Effectiveness of ROWING MACHINE??

[XjmOoChX]

Whats up guys, im one of those guys who slacks off on working out in the summer, with work and going out and all, and i promised myself to start working out hard and eating good once school started. Well 2 weeks into school and ive kept my promise and have been doing cardio pretty much everyday. Im big on the stairmaster, i get great results from it. I discovered a rowing machine at the gym today and tried it out..ive never had such a heart pounding work out, about 200 cals in 12 or so minutes, i had to take little breaks like every 2 minutes it was so intense. It felt funny without the soreness in my calves tho, im used to the typical "on foot" cardio. I also felt a sickk burn in my forearms, bis, and shoulders

The question: Has anyone gotten great results in fat burning from using a rowing machine, over traditional ellipticals, treadmills, and stairmasters??

[Realist]

Whats up guys, im one of those guys who slacks off on working out in the summer, with work and going out and all, and i promised myself to start working out hard and eating good once school started. Well 2 weeks into school and ive kept my promise and have been doing cardio pretty much everyday. Im big on the stairmaster, i get great results from it. I discovered a rowing machine at the gym today and tried it out..ive never had such a heart pounding work out, about 200 cals in 12 or so minutes, i had to take little breaks like every 2 minutes it was so intense. It felt funny without the soreness in my calves tho, im used to the typical "on foot" cardio. I also felt a sickk burn in my forearms, bis, and shoulders

The question: Has anyone gotten great results in fat burning from using a rowing machine, over traditional ellipticals, treadmills, and stairmasters??

Yeah, rowing is great IMO. I'd take rowing over treadmills and stat. bikes anyday. Most of my cardio when I'm cutting comes from rowing (and I throw in some cross country machine now and then) and lose probably more fat than the other machines due to rowings high intensity. I do it for about 15 minutes a day in the evenings. Keep at it.

[sciulli]

Yeah rowing rules, I have a machine at my house, and used to used it when we had the room for it saldy i don't have any room for it. On the side note, my dad would keep track of how far he rowed( this being liek in the mid 90's) and he had a Large US map. There were dots almost to Kansas( Philly being a starting point) and he was in great shape. So i can say that it does work.

[Deerexing887]

I'm with ya'll. Rowing is a great way to burn fat and build strength. I actually do crew so I use ergs a ton and without lifting last spring i got stronger and lighter, just by rowing. For a great workout I recommend 3 or 4 by 5 min pieces. I aim for 1500m in 5 mins although I've never done it. (I'm a big guy... why they like me in the 5 seat) Also 2 x 5 x 1 min sprints are great as well. Do five all-out 1 min sprints with like 15-30 secs in between then get up, walk around, drink some gatorade and do it all again; leaves you feeling inarticuably (is that a word?) dead. The key is to do every single one of them like its your last.

If your form is correct your upper body should feel sore at first. When people disbelieve I ask them how long they can hold their arms out straight. If you're rowing with good form your arms should be out straight most of the time. The forearm burn is from having to continuosly hold the bar. Be careful with your back, too, some people have serious problems with sitting up straight since their back hurts. Of course, they dont realize their back hurts because they werent sitting up straight to begin with.

"Just look on the bright side: You're getting an incredible workout and you dont have to worry about catching with the rest of the boat, feathering properly, or all the blisters." (At least thats what Captain Kirk said to get us pumped about an erg workout. I'm not even joking about the kirk thing... his last name was kirk)

The only thing I'd warn you about is that it can screw up your lifting schedule, since, if done intensely, it can leave your entire body sore the next day.

If you've got any other questions I'd be happy to answer them. I'm certainly not an amazing rower and I don't claim to be but I've got some experience under my belt and thoroughly enjoy the sport.

[Kraftydog]

Whats up guys, im one of those guys who slacks off on working out in the summer, with work and going out and all, and i promised myself to start working out hard and eating good once school started. Well 2 weeks into school and ive kept my promise and have been doing cardio pretty much everyday. Im big on the stairmaster, i get great results from it. I discovered a rowing machine at the gym today and tried it out..ive never had such a heart pounding work out, about 200 cals in 12 or so minutes, i had to take little breaks like every 2 minutes it was so intense. It felt funny without the soreness in my calves tho, im used to the typical "on foot" cardio. I also felt a sickk burn in my forearms, bis, and shoulders

The question: Has anyone gotten great results in fat burning from using a rowing machine, over traditional ellipticals, treadmills, and stairmasters??

the first time you do any exercise that use motions and muscle that you are not familiar with you will get an exhausting workout. Try it for a week or two to see how much adaptation there is. If you still get great workouts then, its something to do. I personally dont get a great workout on it, I get a much better workout on the stepmill, one of the best pieces of cardio equipment in my opinion. Though I am 230ish, so bodywieght exercises are preferable to me. Rowing takes too much of my wieght out of the equation, at least with the machines I have used.

[rwindleyme02]

Man, I loved the rowing machine when I had access to one. I do like my bike though...