwork is 8k 10 10 mps with "bumps"

What are speed bumps?

[lindsayh]

Nothing slow, no low rate, nothing long, seldom strapped in. Basedwork is 8k 10 10 mps with "bumps"

What are speed bumps?

You would do 700,750 or 800m @a base rate and then harder for the rest up to 1000m then straight back to base again. Set up as 1000m/0'R worked for me then say set off @1:55 for 800 then 1:45 for the 200m, then repeat. Paul Smith set 8km as the distance and varied the length of the faster "bump" a little. Can get seriously hard but quite a bit of "fun" - very effective/good session for some as Henry describes. PS was also very prescriptive about 10MPS.

[hjs]

Re 30 min a day.

Paul Smith used the 8k 10 meter per stroke method. This means higher rate and pace. Almost everything strapless and every session with speedbumps.
Paces based on a 1min on/off test to failier. A few guys did very well on this. And got hammers in Boston.

Nothing slow, no low rate, nothing long, seldom strapped in. Basedwork is 8k 10 10 mps with "bumps"

What are speed bumps?

Faster pieces. Things like 800 m base pace, 200 faster, but still at 10 mps, later on in the season faster and 9 spm.

[MarkEg]

What dictates the base/ faster pace in these?

[hjs]

What dictates the base/ faster pace in these?

Don,t remember the details, but base test was 1 min on/off test. Starting easy say 2.00 and speeding up 1 second per rep, this untill you failed twice. Say you got 142, that was the base outcome. Don,t know how was converted to daily training.
Paul Smith still has a site, he also invented the seasbreeze.

That test was also strapless and 10 mps. So 2.00 is rate 25. 1.45 is rate 30 etc..

[gooseflight]

Paces based on a 1min on/off test to failier.

One of my 10K variants was to negative split a 10K by 1 sec every 1K from a starting pace where failure was 'guaranteed' at 4K. 5 min rest then 4K restart at failure +2 secs and negative split remaining 1Ks by 1sec to finish. (All at R24 in my case.)

It was never dull.

[maestroak]

Very interesting thanks Steve!

Did you do any interval work at all?

I think I need to be pushing a little harder and not really be doing much work below 2:00 pace / 200w

...ideally like to build my power and be doing at least 10w/stroke most, if not all of the time.

Yes, I messed with intervals for awhile but I have trouble with real rest periods so mine kind of varied. Whenever I did rest I made sure the overall piece was still under 2:00/500m, so my rests were usually like a 2:10 or something. Then other times my "rest" would just be a 2:00/500 pace and I'd go harder otherwise. I recall a thread where someone asked about the one workout you'd do if you could only do one and someone mentioned a reasonable pace workout followed by a sprint at the end. To that end, for awhile I would do my 30 min piece (just over 7500m) and then do a 2666m piece, which was 4x500 with 1' rest in between. Paces for the 500ms were 1:57, 1:54, 1:51, 1:48 and the 666m "tail" was all out, ideally sub 1:45. I think for real bang for your buck on limited time, maybe a 5K @ 2:00/500 and then one of those would work.

-Steve

[Anth_F]

Just wanted to chime in and say, this has turned into a very informative thread. Soaking up all this useful info you guys are contributing

Just one of the many reasons i love visiting this place!

[TomR]

Paces based on a 1min on/off test to failier.

One of my 10K variants was to negative split a 10K by 1 sec every 1K from a starting pace where failure was 'guaranteed' at 4K. 5 min rest then 4K restart at failure +2 secs and negative split remaining 1Ks by 1sec to finish. (All at R24 in my case.)

It was never dull.

That sounds like a miserable experience. Why would you do that?

Did you cut fresh switches after the workout and flay your back?

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