Here is a quote that distills the essence of one way to deal with obstacles:

“I had left camp with eight dogs and a lightly loaded sled just after midnight. They were my ‘problem’ dogs. In all teams there are good dogs, some not-so-good dogs, and then there are ‘problem’ dogs . . . . They require extra effort, the problem dogs–more time to understand, time to know, time to learn how they think and act and work.

“So, once every four days or so I would harness the problem dogs and head up a mountain and try to learn from them and about them.”

Winterdance:  The Fine Madness of Running the Iditarod - Gary Paulsen

Presumably, any obstacle you experience is real.  From a small blister to a serious medical condition, it can be physical and require attention.  Or it can involve a mood, from boredom to a sense of futility.  But those require attention, too.  An obstacle can also arise in the form of scheduling or access issues.  Do you need the car to get to the gym?  Do work demands make it harder to fit in time for a row?

What I like about the quote above is that he is confronting the problems, “the problem dogs.”  He is not leaving them penned up.  He is not trying to avoid them and hope they go away.  Nor is he staying home himself because one or more of the dogs is a problem.  He is taking out the loaded sled and facing the problems.

How do we apply this idea?

• For boredom, get back on the machine and consider it.  Are you paying attention?  Have you armed yourself with things to pay attention to?  Is your boredom a surrogate for tired muscles, worry about work, or some other unrelated issue?
• For a blister, treat it and keep going.  If you were rowing without shoes on and got a blister on your heel, put a band-aid on the blister; put shoes on over it; row again.
• For scheduling issues or access to a rowing machine, confront the issue and work it out.  If you have been rowing at the YWCA and now you find the rowing machines are always taken when you get there, ask them to buy more or get your own for home use. Adjust your schedule.
• If you feel your progress is too slow or non-existent, think about it and do something about it.  Are you paying attention to your speed, your time on the rowing machine, your muscle definition, your weight, or some other factor that matters to you?  Is an ache becoming a constant challenge, such as an aching back?  Consider incorporating a focus on other aspects of your rowing.  Remind yourself that change takes time.  Keep in mind that you have success simply by doing your exercise each day.  And do something about the specific problem if there is one.  For example, if you are experiencing back pain, do more core work.  You may be amazed at how effective five minutes a day of sit-ups and the kneeling “Superman” position can be at resolving back aches.

In the end, consider thinking about progress as follows: If you are rowing each day, you will make progress.  It may seem slow or even non-existent on any given day.  But it will happen and your paying attention to what you are doing will enable it to happen faster.  On the other hand, if you do not row on a given day, you are then instructing your body to become more sedentary. For many reasons, value what I call “the listless workout.”  Even if you feel tired or ineffective, you will have achieved something by doing it.