I am really proud of myself today and also much relieved.

I am proud because I did a net 73 minutes on the rower (I subtracted the time to drink water and go to the restroom), covering the equivalent of 10 km! I was dripping sweat and my face was almost red. I drank a whole 1.5 l bottle of water with electrolytes and later I spent some time walking slowly to cool down.

I am relieved for two reasons. One, it was a true Zone 2 workout. If somebody wanted to talk to me, I would have barely been able to say a few words. And I know how important Zone 2 workouts are, but when I am walking on a flat surface or swimming, I simply cannot do any of that fast enough to get into Zone 2. So now I know that if I do rowing once a week, I will hit a minimum threshold for Zone 2. And, it is ultimately enjoyable though hard. My Oura ring showed my heart rate in the upper area of Moderate, just below High exertion. So I am happy.

The other reason I am relieved is that now that I have done that, I am actually looking forward to doing strength training tomorrow or on Wednesday for a change. It is the boredom of doing the same thing every day that prevents me from even trying. But I understand that the physical therapist is doing short term therapy and is looking for rapid improvement, which is why she is prescribing strength training every day. It is unrealistic for me, though. I will do what I can, alternating what I do, except for that easy morning walk strength and balance exercise that fits into my existing routine so well.