I’m on the fence of buying a rowing machine once I get my own apartment. I see a few on amazon going for under $200 with over 4 star reviews and think it would be a good intro to cardio/basic whole body muscle building but don’t want to waste money on cheap crap. The main downsides from the reviews aren’t the build quality but the top level of resistance.
I’m the most out of shape I’ve ever been, haven’t done any sports or real consistant exercise in years and am wondering if a lower end rowing machine would be a good way to start. When I was super active my main sports were first baseball then skateboarding and snowboarding so I’ve never had a lot of arm or upper body strength, mostly leg and core. I’m 5’10’’ and weigh like 180 now, not trying to get swol ASAP just be healthier and build confidence and establish a routine to eventually get more fit.
also how hard is it on your knees? I’d like my gf to be able to use it too but she has some bad knee issues that flair up which make me think a stationary bike might be a better choice but I like the idea of more of a whole body work out than just cardio
don’t tell me to run I HATE running. my gf wants to buy real bikes but the weather where I am sucks 8 months out of the year so while bikes would be more fun they would take up more space in a small apartment than a machine we could share. plus I know we wouldn’t be riding bikes together in a way that would be better exercise than say 30 min on a machine with consistent resistance.
there was somone here who was all about rowing machines and I looked them up to DM them but they’re banned now lol
I’m a former rower, though not the one you were DMing previously. Long story short, you don’t want to row at a high resistance, especially when you’re getting started. Very easy to throw your back out already, and the higher resistance only makes that more likely.
I favor the air based machines over the water ones as they’re much easier to move around, stand upright out of the way, and literally can’t leak.
More important than anything though, please please please watch a rowing technique video (or ten). It’s mostly leg and core that move the boat, not arms.
I’ll shoot you a DM, should you have other questions too :)
Former rower also, co-sign all of this. Form/technique is key, and contrary to most people’s assumptions, the machine is, like you said about a stable core and leg power with arms doing not much till the end of stroke. Definitely worth watching stuff to get the form down, most people use the machines incorrectly.
Nice thing is the difficulty is mostly self driven—and comes down to split times. I’ve had erg sessions where I barely broke a sweat. But we also had some erg races… where we all ended up puking haha. Do not miss that.
Shouldn’t be tough on knees unless they have significant mobility issues with bending the joint.
I would search around a bit on craigslist or Facebook marketplace or whatever and see if you can find a second hand concept II air machine. There should be a fair few of those in circulation.
Every time I’ve bought sub 200 dollar home excersize machines off amazon I’ve been disappointed (3 times).
Also this just could be my hours spent on the machine back in the day, but… it can be pretty boring. Unlike a stationary bike, your hands are also engaged all the time which is good for workout, not means you’re not playing with tablets or books etc.
It’s always set at 10 at the gym when I get on it 😭 and some people don’t even notice the resistance settings!
Yeah seems like a lot of people do. Rowing technique actually takes quite a while to hone, and it is difficult to transmit a lot of power without good technique so people often crank it to max to feel like they are working hard. In reality rowing is more of an endurance sport and rowers will often sit at low intensity for 30-60mins on the machine at a steady pace to build conditioning, endurance, and cardio.
Good to know, thank you
don’t tell me to run I HATE running
REAL
me too friendNow, i’m no expert on rowing machines, but i would say the 200 dollar rowing machine i got on Amazon for Christmas 2 years ago was an amazing investment in my own fitness. At least it was when i used it almost every day last year, until i stopped in llike January, but I’m getting back into it
You have the same build as me so i wouldn’t worry about being too out of shape to use it, you just might have to start at a lower resistance. Idk anything about levels of resistance but the one i got goes from 1-16 and 16 is really hard. i do like 2.5 miles at max resistance and it’s a workout i tell you hwut
It isn’t really hard on your knees but idk i can’t guarantee it’s good for your gf because i’ve never had her knee issues. But i got one because running was killing my calf and knees
It’s definitely more than just cardio btw rowing like 30 minutes, 4-5 miles a day for most of a year my body literally changed shape like my shoulders blew the fuck up
Consider buying one on amazon that allows for free returns and returning it if you don’t like it (make sure it has free returns though lol)
Rowing machines are good for all round fitness, but correct technique is non-intuitive and takes a long time to learn. Done correctly it will build core strength, legs and shoulders. But most importantly cardiovascular fitness. It is low impact so it should be fine on your knees as long as you aren’t splaying your legs apart on the drive. I would personally recommend an exercise bike / spin bike in place of a cheap rowing machine for cardio especially if you can’t be bothered with the technical aspects. Just sit on the bike, watch tv, get your heart rate above 130bpm for an hour, easy peasy.
Thank you
Depending on how high your ceilings are I would consider a speed rope instead. This plus some calisthenics and maybe a pullup bar is all you need.
8ft is probably enough, 10 is for sure. Rowing is great but it takes up a lot of space, is expensive and takes a lot of time. You can do a whole rope workout in 20 minutes and nothing builds work capacity like the rope imo. It’s also pretty low impact. You feel like a jackass at first, tripping over the rope every three hops, but it only takes a couple of sessions to get used to the cadence.
Rowing is not bad on the knees, tends to be harder on the back in my experience but I also don’t have knee issues. Top resistance on the machine isn’t that big a deal imo people tend to set their resistance way too high on average. Every time I go to the gym the resistance on the rowers is maxed when 5-6 is the sweet spot. If it’s not enough people should be pulling harder instead of jamming the lever to 10.
If you do go the rower route I would look for one that has a chain instead of a cable.
Thanks for the reply, I’ll look into speed ropes too.
I love me a rowing machine but it is fairly easy to hit top limits. Maybe buy a used one for cheaper and sell it again if it doesn’t work out for you?
