Beyond Just Row (or Just Ski)

One of the great things about the Concept2 Performance Monitor (PM) is that you don’t have to push any buttons or preset any workout, and it will just come on automatically when you take your first stroke. It will display your output on every stroke, it will keep track of your time and meters, and it will save your workout in memory—and you don’t have to push any buttons at all!

But don't let the temptation to “Just Row” or “Just Ski” put you in a workout rut. I, for one, am guilty of this. I almost always row or ski in “Just Row” or “Just Ski” mode. Take advantage of the many other capabilities of the PM!

Here are a couple of the great reasons to use other features of the PM, along with step-by-step instructions.

Preset Time or Distance

This simple feature can be a great way to keep your exercise on track. If you preset the time or distance you want to go, it’s much harder to stop a little early! The PM will count down your minutes or meters, which provides additional motivation to get to zero. Plus, when you see the numbers getting closer to zero, it’s hard to resist the temptation to pull a little harder in order to finish stronger. All good!

• From the Main menu, choose Select Workout.
• Select New Workout.
• Select your choice of Single Distance or Single Time or Single Calorie.
• Choose plus or minus to increase/decrease the values as needed. Choose the right and left arrows to navigate through the various digits.
• Select the checkmark icon to save the workout.
• Start rowing (or skiing).

The PM will count down to zero and display your final results at the end of the workout.

Intervals

An interval workout consists of alternating periods of work and recovery. There are many good reasons to do interval workouts. They add variety and interest to your training. They help you learn to build intensity. They have been shown to be very effective at improving fitness for all ages. They can give you a good workout in a short time. Intervals can be defined in terms of either distance or time. Because there are many many options for intervals, we will use one example to teach you the set up. 40 seconds work, 20 seconds recovery.

1. From the Main Menu, choose Select Workout.
2. Select New Workout.
3. Select Intervals.
4. Choose Intervals: Time.
5. Choose plus or minus to increase/decrease the value to :40.
6. Choose the right and left arrows to navigate through the various digits. Choose plus or minus to increase/decrease the value of your rest time to :20.
7. Select the checkmark icon to save the workout.
8. Start rowing (or skiing). The PM will keep a count of your intervals.

Do 10 of them, then take a break. Follow with another set of 6–10 if you’re feeling up for it. The possibilities for these workouts are almost endless—use your imagination. You’ll also find ideas in the Training section of our website and in the Workout of the Day.