I have not read the responses but figure I'll just throw in my own advice.
Why only short bursts? Rowing is a legit endurance workout. Back when I was rowing, some favorite workouts were:
5x 5 minutes on, 5 minutes off. The on was REALLY hard. Absolute max you can do while keeping splits pretty even on all 5 intervals.
3x20 minutes, 5 minutes rest, basically at "sweet spot" effort.
10 x minute on minute off in the middle of an hour row. The on is all out.
Of course there's just long steady rowing too... We rarely did more than 90 minutes straight on the erg.
Technique-wise from the catch, you need a powerful, body-forward position but don't get that hip angle too tight or you lose power. You probably know it's legs first, then back then arms. But there is overlap between those phases making it nice and smooth. Don't lay back too far.
Recover slowly, relaxed back towards the catch.
When you start your drive, a common mistake is people push with their legs sending their ass back but they don't keep a string connection all they way through their body to the handle. So while your legs are going down, the handle doesn't come back much (your forward lean increases). Don't do that. Keep that connection firm all the way through your body, using your skeleton as much as possible instead of muscles. (Don't bend your arms or engage your shoulders too early).
As for splits well... Hard to say. I was a lightweight. At 155 pounds I could hold 1:37 for 2000m, 1:45 for 6000m. That made me pretty good but about 8 seconds short in the 2000m of being a serious candidate for a world championship team slot (6:28 vs. 6:20 for a guy with a shot at the lm4x circa 2001). 18 seconds short of being a serious Olympic team candidate. I do not remember what my best 500 was... Height is a major advantage in rowing. I'm 5'9.5"
At 40 years old and the same weight my FTP is about 275
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Ed O'Malley
www.VeloVetta.com Founder of VeloVetta Cycling Shoes
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