Our LIVE WEBCAM on www.GoRow.com
XENO
Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.
Jun 16, 2005
Jun 11, 2005
A mom tells us about her discovery of Indoor Rowing.
Somewhere around 54 years old and 54 pounds too heavy I thought it
would be a good idea to erg just for some extra exercise. Actually just
bending over and tying my shoelaces before erging was enough to make me
want to sit down. For months I'd been hearing the spinning of the
Concept2 and the beat of the music as my son worked out in the
evenings. Xeno had mentioned the online competition but that really
didn't mean anything to me. Not then anyway. I took my first spin
during the day when nobody was around. A whole 500 meters later I was
exhausted. While logging on for the first time I slightly edged out
Christopher, Xeno's 3-year-old son. A girlfriend of mine had been
logging her mileage with the Iron Oarsman team and she was thousands of
meters ahead. For the next couple days I kept up the 500 meter pace
until my son came in and wryly observed my technique. After a few
helpful pointers, and a few more, he helped me balance what I was
doing. (Now I see him coming and automatically sit up straighter.) By
then I was becoming competitive - just for fun I wanted to catch up
with my friend. So I started erging in the early morning, at lunch,
during television commercials, and before I went to bed. The dog
couldn't understand why I wasn't throwing the ball as much for him
anymore, the dishes didn't always get done, and the wash kept piling
up. Every time I logged on my miles, I checked to see how far my friend
had gone. If she went 2000 meters, I went 1999 meters. A month later I
had logged on 186,000 meters and driven my friend crazy - she's even
more competitive than I am. One evening while she was on the erg at
their home, her son came in around 7:30 p.m. and said he was hungry.
Through gritted teeth she said "Not until I'm done!" It was then she
realized we had become obsessive about our exercise rivalry. So we're
back to erging for our own personal best. I figure by next May 1st
we're going to be in way better shape than we are right now. I'd like
to be able to say then that I'm 55 and 55 pounds lighter...
would be a good idea to erg just for some extra exercise. Actually just
bending over and tying my shoelaces before erging was enough to make me
want to sit down. For months I'd been hearing the spinning of the
Concept2 and the beat of the music as my son worked out in the
evenings. Xeno had mentioned the online competition but that really
didn't mean anything to me. Not then anyway. I took my first spin
during the day when nobody was around. A whole 500 meters later I was
exhausted. While logging on for the first time I slightly edged out
Christopher, Xeno's 3-year-old son. A girlfriend of mine had been
logging her mileage with the Iron Oarsman team and she was thousands of
meters ahead. For the next couple days I kept up the 500 meter pace
until my son came in and wryly observed my technique. After a few
helpful pointers, and a few more, he helped me balance what I was
doing. (Now I see him coming and automatically sit up straighter.) By
then I was becoming competitive - just for fun I wanted to catch up
with my friend. So I started erging in the early morning, at lunch,
during television commercials, and before I went to bed. The dog
couldn't understand why I wasn't throwing the ball as much for him
anymore, the dishes didn't always get done, and the wash kept piling
up. Every time I logged on my miles, I checked to see how far my friend
had gone. If she went 2000 meters, I went 1999 meters. A month later I
had logged on 186,000 meters and driven my friend crazy - she's even
more competitive than I am. One evening while she was on the erg at
their home, her son came in around 7:30 p.m. and said he was hungry.
Through gritted teeth she said "Not until I'm done!" It was then she
realized we had become obsessive about our exercise rivalry. So we're
back to erging for our own personal best. I figure by next May 1st
we're going to be in way better shape than we are right now. I'd like
to be able to say then that I'm 55 and 55 pounds lighter...
Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.
Jun 10, 2005
Indoor Rowing Fundraiser Pittsburgh Gazette
News briefs
Monday, January 22, 2001
CITY
DOWNTOWN
Rowing fund-raiser set
On Jan. 31, one man will challenge teams of four people in a one-hour rowing fund-raiser to benefit the Western Pennsylvania Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.
The 10th annual Indoor Rowing Challenge, sponsored by the Executive Fitness Center at the Westin Convention Center Pittsburgh (formerly Doubletree Hotel), will begin at noon in the hotel lobby.
Chris Gibson, founder of the event and manager of the Executive Fitness Center, will compete against the four-person teams. Gibson held the world record from 1994 to 1999 of 16,623 meters in one hour for the over-40 lightweight male division.
Rowers will use rowing machines, with each team member rowing for 15-minute segments for a total of one hour. At the conclusion, the total number of meters rowed by each team will be measured and compared.
Last year's Challenge drew 66 rowers from companies, fitness centers, rowing clubs, and high schools.
More than $10,000 was raised last year, bringing the total fund raising of the event up to $43,000 since its inception.
The entry fee is $250. Participants will receive a T-shirt and both individual and team prizes will be presented.
Call Joe Natoli at 412-288-6957 or Gibson at 412-560-6406 for details.
Monday, January 22, 2001
CITY
DOWNTOWN
Rowing fund-raiser set
On Jan. 31, one man will challenge teams of four people in a one-hour rowing fund-raiser to benefit the Western Pennsylvania Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.
The 10th annual Indoor Rowing Challenge, sponsored by the Executive Fitness Center at the Westin Convention Center Pittsburgh (formerly Doubletree Hotel), will begin at noon in the hotel lobby.
Chris Gibson, founder of the event and manager of the Executive Fitness Center, will compete against the four-person teams. Gibson held the world record from 1994 to 1999 of 16,623 meters in one hour for the over-40 lightweight male division.
Rowers will use rowing machines, with each team member rowing for 15-minute segments for a total of one hour. At the conclusion, the total number of meters rowed by each team will be measured and compared.
Last year's Challenge drew 66 rowers from companies, fitness centers, rowing clubs, and high schools.
More than $10,000 was raised last year, bringing the total fund raising of the event up to $43,000 since its inception.
The entry fee is $250. Participants will receive a T-shirt and both individual and team prizes will be presented.
Call Joe Natoli at 412-288-6957 or Gibson at 412-560-6406 for details.
Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.
Jun 6, 2005
VO2max article I thought was interesting to post
The Bike Doc: The ins and outs of VO2max
By By Shannon Sovndal, M.D. and Owen Murphy, M.S.
This report filed June 6, 2005
Riding fast is a matter of natural ability, training and desire. All three factors play an important role in keeping the big ring spinning. When discussing natural ability, many people throw around the term "VO2max," which means maximum oxygen consumption. Many of our clients can recite the definition of VO2max, but few have a good grasp of what VO2max really means. To help clarify things, we will be writing a two part series of basic exercise physiology articles. Today is the first installment and will cover VO2max. Next week, we'll jump into the world of lactate threshold (LT).
VO2max?
Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) is the maximum amount of oxygen that can be used by the body for maximal sustained power output (exercise). Since the body uses oxygen to convert food into energy (ATP), the more oxygen you can consume, the more energy, power, or speed you can produce. VO2max defines an endurance athlete's performance ceiling, or the size of his or her "engine." Research has shown that VO2max significantly determines performance in endurance-based events such as cycling, triathlon, running, and Nordic skiing.
Remember, however, that VO2max is only one piece of the rider's performance puzzle. Ability to perform in a race also depends on lactate threshold, appropriate peaking, nutrition and tactics (to name just a few).
Let's return to the "engine" analogy. If we were to race two cars, one a dragster with a large engine and the second a stock car with a much smaller engine, which one would win? You can't say. If we raced them a quarter mile down a drag strip, the dragster with a larger engine would win. However, if we raced them 400 miles, the stock car would win even with a smaller engine. Why? The dragster may be fast for short bursts, but it can't maintain its speed for an extended period of time. The same is true with two cyclists. If Bill had a high VO2max but a moderate LT, and Tom had a moderate VO2max but a ridiculously high LT, Tom would likely find himself victorious in a head to head race up L'Alpe d'Huez. Although Bill has a higher VO2max, Tom can maintain a higher workload for a longer period of time. We'll elaborate on this more next week when we discuss lactate threshold.
How is VO2 Max measured?
Many endurance athletes already have some idea of what a VO2max test entails: an incremental increase in exercise effort until the participant is unable to continue increasing his or her workload. The athlete can perform the test using any number of exercises: running, cycling, rowing, and even swimming. Because VO2max will vary between sports for various individuals, athletes will generally perform the test in his or her preferred sport. Regardless of the testing modality used, all the tests do the same thing. They take a happy-go-lucky individual and turn him or her into a grimacing, suffering, and most importantly, gasping test subject. As exercise intensity increases, a machine calculates oxygen consumption (VO2) by collecting and analyzing the test subject's inspired and expired air. With each incremental increase in power output by the athlete, more muscle mass is employed and more oxygen consumed. VO2 will thus increase linearly with exercise intensity until the body reaches its maximum ability to consume oxygen. At this point, oxygen consumption will level off, or plateau, when the subject reaches his or her VO2max.
Once the test analyzes the data, the athlete is given a numerical value of his or her VO2max. This number can be expressed in two forms. The first is called your absolute VO2max (liters O2/minute) and will likely fall between 3.0-6.0 l/min if you're male, and 2.5-4.5 l/min if you're female. The second is called your relative VO2max (milliliters O2/kilogram body weight/minute). For those who recall their science classes, the difference is in the units that follow the number. The relative VO2max takes into account the athlete's body weight, whereas absolute VO2max does not. You can, therefore, impress you friends by quickly increasing your relative VO2max by merely losing some weight!
There are a few requirements to have a useful and representative VO2max test:
The test must employ at least 50 percent of the test subject's total muscle mass. Sports such as cycling, running, swimming and Nordic skiing all qualify. (Note that VO2max values for cyclists are generally 5-10 percent lower than those of runners or Nordic skiers due to less active muscle mass being utilized.)
The test must be of sufficient duration to maximize cardiovascular responses. The length of suffering is usually 6-15 min.
Finally, a highly motivated individual must perform the test. (The more pain and suffering during the test, the better the data).
How do you measure up?
The following are examples of absolute and relative VO2max values of untrained, moderately trained, and elite aerobic individuals.
FEMALE
Training Status Untrained Trained Elite
Absolute(l/min) < 3.0 3.0- >3.0
Relative 26-42 40-60 55+
MALE
Training Status Untrained Trained Elite
Absolute(l/min) < 3.0 3.5- >4.0
Relative 36-52 50-70 60+
Source: Costill, D.L. and Wilmore, J.H. (1994). Cardiorespiratory Function and Performance. Physiology of Sport and Exercise. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Factors affecting VO2max
There are three primary factors that can affect VO2max: altitude, age and gender.
Altitude: An increase in altitude results in a decrease in air density and the partial pressure (or amount) of oxygen in the air. Therefore, you can expect a 5-7 percent loss in VO2max from sea level to 5,000 feet.
Age: Peak physiological function occurs at about 30 years of age. VO2max decreases approximately 30 percent between the ages of 20 and 65, with the greatest decline after age 40. However, decreases in VO2max can be extremely variable and can - at least partially - be offset by training.
Gender: In general, females tend to have lower VO2max values than males (15 percent to 20 percent less). This is primarily due to differences in body composition, hemoglobin content in the blood, and heart size. Females, on average, have a higher percentage of body fat, lower content of hemoglobin in their blood, and have a smaller adaptation of heart size in response to endurance and resistance training. It is important to note that these differences are "in general" - there are always exceptions.
What does it all mean?
Well, it depends on who you are and how much your have already been training when you take your VO2max test. Research has determined that approximately 80 percent of an individual's VO2max is genetically determined. Depending on your current training level, VO2max may be enhanced through progressive endurance training. Untrained individuals have the potential to increase their VO2max by 15-20 percent, but well-trained athletes are unlikely to realize an increase in VO2max of greater than 3-5 percent. So, if you've been training well for the past year and your VO2max is in the 50's, don't hold your breath to be the next Lance. The good news is that your lactate threshold is highly trainable, and elevating your LT will put the hurt on your friends or fellow racers. Since many elite athletes share comparable VO2max values, lactate threshold is often a better measure of fitness and endurance performance. And that is a perfect segue into our discussion next week....
Dr. Shannon Sovndal is a physician and coach with Thrive Health Fitness Medicine (www.thivehfm.com). He attended medical school at Columbia University in New York and completed his residency at Stanford University. Owen Murphy is a nutritionist and personal coach with Thrive HFM. He also teaches nutrition at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He has a Master's degree in Exercise Physiology and a passion for all things related to health and performance. Dr. Sovndal and Owen Murphy are available for any questions or comments at Shannon@thrivehfm.com and Owen@thrivehfm.com.
By By Shannon Sovndal, M.D. and Owen Murphy, M.S.
This report filed June 6, 2005
Riding fast is a matter of natural ability, training and desire. All three factors play an important role in keeping the big ring spinning. When discussing natural ability, many people throw around the term "VO2max," which means maximum oxygen consumption. Many of our clients can recite the definition of VO2max, but few have a good grasp of what VO2max really means. To help clarify things, we will be writing a two part series of basic exercise physiology articles. Today is the first installment and will cover VO2max. Next week, we'll jump into the world of lactate threshold (LT).
VO2max?
Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) is the maximum amount of oxygen that can be used by the body for maximal sustained power output (exercise). Since the body uses oxygen to convert food into energy (ATP), the more oxygen you can consume, the more energy, power, or speed you can produce. VO2max defines an endurance athlete's performance ceiling, or the size of his or her "engine." Research has shown that VO2max significantly determines performance in endurance-based events such as cycling, triathlon, running, and Nordic skiing.
Remember, however, that VO2max is only one piece of the rider's performance puzzle. Ability to perform in a race also depends on lactate threshold, appropriate peaking, nutrition and tactics (to name just a few).
Let's return to the "engine" analogy. If we were to race two cars, one a dragster with a large engine and the second a stock car with a much smaller engine, which one would win? You can't say. If we raced them a quarter mile down a drag strip, the dragster with a larger engine would win. However, if we raced them 400 miles, the stock car would win even with a smaller engine. Why? The dragster may be fast for short bursts, but it can't maintain its speed for an extended period of time. The same is true with two cyclists. If Bill had a high VO2max but a moderate LT, and Tom had a moderate VO2max but a ridiculously high LT, Tom would likely find himself victorious in a head to head race up L'Alpe d'Huez. Although Bill has a higher VO2max, Tom can maintain a higher workload for a longer period of time. We'll elaborate on this more next week when we discuss lactate threshold.
How is VO2 Max measured?
Many endurance athletes already have some idea of what a VO2max test entails: an incremental increase in exercise effort until the participant is unable to continue increasing his or her workload. The athlete can perform the test using any number of exercises: running, cycling, rowing, and even swimming. Because VO2max will vary between sports for various individuals, athletes will generally perform the test in his or her preferred sport. Regardless of the testing modality used, all the tests do the same thing. They take a happy-go-lucky individual and turn him or her into a grimacing, suffering, and most importantly, gasping test subject. As exercise intensity increases, a machine calculates oxygen consumption (VO2) by collecting and analyzing the test subject's inspired and expired air. With each incremental increase in power output by the athlete, more muscle mass is employed and more oxygen consumed. VO2 will thus increase linearly with exercise intensity until the body reaches its maximum ability to consume oxygen. At this point, oxygen consumption will level off, or plateau, when the subject reaches his or her VO2max.
Once the test analyzes the data, the athlete is given a numerical value of his or her VO2max. This number can be expressed in two forms. The first is called your absolute VO2max (liters O2/minute) and will likely fall between 3.0-6.0 l/min if you're male, and 2.5-4.5 l/min if you're female. The second is called your relative VO2max (milliliters O2/kilogram body weight/minute). For those who recall their science classes, the difference is in the units that follow the number. The relative VO2max takes into account the athlete's body weight, whereas absolute VO2max does not. You can, therefore, impress you friends by quickly increasing your relative VO2max by merely losing some weight!
There are a few requirements to have a useful and representative VO2max test:
The test must employ at least 50 percent of the test subject's total muscle mass. Sports such as cycling, running, swimming and Nordic skiing all qualify. (Note that VO2max values for cyclists are generally 5-10 percent lower than those of runners or Nordic skiers due to less active muscle mass being utilized.)
The test must be of sufficient duration to maximize cardiovascular responses. The length of suffering is usually 6-15 min.
Finally, a highly motivated individual must perform the test. (The more pain and suffering during the test, the better the data).
How do you measure up?
The following are examples of absolute and relative VO2max values of untrained, moderately trained, and elite aerobic individuals.
FEMALE
Training Status Untrained Trained Elite
Absolute(l/min) < 3.0 3.0- >3.0
Relative 26-42 40-60 55+
MALE
Training Status Untrained Trained Elite
Absolute(l/min) < 3.0 3.5- >4.0
Relative 36-52 50-70 60+
Source: Costill, D.L. and Wilmore, J.H. (1994). Cardiorespiratory Function and Performance. Physiology of Sport and Exercise. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Factors affecting VO2max
There are three primary factors that can affect VO2max: altitude, age and gender.
Altitude: An increase in altitude results in a decrease in air density and the partial pressure (or amount) of oxygen in the air. Therefore, you can expect a 5-7 percent loss in VO2max from sea level to 5,000 feet.
Age: Peak physiological function occurs at about 30 years of age. VO2max decreases approximately 30 percent between the ages of 20 and 65, with the greatest decline after age 40. However, decreases in VO2max can be extremely variable and can - at least partially - be offset by training.
Gender: In general, females tend to have lower VO2max values than males (15 percent to 20 percent less). This is primarily due to differences in body composition, hemoglobin content in the blood, and heart size. Females, on average, have a higher percentage of body fat, lower content of hemoglobin in their blood, and have a smaller adaptation of heart size in response to endurance and resistance training. It is important to note that these differences are "in general" - there are always exceptions.
What does it all mean?
Well, it depends on who you are and how much your have already been training when you take your VO2max test. Research has determined that approximately 80 percent of an individual's VO2max is genetically determined. Depending on your current training level, VO2max may be enhanced through progressive endurance training. Untrained individuals have the potential to increase their VO2max by 15-20 percent, but well-trained athletes are unlikely to realize an increase in VO2max of greater than 3-5 percent. So, if you've been training well for the past year and your VO2max is in the 50's, don't hold your breath to be the next Lance. The good news is that your lactate threshold is highly trainable, and elevating your LT will put the hurt on your friends or fellow racers. Since many elite athletes share comparable VO2max values, lactate threshold is often a better measure of fitness and endurance performance. And that is a perfect segue into our discussion next week....
Dr. Shannon Sovndal is a physician and coach with Thrive Health Fitness Medicine (www.thivehfm.com). He attended medical school at Columbia University in New York and completed his residency at Stanford University. Owen Murphy is a nutritionist and personal coach with Thrive HFM. He also teaches nutrition at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He has a Master's degree in Exercise Physiology and a passion for all things related to health and performance. Dr. Sovndal and Owen Murphy are available for any questions or comments at Shannon@thrivehfm.com and Owen@thrivehfm.com.
Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.
Jun 4, 2005
The DVD Indoor Rowing workouts work!
Hi Xeno,
I received the DVDs yesterday and just had time to view
the first one "Rowing with Xeno". I must say it's a great
workout DVD for indoor rowing users. You have made
a great contribution to the rowing user community. Thank you
very much for making such fabulous DVDs. I look forward to
see more DVDs from you.
Best Regards,
I received the DVDs yesterday and just had time to view
the first one "Rowing with Xeno". I must say it's a great
workout DVD for indoor rowing users. You have made
a great contribution to the rowing user community. Thank you
very much for making such fabulous DVDs. I look forward to
see more DVDs from you.
Best Regards,
Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.
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Jun 16, 2005
NEW WEBCAM
Hi Check this out:
Our LIVE WEBCAM on www.GoRow.com
XENO
Our LIVE WEBCAM on www.GoRow.com
XENO
Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.
Jun 11, 2005
A mom tells us about her discovery of Indoor Rowing.
Somewhere around 54 years old and 54 pounds too heavy I thought it
would be a good idea to erg just for some extra exercise. Actually just
bending over and tying my shoelaces before erging was enough to make me
want to sit down. For months I'd been hearing the spinning of the
Concept2 and the beat of the music as my son worked out in the
evenings. Xeno had mentioned the online competition but that really
didn't mean anything to me. Not then anyway. I took my first spin
during the day when nobody was around. A whole 500 meters later I was
exhausted. While logging on for the first time I slightly edged out
Christopher, Xeno's 3-year-old son. A girlfriend of mine had been
logging her mileage with the Iron Oarsman team and she was thousands of
meters ahead. For the next couple days I kept up the 500 meter pace
until my son came in and wryly observed my technique. After a few
helpful pointers, and a few more, he helped me balance what I was
doing. (Now I see him coming and automatically sit up straighter.) By
then I was becoming competitive - just for fun I wanted to catch up
with my friend. So I started erging in the early morning, at lunch,
during television commercials, and before I went to bed. The dog
couldn't understand why I wasn't throwing the ball as much for him
anymore, the dishes didn't always get done, and the wash kept piling
up. Every time I logged on my miles, I checked to see how far my friend
had gone. If she went 2000 meters, I went 1999 meters. A month later I
had logged on 186,000 meters and driven my friend crazy - she's even
more competitive than I am. One evening while she was on the erg at
their home, her son came in around 7:30 p.m. and said he was hungry.
Through gritted teeth she said "Not until I'm done!" It was then she
realized we had become obsessive about our exercise rivalry. So we're
back to erging for our own personal best. I figure by next May 1st
we're going to be in way better shape than we are right now. I'd like
to be able to say then that I'm 55 and 55 pounds lighter...
would be a good idea to erg just for some extra exercise. Actually just
bending over and tying my shoelaces before erging was enough to make me
want to sit down. For months I'd been hearing the spinning of the
Concept2 and the beat of the music as my son worked out in the
evenings. Xeno had mentioned the online competition but that really
didn't mean anything to me. Not then anyway. I took my first spin
during the day when nobody was around. A whole 500 meters later I was
exhausted. While logging on for the first time I slightly edged out
Christopher, Xeno's 3-year-old son. A girlfriend of mine had been
logging her mileage with the Iron Oarsman team and she was thousands of
meters ahead. For the next couple days I kept up the 500 meter pace
until my son came in and wryly observed my technique. After a few
helpful pointers, and a few more, he helped me balance what I was
doing. (Now I see him coming and automatically sit up straighter.) By
then I was becoming competitive - just for fun I wanted to catch up
with my friend. So I started erging in the early morning, at lunch,
during television commercials, and before I went to bed. The dog
couldn't understand why I wasn't throwing the ball as much for him
anymore, the dishes didn't always get done, and the wash kept piling
up. Every time I logged on my miles, I checked to see how far my friend
had gone. If she went 2000 meters, I went 1999 meters. A month later I
had logged on 186,000 meters and driven my friend crazy - she's even
more competitive than I am. One evening while she was on the erg at
their home, her son came in around 7:30 p.m. and said he was hungry.
Through gritted teeth she said "Not until I'm done!" It was then she
realized we had become obsessive about our exercise rivalry. So we're
back to erging for our own personal best. I figure by next May 1st
we're going to be in way better shape than we are right now. I'd like
to be able to say then that I'm 55 and 55 pounds lighter...
Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.
Jun 10, 2005
Indoor Rowing Fundraiser Pittsburgh Gazette
News briefs
Monday, January 22, 2001
CITY
DOWNTOWN
Rowing fund-raiser set
On Jan. 31, one man will challenge teams of four people in a one-hour rowing fund-raiser to benefit the Western Pennsylvania Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.
The 10th annual Indoor Rowing Challenge, sponsored by the Executive Fitness Center at the Westin Convention Center Pittsburgh (formerly Doubletree Hotel), will begin at noon in the hotel lobby.
Chris Gibson, founder of the event and manager of the Executive Fitness Center, will compete against the four-person teams. Gibson held the world record from 1994 to 1999 of 16,623 meters in one hour for the over-40 lightweight male division.
Rowers will use rowing machines, with each team member rowing for 15-minute segments for a total of one hour. At the conclusion, the total number of meters rowed by each team will be measured and compared.
Last year's Challenge drew 66 rowers from companies, fitness centers, rowing clubs, and high schools.
More than $10,000 was raised last year, bringing the total fund raising of the event up to $43,000 since its inception.
The entry fee is $250. Participants will receive a T-shirt and both individual and team prizes will be presented.
Call Joe Natoli at 412-288-6957 or Gibson at 412-560-6406 for details.
Monday, January 22, 2001
CITY
DOWNTOWN
Rowing fund-raiser set
On Jan. 31, one man will challenge teams of four people in a one-hour rowing fund-raiser to benefit the Western Pennsylvania Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.
The 10th annual Indoor Rowing Challenge, sponsored by the Executive Fitness Center at the Westin Convention Center Pittsburgh (formerly Doubletree Hotel), will begin at noon in the hotel lobby.
Chris Gibson, founder of the event and manager of the Executive Fitness Center, will compete against the four-person teams. Gibson held the world record from 1994 to 1999 of 16,623 meters in one hour for the over-40 lightweight male division.
Rowers will use rowing machines, with each team member rowing for 15-minute segments for a total of one hour. At the conclusion, the total number of meters rowed by each team will be measured and compared.
Last year's Challenge drew 66 rowers from companies, fitness centers, rowing clubs, and high schools.
More than $10,000 was raised last year, bringing the total fund raising of the event up to $43,000 since its inception.
The entry fee is $250. Participants will receive a T-shirt and both individual and team prizes will be presented.
Call Joe Natoli at 412-288-6957 or Gibson at 412-560-6406 for details.
Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.
Jun 6, 2005
VO2max article I thought was interesting to post
The Bike Doc: The ins and outs of VO2max
By By Shannon Sovndal, M.D. and Owen Murphy, M.S.
This report filed June 6, 2005
Riding fast is a matter of natural ability, training and desire. All three factors play an important role in keeping the big ring spinning. When discussing natural ability, many people throw around the term "VO2max," which means maximum oxygen consumption. Many of our clients can recite the definition of VO2max, but few have a good grasp of what VO2max really means. To help clarify things, we will be writing a two part series of basic exercise physiology articles. Today is the first installment and will cover VO2max. Next week, we'll jump into the world of lactate threshold (LT).
VO2max?
Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) is the maximum amount of oxygen that can be used by the body for maximal sustained power output (exercise). Since the body uses oxygen to convert food into energy (ATP), the more oxygen you can consume, the more energy, power, or speed you can produce. VO2max defines an endurance athlete's performance ceiling, or the size of his or her "engine." Research has shown that VO2max significantly determines performance in endurance-based events such as cycling, triathlon, running, and Nordic skiing.
Remember, however, that VO2max is only one piece of the rider's performance puzzle. Ability to perform in a race also depends on lactate threshold, appropriate peaking, nutrition and tactics (to name just a few).
Let's return to the "engine" analogy. If we were to race two cars, one a dragster with a large engine and the second a stock car with a much smaller engine, which one would win? You can't say. If we raced them a quarter mile down a drag strip, the dragster with a larger engine would win. However, if we raced them 400 miles, the stock car would win even with a smaller engine. Why? The dragster may be fast for short bursts, but it can't maintain its speed for an extended period of time. The same is true with two cyclists. If Bill had a high VO2max but a moderate LT, and Tom had a moderate VO2max but a ridiculously high LT, Tom would likely find himself victorious in a head to head race up L'Alpe d'Huez. Although Bill has a higher VO2max, Tom can maintain a higher workload for a longer period of time. We'll elaborate on this more next week when we discuss lactate threshold.
How is VO2 Max measured?
Many endurance athletes already have some idea of what a VO2max test entails: an incremental increase in exercise effort until the participant is unable to continue increasing his or her workload. The athlete can perform the test using any number of exercises: running, cycling, rowing, and even swimming. Because VO2max will vary between sports for various individuals, athletes will generally perform the test in his or her preferred sport. Regardless of the testing modality used, all the tests do the same thing. They take a happy-go-lucky individual and turn him or her into a grimacing, suffering, and most importantly, gasping test subject. As exercise intensity increases, a machine calculates oxygen consumption (VO2) by collecting and analyzing the test subject's inspired and expired air. With each incremental increase in power output by the athlete, more muscle mass is employed and more oxygen consumed. VO2 will thus increase linearly with exercise intensity until the body reaches its maximum ability to consume oxygen. At this point, oxygen consumption will level off, or plateau, when the subject reaches his or her VO2max.
Once the test analyzes the data, the athlete is given a numerical value of his or her VO2max. This number can be expressed in two forms. The first is called your absolute VO2max (liters O2/minute) and will likely fall between 3.0-6.0 l/min if you're male, and 2.5-4.5 l/min if you're female. The second is called your relative VO2max (milliliters O2/kilogram body weight/minute). For those who recall their science classes, the difference is in the units that follow the number. The relative VO2max takes into account the athlete's body weight, whereas absolute VO2max does not. You can, therefore, impress you friends by quickly increasing your relative VO2max by merely losing some weight!
There are a few requirements to have a useful and representative VO2max test:
The test must employ at least 50 percent of the test subject's total muscle mass. Sports such as cycling, running, swimming and Nordic skiing all qualify. (Note that VO2max values for cyclists are generally 5-10 percent lower than those of runners or Nordic skiers due to less active muscle mass being utilized.)
The test must be of sufficient duration to maximize cardiovascular responses. The length of suffering is usually 6-15 min.
Finally, a highly motivated individual must perform the test. (The more pain and suffering during the test, the better the data).
How do you measure up?
The following are examples of absolute and relative VO2max values of untrained, moderately trained, and elite aerobic individuals.
FEMALE
Training Status Untrained Trained Elite
Absolute(l/min) < 3.0 3.0- >3.0
Relative 26-42 40-60 55+
MALE
Training Status Untrained Trained Elite
Absolute(l/min) < 3.0 3.5- >4.0
Relative 36-52 50-70 60+
Source: Costill, D.L. and Wilmore, J.H. (1994). Cardiorespiratory Function and Performance. Physiology of Sport and Exercise. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Factors affecting VO2max
There are three primary factors that can affect VO2max: altitude, age and gender.
Altitude: An increase in altitude results in a decrease in air density and the partial pressure (or amount) of oxygen in the air. Therefore, you can expect a 5-7 percent loss in VO2max from sea level to 5,000 feet.
Age: Peak physiological function occurs at about 30 years of age. VO2max decreases approximately 30 percent between the ages of 20 and 65, with the greatest decline after age 40. However, decreases in VO2max can be extremely variable and can - at least partially - be offset by training.
Gender: In general, females tend to have lower VO2max values than males (15 percent to 20 percent less). This is primarily due to differences in body composition, hemoglobin content in the blood, and heart size. Females, on average, have a higher percentage of body fat, lower content of hemoglobin in their blood, and have a smaller adaptation of heart size in response to endurance and resistance training. It is important to note that these differences are "in general" - there are always exceptions.
What does it all mean?
Well, it depends on who you are and how much your have already been training when you take your VO2max test. Research has determined that approximately 80 percent of an individual's VO2max is genetically determined. Depending on your current training level, VO2max may be enhanced through progressive endurance training. Untrained individuals have the potential to increase their VO2max by 15-20 percent, but well-trained athletes are unlikely to realize an increase in VO2max of greater than 3-5 percent. So, if you've been training well for the past year and your VO2max is in the 50's, don't hold your breath to be the next Lance. The good news is that your lactate threshold is highly trainable, and elevating your LT will put the hurt on your friends or fellow racers. Since many elite athletes share comparable VO2max values, lactate threshold is often a better measure of fitness and endurance performance. And that is a perfect segue into our discussion next week....
Dr. Shannon Sovndal is a physician and coach with Thrive Health Fitness Medicine (www.thivehfm.com). He attended medical school at Columbia University in New York and completed his residency at Stanford University. Owen Murphy is a nutritionist and personal coach with Thrive HFM. He also teaches nutrition at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He has a Master's degree in Exercise Physiology and a passion for all things related to health and performance. Dr. Sovndal and Owen Murphy are available for any questions or comments at Shannon@thrivehfm.com and Owen@thrivehfm.com.
By By Shannon Sovndal, M.D. and Owen Murphy, M.S.
This report filed June 6, 2005
Riding fast is a matter of natural ability, training and desire. All three factors play an important role in keeping the big ring spinning. When discussing natural ability, many people throw around the term "VO2max," which means maximum oxygen consumption. Many of our clients can recite the definition of VO2max, but few have a good grasp of what VO2max really means. To help clarify things, we will be writing a two part series of basic exercise physiology articles. Today is the first installment and will cover VO2max. Next week, we'll jump into the world of lactate threshold (LT).
VO2max?
Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) is the maximum amount of oxygen that can be used by the body for maximal sustained power output (exercise). Since the body uses oxygen to convert food into energy (ATP), the more oxygen you can consume, the more energy, power, or speed you can produce. VO2max defines an endurance athlete's performance ceiling, or the size of his or her "engine." Research has shown that VO2max significantly determines performance in endurance-based events such as cycling, triathlon, running, and Nordic skiing.
Remember, however, that VO2max is only one piece of the rider's performance puzzle. Ability to perform in a race also depends on lactate threshold, appropriate peaking, nutrition and tactics (to name just a few).
Let's return to the "engine" analogy. If we were to race two cars, one a dragster with a large engine and the second a stock car with a much smaller engine, which one would win? You can't say. If we raced them a quarter mile down a drag strip, the dragster with a larger engine would win. However, if we raced them 400 miles, the stock car would win even with a smaller engine. Why? The dragster may be fast for short bursts, but it can't maintain its speed for an extended period of time. The same is true with two cyclists. If Bill had a high VO2max but a moderate LT, and Tom had a moderate VO2max but a ridiculously high LT, Tom would likely find himself victorious in a head to head race up L'Alpe d'Huez. Although Bill has a higher VO2max, Tom can maintain a higher workload for a longer period of time. We'll elaborate on this more next week when we discuss lactate threshold.
How is VO2 Max measured?
Many endurance athletes already have some idea of what a VO2max test entails: an incremental increase in exercise effort until the participant is unable to continue increasing his or her workload. The athlete can perform the test using any number of exercises: running, cycling, rowing, and even swimming. Because VO2max will vary between sports for various individuals, athletes will generally perform the test in his or her preferred sport. Regardless of the testing modality used, all the tests do the same thing. They take a happy-go-lucky individual and turn him or her into a grimacing, suffering, and most importantly, gasping test subject. As exercise intensity increases, a machine calculates oxygen consumption (VO2) by collecting and analyzing the test subject's inspired and expired air. With each incremental increase in power output by the athlete, more muscle mass is employed and more oxygen consumed. VO2 will thus increase linearly with exercise intensity until the body reaches its maximum ability to consume oxygen. At this point, oxygen consumption will level off, or plateau, when the subject reaches his or her VO2max.
Once the test analyzes the data, the athlete is given a numerical value of his or her VO2max. This number can be expressed in two forms. The first is called your absolute VO2max (liters O2/minute) and will likely fall between 3.0-6.0 l/min if you're male, and 2.5-4.5 l/min if you're female. The second is called your relative VO2max (milliliters O2/kilogram body weight/minute). For those who recall their science classes, the difference is in the units that follow the number. The relative VO2max takes into account the athlete's body weight, whereas absolute VO2max does not. You can, therefore, impress you friends by quickly increasing your relative VO2max by merely losing some weight!
There are a few requirements to have a useful and representative VO2max test:
The test must employ at least 50 percent of the test subject's total muscle mass. Sports such as cycling, running, swimming and Nordic skiing all qualify. (Note that VO2max values for cyclists are generally 5-10 percent lower than those of runners or Nordic skiers due to less active muscle mass being utilized.)
The test must be of sufficient duration to maximize cardiovascular responses. The length of suffering is usually 6-15 min.
Finally, a highly motivated individual must perform the test. (The more pain and suffering during the test, the better the data).
How do you measure up?
The following are examples of absolute and relative VO2max values of untrained, moderately trained, and elite aerobic individuals.
FEMALE
Training Status Untrained Trained Elite
Absolute(l/min) < 3.0 3.0- >3.0
Relative 26-42 40-60 55+
MALE
Training Status Untrained Trained Elite
Absolute(l/min) < 3.0 3.5- >4.0
Relative 36-52 50-70 60+
Source: Costill, D.L. and Wilmore, J.H. (1994). Cardiorespiratory Function and Performance. Physiology of Sport and Exercise. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Factors affecting VO2max
There are three primary factors that can affect VO2max: altitude, age and gender.
Altitude: An increase in altitude results in a decrease in air density and the partial pressure (or amount) of oxygen in the air. Therefore, you can expect a 5-7 percent loss in VO2max from sea level to 5,000 feet.
Age: Peak physiological function occurs at about 30 years of age. VO2max decreases approximately 30 percent between the ages of 20 and 65, with the greatest decline after age 40. However, decreases in VO2max can be extremely variable and can - at least partially - be offset by training.
Gender: In general, females tend to have lower VO2max values than males (15 percent to 20 percent less). This is primarily due to differences in body composition, hemoglobin content in the blood, and heart size. Females, on average, have a higher percentage of body fat, lower content of hemoglobin in their blood, and have a smaller adaptation of heart size in response to endurance and resistance training. It is important to note that these differences are "in general" - there are always exceptions.
What does it all mean?
Well, it depends on who you are and how much your have already been training when you take your VO2max test. Research has determined that approximately 80 percent of an individual's VO2max is genetically determined. Depending on your current training level, VO2max may be enhanced through progressive endurance training. Untrained individuals have the potential to increase their VO2max by 15-20 percent, but well-trained athletes are unlikely to realize an increase in VO2max of greater than 3-5 percent. So, if you've been training well for the past year and your VO2max is in the 50's, don't hold your breath to be the next Lance. The good news is that your lactate threshold is highly trainable, and elevating your LT will put the hurt on your friends or fellow racers. Since many elite athletes share comparable VO2max values, lactate threshold is often a better measure of fitness and endurance performance. And that is a perfect segue into our discussion next week....
Dr. Shannon Sovndal is a physician and coach with Thrive Health Fitness Medicine (www.thivehfm.com). He attended medical school at Columbia University in New York and completed his residency at Stanford University. Owen Murphy is a nutritionist and personal coach with Thrive HFM. He also teaches nutrition at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He has a Master's degree in Exercise Physiology and a passion for all things related to health and performance. Dr. Sovndal and Owen Murphy are available for any questions or comments at Shannon@thrivehfm.com and Owen@thrivehfm.com.
Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.
Jun 4, 2005
The DVD Indoor Rowing workouts work!
Hi Xeno,
I received the DVDs yesterday and just had time to view
the first one "Rowing with Xeno". I must say it's a great
workout DVD for indoor rowing users. You have made
a great contribution to the rowing user community. Thank you
very much for making such fabulous DVDs. I look forward to
see more DVDs from you.
Best Regards,
I received the DVDs yesterday and just had time to view
the first one "Rowing with Xeno". I must say it's a great
workout DVD for indoor rowing users. You have made
a great contribution to the rowing user community. Thank you
very much for making such fabulous DVDs. I look forward to
see more DVDs from you.
Best Regards,
Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.
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