Water rower questions

gentlygently

Hello

I’m thinking of hiring a Water Rower. I know the C2 is generally thought a better machine and that hiring means I might get a ‘well-used’ machine...but A) limited hire options at the mo I want a machine I can ‘put away’ easily.

So Water Rower users:

- is it easily to put into upright tucked away against wall mode?

- realistically is this a one or two person job (reasonably fit but not super strong female here)

- and what about moving it around if I change my mind on what room to keep it in?!

Any other tips?

(I have rowed on water before so I hope the technique will come fairly naturally back but would watch the YouTube videos etc!)

Thank you...

Ps GirlwithCurls - if you see this post, it was you who have inspired me.... my pool has stayed shut too....boohoo

AnnPT77

I'd point out that the C2 is also easy to do what you need. It breaks down into 2 pieces for moving or storage, quickly (seconds, really) and with no tools, if you want to break it down. You can store it standing if you secure it. (In practice, you can store it standing without securing it, and most people do, but C2 doesn't recommend it because of the potential for disturbances making it fall.) It has small wheels on the flywheel end that hit the ground when you tilt it, so you can also pick up the opposite end and wheel it around. I pretty much only break mine down if I'm taking it somewhere in my car, or taking it up/down stairs. I can do any of these things with no difficulty as a 5'5", 128 pound, 64-year-old woman.

The Waterrower is a good machine, too, but not as widely used or raced as the C2s. I know I'm not answering your actual questions about Waterrower (can't, don't know), but felt like you might be under misimpressions about the C2.

Either machine, yes, technique is similar to on-water rowing, just with easier balance and no bladework, so simpler.

gentlygently

Thank you.

Yes I had got some things in a twizzle about the C2 - I certainly thought it was more unwieldy than you say!

(Not sure I have a good way to store it secured upright that we would be happy with in our living room/bedroom - I am under the impression the water rower looks less like an exercise machine folded up... hope I’m right!).

The C2/waterrower debate is probably academic right now as the only hire ones I have found so far are water rowers anyway - all the C2 ones seem to have been snapped up in lockdown in the uk ..

Thanks again

AnnPT77

gentlygently wrote: »

Thank you.

Yes I had got some things in a twizzle about the C2 - I certainly thought it was more unwieldy than you say!

(Not sure I have a good way to store it secured upright that we would be happy with in our living room/bedroom - I am under the impression the water rower looks less like an exercise machine folded up... hope I’m right!).

The C2/waterrower debate is probably academic right now as the only hire ones I have found so far are water rowers anyway - all the C2 ones seem to have been snapped up in lockdown in the uk ..

Thanks again

I think a sturdy eyehook in wall or woodwork, and a cord or bungee, would work (though I haven't tried that).

But yes, a Waterrower is a more "furniture looking" thing, for sure. If the aethetics are important to you, and competition or comparison with others is less so, then Waterrower is a good choice. (Be aware that Waterrowers have a reputation for reporting much more flattering speeds than C2s, if you compare with friends across brands. As long as you're only comparing with yourself or other Waterrower users, that's unimportant.)

SwindonJogger

I found the maintenance a pain. The water requires the addition of chlorine tablets every six months and mine went cloudy anyway. If in direct sunlight it could have issues.

sgt1372

Water Rowers (WR) are prettier but are usually more expensive than a C2 but are also less widely available and require more maintenance than a C2, wc requires almost none.

The WR is easy to stand up and store flush against the wall w/o the need for any brackets or support.

The C2 can but really is NOT designed to be stored upright but when it is stored upright you really need 2 use a supporting bracket (Rogue sells one).

Even then, lifting the C2 up to sit it on the bracket can be difficult AND when sitting upright the C2 extends much farther from the wall than the WR bc of the fan housing and reqs much more room to store this way.

So, storing a C2 upright 2 me is no better than just taking it apart and storing the pieces in a corner.

So, if attractiveness and storage are an issue, the WR would be the better chioce but you may have 2 wait longer and pay more 4 one when you do than you would 4 a C2.

MikePfirrman

gentlygently wrote: »

Thank you.

Yes I had got some things in a twizzle about the C2 - I certainly thought it was more unwieldy than you say!

(Not sure I have a good way to store it secured upright that we would be happy with in our living room/bedroom - I am under the impression the water rower looks less like an exercise machine folded up... hope I’m right!).

The C2/waterrower debate is probably academic right now as the only hire ones I have found so far are water rowers anyway - all the C2 ones seem to have been snapped up in lockdown in the uk ..

Thanks again

Yeah, I have a lot of indoor rowing buddies in the UK and some of them waited six months to get their rower from Concept2. But, think about it. Why is there such a long wait for Concept2s, while you can get a WaterRower very soon?

WaterRowers are prettier, though.

gentlygently

Thanks, Very helpful.

As I am thinking of hiring not buying (and only WR on the books at the mo) - I think the WR will make a pretty good (and pretty enough!) addition to the household.

Thanks again

girlwithcurls2

Mine should arrive in a couple of weeks Aesthetics was important. It's going to be living room furniture, given the layout of our home. I have only rowed on a C2 and I loved it. I'm taking a gamble with the water rower, but since I'm looking for a full body, sustained cardio workout with no interest in competition, we decided to do it. My knees are begging me to lower my walking mileage, which I have had to do, but mercy, without a good hard workout, my calorie allotment is minimal, and worse, my sleep is nowhere near as good.

A water rower was cheaper than an infinity pool!!

MikePfirrman

girlwithcurls2 wrote: »

Mine should arrive in a couple of weeks Aesthetics was important. It's going to be living room furniture, given the layout of our home. I have only rowed on a C2 and I loved it. I'm taking a gamble with the water rower, but since I'm looking for a full body, sustained cardio workout with no interest in competition, we decided to do it. My knees are begging me to lower my walking mileage, which I have had to do, but mercy, without a good hard workout, my calorie allotment is minimal, and worse, my sleep is nowhere near as good.

A water rower was cheaper than an infinity pool!!

The WaterRower is starting to incorporate a few of the things that C2 owners have had for a while. For instance, if you have an I-Pod, Zwift is supposed to drop a Rower mode in a few weeks. It might have already happened. There is also a FB group called Zwift Rowers that keeps up with "gamification" ideas for both the C2 and the WaterRower.

Trust me when I say if you row for a while you'll want things to occupy your mind.

sgt1372

MikePfirrman wrote: »

Trust me when I say if you row for a while you'll want things to occupy your mind.

I just watch the TV when I'm rowing.

AnnPT77

Man oh man, I can't watch stuff while rowing (even machine). It interferes with technical focus, for me. (Maybe I'm just easily distracted, or technically challenged.) Oddly, I can listen to music or podcasts and things like that (don't think audio books would work, but haven't tried it).

Others' mileage for sure will vary.

Mixing up the workouts (a la C2's WODs, for example) is the on-water rower's classic for rowing machine distraction, though if training they're varied into a periodized kind of format rather than random. The teams I've worked out with usually use format mixing, music, coaching/coxing, technique drills, and challenges/competitions (not necessarily for speed) to make the longer workouts go a bit faster. Mixed workout format, drills**, and challenges**** can work in the at-home setting.

** Pause drills, stroke progressions, reverse stroke progressions . . . .

** Meters per stroke, how low a spm can you hold, fixed spm goal, fixed split goal . . . .

DevilsFan1

AnnPT77 wrote: »

Man oh man, I can't watch stuff while rowing (even machine). It interferes with technical focus, for me. (Maybe I'm just easily distracted, or technically challenged.) Oddly, I can listen to music or podcasts and things like that (don't think audio books would work, but haven't tried it).

Others' mileage for sure will vary.

I am with you completely. I never listen to music or podcasts when working out. I see people doing squats with headphones on and think to myself "how much more could they lift if they actually focused on lifting."

I'm a firm believer that multitasking is doing multiple things poorly.

sgt1372

DevilsFan1 wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

Man oh man, I can't watch stuff while rowing (even machine). It interferes with technical focus, for me. (Maybe I'm just easily distracted, or technically challenged.) Oddly, I can listen to music or podcasts and things like that (don't think audio books would work, but haven't tried it).

Others' mileage for sure will vary.

I am with you completely. I never listen to music or podcasts when working out. I see people doing squats with headphones on and think to myself "how much more could they lift if they actually focused on lifting."

I'm a firm believer that multitasking is doing multiple things poorly.

Everyone's different and everyone does NOT need or want to lift max wts nor is it necessarily beneficial (given the greater risk of injury) to to so.

Personally, I grew up in a lower flat of a 2 unit flat in San Francisco. The noise from footfalls and other things from the upper flat were extremely annoying and distracting, especially when I was trying to fo my homework.

I learned at an early age that turning on the TV or radio would drown out the noises from upstairs allowing me to FOCUS on my homework or the whatever task was at the time.

The same applies 2 when I am rowing while I am watching (actually just listening to) the TV or while lifting when I listen to the radio.

The "noise" from the TV or radio minimizes any distractions and allows me to focus at the task at hand. So, don't be so quick to judge how others do things. While it might not make sense to (or work for) you, what others do may make complete sense to (and work for) others.

girlwithcurls2

MikePfirrman wrote: »

girlwithcurls2 wrote: »

Mine should arrive in a couple of weeks Aesthetics was important. It's going to be living room furniture, given the layout of our home. I have only rowed on a C2 and I loved it. I'm taking a gamble with the water rower, but since I'm looking for a full body, sustained cardio workout with no interest in competition, we decided to do it. My knees are begging me to lower my walking mileage, which I have had to do, but mercy, without a good hard workout, my calorie allotment is minimal, and worse, my sleep is nowhere near as good.

A water rower was cheaper than an infinity pool!!

The WaterRower is starting to incorporate a few of the things that C2 owners have had for a while. For instance, if you have an I-Pod, Zwift is supposed to drop a Rower mode in a few weeks. It might have already happened. There is also a FB group called Zwift Rowers that keeps up with "gamification" ideas for both the C2 and the WaterRower.

Trust me when I say if you row for a while you'll want things to occupy your mind.

I listen to music when I row. I cannot look at a TV (in the gym) as they aren't directly in front of me. I learned to row in an 8-man scull, so the rule was to look ONLY at the back of the person in front of you. I can look at the screen to see my pace, etc, but the music helps me to not look at distance and think, "That's IT?? Still so far to go..." I'm going to try podcasts too. The bulk of my previous workouts was lap swimming, and I found that I couldn't do it with someone talking to me, so podcasts and books were out. Music was great as long as I didn't try to sing along. I'm going to try it all rowing. We'll see. Different strokes for different folks. And at this point, the air quality out here (Oregon) is so bad, I can't even go for a walk/hike/run. I'm going to be bananas by the time the thing arrives.

ETA: Thanks for the head's up about Zwift! I'll have to look into that. I've got an iPod. Something to look into, for sure.

gentlygently

Sadly it seems my original question is hypothetical - no water rowers for hire in UK given the Covid rush on demand. Oh well...

gentlygently

Yay - my hire water rower arrived this week...!