Why rowing is good for you: it sets you up for life, win or lose

No one told me when I started rowing that at 34 I'd have a home gym in a suburban neighbourhood and still be out here chasing demons. But this is the life. Rowing sticks to you, win or lose, and I reckon that's one of the best things about it.

Is rowing worth it if you never win?

"Rowing is one of those sports where no one will ever understand how much effort and time and blood, sweat and tears goes into it just to be kind of mid."

You can commit your life to this sport and still be kind of mid. I reckon there's real beauty in that. I have a lot of respect for people who put all the effort into rowing and really struggle to get the results out.

It's not all about winning the race. It's about the pursuit of trying to win it. I admire anyone who fully commits to something as hard as rowing, doesn't get the results, but stays committed. To all the Meataxes out there committing every single day, maybe not quite getting the result but staying in it: you'll be the ones who do some pretty epic things in your life.

I was never the most gifted athlete. The thing I'm most proud of is my resilience through the years that were really hard, and my commitment to the eight through that time. Back when we were the slowest eight in the world, if you'd told me we'd win the Olympics a few years later, I'd have laughed. In this sport you don't have to be gifted to have success. I wrote about the turnaround in how we blew our Olympic heat in Tokyo, then won gold.

Why is rowing good for you?

Because it's unusual. We have a sport so raw and so challenging that it demands huge commitment, discipline and resilience. Those are hard-to-come-by character traits, and win or lose, they give you an unfair advantage over the rest of the world.

"Even if you walk away from the sport not quite achieving what you wanted to achieve, just know that you are setting yourself up for life."

When you stop the sport, you're so well equipped to take on the world. That's why I say keep going.

The hard part is that progress isn't a straight line. My 2k was stuck for four years, and I wish I'd known earlier that that's normal. In the Kiwi eight we used to say trust the process: keep turning up, stay as positive as you can and be patient. My 2k erg scores by age show what that looked like.

See what’s cooking ↘︎

What does rowing for life mean?

There's a funny thing about the sport of rowing. It's sticky.

"The things that you learn in this sport stick with you for the rest of your life."

Some good, some bad, but honestly, I reckon mostly good. When you've been in the hurt locker for so many years, you learn to love it a little bit. Then you create your own little locker of hurt. Mine is the Kirkham gym.

The bad sticks too. My lower back screams at me for the decade of abuse. You only have one back and it needs to last your entire life, so do your mobility, listen to the physios and be careful in the weights room after a long row. I'm speaking from experience.

What does rowing give teenagers?

If you're a young lad or lass in your early years of the sport, just enjoy it. The friendships you make and the crews you're part of now are the ones you'll talk about 10, 20, 30, 40 years later, when you're reminiscing. So make the most of it.

The Kiwi eight got back together after five years to race the Head of the Charles. The best part about this sport is reconnecting with your team and telling your old war stories. And the row I'll still be talking about when I'm 80 at the pub wasn't even a race. It was a 12k paddle the day before the Olympic final, with easy speed and unreal rhythm. I tell that story in how to get your head right before a race.

Common mistakes

• Measuring your rowing only by results. The pursuit is the point.
• Walking away when progress stalls. Getting stuck is normal. Keep turning up.
• Lowering your standards. I've sat on start lines just hoping not to embarrass myself. That's a weak mentality. Aim high and tell yourself a better story. More in what Mahé Drysdale taught me about self-belief.
• Forgetting to enjoy it. The crews are what you'll remember.