5k work in 2-3 weeks

[bloomp]

I've been working on my 5k (that's what my coach wants us to row), and at our last test I pulled a 19:58.8, which is down about 20 seconds from my last test. I really want to get about a 19:30.

I'm 5'8 and 143 pounds, and for the past two weeks (my last test was on monday), I'd been doing long, aerobic pieces. Typically I'd do 30 minutes at a 2:04-2:05, sometimes a 40 minute piece at a 2:05-2:06, and the other week I did an hour at a 2:06 (which made me really happy). All of this is after rowing in the morning.

Should I keep working on the aerobic side? Or do more interval stuff? Typically when I pull a 5k I do about a 1:56 for the first 500, 1:58 for the second then just level out to a 2:01 for the next 3500 meters, then drop the average to about 1:55 for the last 500.

I have the time, motivation and energy to do whatever, and really wanna pull a faster time when we test for Head of the Charles in a few weeks.

[Nosmo]

..... All of this is after rowing in the morning.
Should I keep working on the aerobic side? Or do more interval stuff?

This really depends on what you do on the water! Talk to your coach. Most importantly you don't want to over train. If you are not doing many intervals then I would recommend 4x2000m with 7 minute rest and 4x1000m with 4'-5' rest. Don't do intervals more then 2 days a week. If you are doing intervals OTW then what you are doing sounds reasonable.

Typically when I pull a 5k I do about a 1:56 for the first 500, 1:58 for the second then just level out to a 2:01 for the next 3500 meters, then drop the average to about 1:55 for the last 500.

DON"T DO IT THIS WAY! This is not how you get a good time. You are going into debt in the first 1K. It is much better both phsycologically and physiologically to increase the pace as you go.
Do the first 500 at a 2:02: Try not to get ANY strokes under 2:00 and that includes the start. Do the next 1K at a 2:01-2:00. From here on in SLOWLY bring up the pace if you feel OK, if not just hold the 2:00 pace.
IF you do feel good, hold around a 1:59 for then next 1K, perhaps as fast as 1:58 towards the end of that 1K. Hold 1:58 -1:57 until 1000 to go and then speed up if you can. You will likely do the last two 500s at sub 1:55. If you can do this you will get your 19:30.
If you do not feel good at the half way just hold the pace you will still beat your 19:58.
If you do this the first 2K will feel relatively easy. You should be either holding the pace or getting faster and faster as the test goes on. It is much much easier to see your expected time get faster then it is to try to hold on. You should be wondering how much faster you can go, not if you can finish or not.

Finally warm up well. 4K minimum preferably 5 or 6K. For the warm up, start with a power 10 at 20 spm. Then every 500m or so do more power stokes slowly increasing the number of stroke and rating. SO the next time may be 12 strokes at 22, then 15 strokes at 24, then 20 strokes at 26. Get this up to your race pace--1:57 for 25-35 strokes. Row easy between the power strokes--something like a 2:30 pace. Make sure you are relaxed and not breathing hard before you start each of these. Finally get one 500m effort in at about a 1:57, followed by at least 500m easy. You want to finish this 5-10 minutes before your erg test. This may seem like a lot but it will really help.

[ThatMoos3Guy]

Based on your splits, especially your hour, I would definitely try and work in some speed work. For comparison my 5k is around 18:45, and I normally pull around 2:00-2:02 for 30 minutes if I'm doing steady state. A part of that is definitely that I need to work on my aerobic work, combined with the fact I hate sitting on the erg for more than 20 minutes.

You're pacing should also help drop a couple seconds. As Nosmo said, you really want to ease into a 5k. I like starting off at my pace, and then easing off for a little while. I never like getting too far away from my target split, because I'm paranoid that I'll fall off it. After about 500m I like to start taking it down to my target. I try and hold it there for the next 4k. Last 500m I start taking it down and go all out for that last minute.

Some workouts I like are 10x500m with a 1 minute rest, paced a few seconds faster than your goal. 5x1500m with a 4 minute rest, at 5k pace and 4x2000m with a 5-6 minute rest at about 1 second off your target pace. Some other good intervals are pyramids. I like to cycle my intervals from week to week so that I can always improve by a few seconds.

Importantly, because you're on the water. Make sure not to work too much, when in doubt take it easy. I know you want to do a lot of work to pull that time down, but you'll only hurt yourself in the long run, either through injury or burnout.

Good luck getting that time down!

[bloomp]

Thanks!

Yeah I usually rest one day a week (typically the race day and the 24 hours before my race and 12 hours afterwards). But I also was reading over the Wolverine Plan (found it somewhere else), and decided to start working stuff from that into my erging. I will definitely do at least one interval a week though, I like the default 1/2/3/4/3/2/1 but I'll see what else works well.

How should I pace myself for the 4x2000?

Also, I know I'm really light for a college rower, would it hurt to lift a little bit or not? I do enjoy my trim figure and all

So yeah, thanks again

[ThatMoos3Guy]

I'm not sure if your school has lightweight class, but at 143 I feel that it can't hurt to lift. To a certain degree the more muscle you have the more you can pull with. However, with this many workouts you're going to start running the risk of burning out, and lifting is not going to have an immediate impact on your 5k time. It's also incredibly hard to gain weight when you're rowing/erging twice a day and lifting a few times a week.

I would either wait till the season is dying down, and replace some of the erging with lifting, or wait till the fall season is over and start bulking then.

[Nosmo]

How should I pace myself for the 4x2000?

Most people can do 4x2K at just about the same average pace as your 5K test (within a half second). As such it is a really good indicator of where you are without having to do a test and without the resultant fatigue. So pace it just like the 5K: first interval do like the first 2k of your 5K pace, then next pace like you would do the second and third 1000s, next like the 3rd and forth, and the last one like the final 2k of your 5K test. Make sure your rest interval is long enough. At least 6 minutes, preferably 7 or 8. Do active recovery for most of the interval. Do a start on each interval with the fly wheel stopped. This will give you practice controlling the start--do not get any strokes more then two seconds faster then your target on the start! Better yet don't go above your target pace. The first few strokes will not make any difference when averaged over the 200+ strokes of each 2K so don't hit it hard at the beginning.

Also do the same warm up for these as you would for your 5K test. The first two intervals should be about the same level of effort. If your second 2K is easier then the first you did not warm up enough.

I like the default 1/2/3/4/3/2/1 but I'll see what else works well.
What do you mean by this? Don't know this sequence as part of the Wolverine Plan unless you mean the 250, 500, 750, 1000, 750, 500, 250 level 1 sequences.

[bloomp]

Thanks again to everyone!

Well, by the 1/2/3/4/3/2/1 it's basically that 250/500/750/... piece, but it's time instead of distance. It's one of the custom workouts on the PM3 (and maybe PM4?).

I'll do that 4x2k then, it sounds like a good way to settle into my 5k time.

Also, unfortunately, there's really no division between heavy and lightweight at my school, but I'm the lightest by ten pounds and I have a couple inches on some people. Once our fall season is over after Syracuse, I'll add a little lifting in.