Chasing Stripes 016 — Removing Friction

May 22, 2026 – EDS Awareness Month

There are sessions where you chase numbers.

There are sessions where you chase rhythm.

And then there are sessions like this one — where the entire goal is simply to remove friction.

Not forcing the pace.

Not wrestling the handle.

Not trying to manufacture intensity that isn’t there.

Just sitting down in the middle of a workday, locking the monitor on r20, and building quality metres one stroke at a time.

For people living with EDS, consistency matters more than occasional perfect days. Sustainable training usually comes from repeatable loading, controlled progression, and learning where the line is before you cross it. Sometimes the smartest sessions are the ones that leave something in the tank.

That was today.

Session 016

40:00 continuous @ r20

Distance: 9,670m

Average Pace: 2:04.1/500m

Average HR: 135

Max HR: 146

Stroke Rate: 20 spm

5-minute splits:

2:05.9

2:05.4

2:04.8

2:04.4

2:03.8

2:03.4

2:02.9

2:01.8

The shape of the row mattered more than the headline number.

No spikes.

No panic pacing.

No mid-session collapse.

Just a gradual squeeze on the pace while the rate stayed nailed to twenty.

The final split came down naturally because the early part of the row stayed under control. That’s the part people often miss. Fast endings are usually built long before the last five minutes. They come from restraint early on — from not feeding the handle-down demons too soon.

The work gym sessions always feel different from the shed rows. Different atmosphere. Different distractions. Different fatigue. But in some ways they’re useful because they strip things back to basics. No perfect setup. No “race environment.” Just you, the erg, and whether you can stay disciplined for forty minutes.

That’s what this block is really about right now.

Building repeatable work.

Building fatigue resistance.

Building sessions that can stack together week after week.

Not forcing speed.

Just removing friction.

#MoveForEDS

#ChasingStripes

#BuiltThroughControl

#Concept2

#BeowulfIndoorRowingCrew