One of the nice things about the Concept2 rowing setup is the PM5 computer and its ability to record your workout data. You can use this as seriously or casually as you like.

My first round with a Concept2 rower found me using my dad’s Model D with the older PM3 computer. This computer kept your rowing data: stroke rate, power, distance, split times, and all that–but it didn’t sync with your iPhone over Bluetooth. I didn’t mind one bit at the time; I’d keep my basic stats in a markdown file, appended via a Drafts action. I rowed for maybe a year, not very intensely, just kinda steady state for a half hour, around a 2:30 split. I still have the log file that I wrote to, and I have data from March 2015 through January of 2016. That’s around when I got into lifting weights.

Fast forward to 2023, when I decided to start rowing again. I had the same Concept2 Model D from my dad, and I started pulling again. I used the same Drafts action to log my stats.

And then we got another rower.

Rhonda had seen me make some impressive gains (as in losing weight) over a short stretch of time, from January 2023 through April of 2023. (Looking back at Apple Health, it was 30 pounds.) She suggested that we get another one so she could join me. I was happy to oblige, and the newer models available at the time came with the upgraded PM5 computer. I started using it when she wasn’t rowing with me, and it eventually became my machine.

So my seasons, such as they are, are calculated from May 1st of each year through April 30th, coinciding with my first usage of the PM5. 2023-2024 was my first season, and I rowed just over two million meters.

I looked at the app on my phone recently and realized that this year, season two, is almost up, and I’m pretty close to hitting two million meters again. After some quick math, I think I’ll make it with room to spare.

I had been wondering about this, because my seasons correspond with my switch to my new job, which I started last April 29th. I continued to row each morning before work, but I did have to cut back my time a little, and row earlier in the morning. At my Vineland gig, I was able to row later in the am and often rowed longer than I do now (although not entirely). I’ve also ratcheted the intensity down a bit; I no longer row like a demon driven, but like someone trying to maintain fitness.

I guess that’s a way of saying, weight-wise, I hit the bottom. I’ve written about it before, and I’d say that the only way from here is to maintain. Or (gulp) go up. Which actually I have a little, I guess owing to more generous consumption on the weekends, and hopefully all of the pushups I’ve been doing. I’m inclined to eat more of my meal when we’re out, depending upon what it is and how good it is, and I enjoy more cheese and crackers at the winery, I suppose.

It’s hard to see but the cinnamon pear jelly is irresistible

So two million meters… that’s like 1200 miles. I could have rowed to and from Miami.