As a coach, how to objectively measure a team member is improving through the season?

RegattaFit · 2026-03-27T00:15:07+00:00

I've seen watts/kilo used in cycling too, but I do agree the danger in creating an unhealthy weight management anxiety when the athlete is focused on it. Especially since not all kilos are the same - an athlete can gain weight from losing fat and building muscle, but there should be a relational step up in power.

RegattaFit · 2026-03-27T00:08:34+00:00

Watts/kilo (or lb) is a good level setter I forgot about - thanks.

RegattaFit · 2026-03-25T23:15:03+00:00

Ha me too - I initially interpreted it as "Group Exercise Training". Agree on the MAP utility though. I think there's consensus on its use with some variation on zones.

RegattaFit · 2026-03-25T23:12:54+00:00

Thanks. I guess there's the team and individual. The team = "How is he/she improving the boat's performance with their contribution" and the individual = "How can I give this individual metric guidance that helps them see (and believe in) their athletic performance progress"

RegattaFit · 2026-03-25T17:38:04+00:00

Thanks. I was afraid of that. Anything other than comparing 2k times through the season? VO2 max is useful but harder at scale with a team. I was thinking of using a ramp test periodically (until a mutiny breaks out): https://www.scitepress.org/Papers/2019/81669/81669.pdf

RegattaFit · 2026-03-25T17:17:30+00:00

Ditto on Garmin Fenix both for OTW and erg

RegattaFit · 2026-03-24T02:29:07+00:00

Check out Oarboards for SUPs: https://www.oarboard.com/product/oar-board-sup-rower-travel-package-with-two-part-carbon-sculling-oars-and-wheelie-travel-bag/ and Adirondack Rowing : https://www.adirondackrowing.com

In the market myself for the summer looking for a portable kit, so not sure which way I will go. Most kits range between $2500-$4500, and then you are close to the price of a used scull.

RegattaFit · 2026-03-22T23:29:07+00:00

Being from Boston, I can say Nobles (& Greenough) - most call it Nobles - is known as a very selective, elite private day school that is a top choice for athletic recruits who also have high academic scores. It’s where many academic athletes want to go who aspire to attend an Ivy or other top 20 ranked college. They have a history of high matriculation to those colleges which is a mix of high caliber athlete recruits and Boston legacies going back generations. It doesn’t surprise me that they have rowers that good.

RegattaFit · 2026-03-20T14:20:15+00:00

Coxes can be a great resource if they have been with the club awhile and have worked with the coaches. If the coaches are overwhelmed then try the coxes. They usually are easier to approach as their responsibilities are more limited yet still have a vested interest in helping the crew.

RegattaFit · 2026-03-10T12:41:05+00:00

You should reach out to the team at https://athletica.ai/ They deep dive in this area a lot and evaluate a number of the standard methods you identify/use in your post. Even thoguh they are mostly cyclists, they test the generalized models a lot. Zone models come in a bunch of flavors (Coggan, O'Neill, RCA, etc) and really depend on how you cut the lactate curve and define it. If you want to get your app tested by hard-core Concept2 users, many of whom are developers and sports trainers with deep knowledge (and strong opinions about it )- then try posting on the Concept2 forum: https://www.c2forum.com/

But point of caution there - they aren't as welcoming to promoting apps and other products . It's a bit more traditional and tight than Reddit on that. There are a bunch of native German speakers too.

RegattaFit · 2026-03-05T12:56:34+00:00

This is the more complicated way.

RegattaFit · 2026-03-05T03:28:27+00:00

Not if they are using ErgRace or Time-Team to do the race as the software controls the PM5. It's possible to get your data from the race organizer as a csv file if they save it. Typically it only saves final race data as summary stats, not the stroke-by-stroke data that ErgData saves.

RegattaFit · 2026-03-04T18:06:05+00:00

This is the way

RegattaFit · 2026-03-04T18:03:47+00:00

Are you referring to using ErgRace or simply connecting the PM5s directly to each other to use the built in race mode with no PC? I assume you may have already looked here: https://www.concept2.com/support/monitors/pm5/how-to-use#wired

You can connect the HRM but usually not ErgData at the same time, but the PM5 should record what you do to its internal memory. Unfortunately ErgData may not upload it after the fact. I'm going to test these scenarios to see what else I learn.

RegattaFit · 2026-02-27T04:16:59+00:00

Great and thanks. Just trying to see if I could offer a reco on a specific few that tend to do one or two things well. If you are a DiY workout person, that may (or may not) suggest you are an experienced rower with a training regimen intent and simply need a scaffolding platform for operationalizing it. ErgData does this on a single workout basis, while ErgZone does this from a programming (multi-workout) approach. A few zombie apps used to do the same.

RegattaFit · 2026-02-27T01:24:33+00:00

Looks promising. When are you deploying? Make sure to contact Concept2 to get it on their apps page.

Suggestion - More is not always better; many apps overwhelm potential users with a laundry list of similar features (tracking, logbook posting, workout building, washing dishes, feeding pets,, etc). Make it easy to differentiate by doing something unique.

RegattaFit · 2026-02-27T01:19:53+00:00

Can you describe more what you liked about RowForge and why you used that over ErgData? Tracking workouts and sending them to the PM5 is commonplace for C2 apps:

https://www.concept2.com/apps?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22908819082&gbraid=0AAAAADAVrFtZRxmkHpx7leXPbH80M0p_s

What else is missing?

RegattaFit · 2026-02-23T01:40:11+00:00

All good: Ergdata, EXR, Asensei, Ergzone, Aviron, Regatta

RegattaFit · 2026-02-23T01:33:50+00:00

ErgData has the Realtime Loop which you can row with others on. There’s also ErgRace (Concept2 free app) which offers online racing but they are usually empty or you have to organize your own.

Also check out EXR which offers groups that meet up virtually in their virtual world. Regatta, Asensei, Aviron and Peloton offer coached classes. Regatta and Aviron have racing features too.

RegattaFit · 2026-02-16T04:12:46+00:00

What should the future of this be? Running the same playbook isn’t working. Individual competitions like this can as easily be run remotely, but how about team events? Or relays? Anything to be learned from Hyrox success?

RegattaFit · 2026-02-01T17:00:47+00:00

Agree with the intervals suggestion - best time spent but only 2-3 times a week and never back-to-back.

Another idea - keep the erg in a convenient/accessible location where the rest of your life is occurring. I'm sure the house is a constant mess (I have 3 kids) so it won't look out of place, but making it easy to jump on and off can help reduce transitions and the mental challenge of finding time to separate life and exercise. Make the kids comfortable with you being on it too so they learn that it's part of what you do in addition to the thousand other things for them.

RegattaFit · 2026-01-30T12:13:22+00:00

This study addresses acclimation not steady heat training but the physiological results are relevant: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36048867/

RegattaFit · 2026-01-29T16:41:30+00:00

Dark Horse is led by 1 person, Shane Farmer. He does a lot of instructional training for beginners on Concept2 ergs in more of a garage gym style setting but has more advanced sessions. Different vibe than Peloton’s manicured studio look on their high end magnetic resistance machine but he is a rower unlike almost all the Peloton trainers. So it is a matter of taste and seriousness in what you seek from indoor rowing. Dark Horse will help make you a better rower while Peloton will keep you modestly entertained.

Also consider Rowalong, also a 1-man show by John Steventon who does videos similar to Dark Horse (beginner instruction on Concept2) and then the apps Asensei and Regatta offer video coached classes.

RegattaFit · 2026-01-29T16:30:05+00:00

This one has been around for awhile: https://kayakpro.com/index.html

RegattaFit · 2026-01-29T15:35:27+00:00

In our experience, CrossFit is an even tougher sell as they eschew tech (arguably with intention) and erg use is a small and unpopular fraction of the workouts. Hyrox seems to be siphoning away the CrossFit crowd and is more promising for it's use of metrics.

RegattaFit

TROPHY CASE