should I buy a rowing machine?
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I LOVE a rowing machine. Seriously. But my back HATES rowing machines!! 20 minutes on a rowing machine will have me hobbling for weeks. Don't buy one until you've had a chance to use one a few times to see if it's really what you want.0
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1horsetown wrote: »I LOVE a rowing machine. Seriously. But my back HATES rowing machines!! 20 minutes on a rowing machine will have me hobbling for weeks. Don't buy one until you've had a chance to use one a few times to see if it's really what you want.
Good point that it can aggravate some pre-existing issues.
Even in people without pre-existing issues, poor technique can cause problems. Specifically, allowing the spine to curve (slumping, arching) under load is a Bad Plan.
Modern coaching (US, at least) is to keep the spine straight, engage the core, stay tall, and pivot from the hip joint to get the body swing in the rowing stroke.
(Back in the "olden days" - say 1970s-80s and earlier - there was more common coaching of a C-shaped back. You'll see it in some elite rowers of the era. Many of them have back problems now.
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1horsetown wrote: »I LOVE a rowing machine. Seriously. But my back HATES rowing machines!! 20 minutes on a rowing machine will have me hobbling for weeks.
Sounds like poor form/technique to me.
The only time you bend over is when you lean forward slightly (to 11 o'clock) at the catch to start the stroke which does not involve any force on the back.
The next move is the drive when you push w/your legs (which do almost all the work) and pull on the handle w/your arms and hinge backwards at the hips until you're upright (at 12 o'clock).
Then you complete the stroke (after your legs are fully extended and finished doing the initial work) as you hinge backward slightly (only to 1 o'clock) while pulling your arms and elbows fully back until the handle touches your upper abs/sternum.
At no point during the stroke is your back bent.
The work at the end of the stroke is done by the arms, shoulders and upper back (scaps and traps). The core/lower back only serve to stabilze your back as it hinges at the hips.
So, no reason IMO why you should be hobbling or experiencing any back pain if you are doing this.
BTW, FWIW, I have a chronic pain in my right SI joint resulting from a squat injury that I suffered about 5 yrs ago.
While I can feel lower back pain from this injury just sitting in a chair, I do not feel any lower back pain during or after my daily rowing sessions.1 -
We got one about a month or so ago and I'm rowing 5,000 or 6,000 m most days, 30 to 40 minutes. Im a.walker, and what I love about the rower is it works more of my body, I really feel the exertion.3
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cwolfman13 wrote: »I wouldn't buy a Concept II unless I knew for certain that I would not only use it, but that it would be my primary exercise modality.
I bought a Stamina air rower a few months back and I'm pretty happy with it at a $300 price tag. It get good reviews for the price. I use it once per week to supplement my cycling, so I didn't want to get anything crazy expensive.
https://bestreviews.com/best-rowing-machines
As other's suggested, you might just want to join a gym that has one and try it out there...a gym will also make available to you all kinds of other equipment and a weight room. Conversely, there are a lot of things you can do from home that are free. There's absolutely no need to spend a lot of money on your fitness, especially when you don't really have it.
We got the stamina too, but it isn't built to last. It's pretty much fallen apart piece by piece over the last year. First the battery compartment fell apart, then the foot bar pieces fell off and dissapeared, and now the seat won't stay tight. I'm a strong proponent of get the best you can afford, so it will last longer, and I always regret it when I let my hubby talk me into a cheaper version. However, this is a big monetary commitment, so defintely try to get some day passes or week passes at a gym and see if you even like the darned thing, before plunking down $1000 plus bucks on it.0 -
I'll echo what many others have said. Many gyms will let you purchase a day pass or even better yet, give you a pass for a free week to try it out before deciding if you want to join. Find a gym that has C2 rowers, take advantage of the free pass and try them out before you buy. A thousand dollars is a big investment without knowing whether or not you'll even like it enough to stick with it.
The gym I go to has them and I row 1000m (about 5 minutes) at the beginning of every workout as a warmup. I love them for that purpose, but I don't know that I can picture going 20-30 minutes at a time on them as my main form of cardio. As much as I despise running on the treadmill, I find even that more tolerable for longer periods than stationary rowing. It's definitely a "to each their own" kind of thing.0 -
I do a lot of indoor rowing, but I use a concept 2 at the gym. I did have a cheaper rower at home, but the there are a couple of drawbacks:
1 - space - whilst they (sort of) fold up they take up a fair bit of room, and are not everyone's idea of interior design
2 - noise - I would be nervous of using in a flat etc (not 100% sure of this and it depends on how hard you row)
3 - your flooring. My rower "walked" on a wooden floor and made holes in carpet. Solved with a rubber mat though.
So I now prefer to use one at the gym, plus being a "billy no mates" it gets me out of the house.
That said, I would now only buy a concept 2 if I were to buy a rowing machine. Not because they are better than other similarly priced rowers, just because of their website and the online logging and competitions. I find them very motivating.
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My first machine would be a stationary bicycle - one of the simple ones. Easy to move, takes little space, can take it into the garden to cycle outside. Good re - sale value once I get fed up with it.0
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It's been my experience that a gym membership that has several of the machines I would want to use is more cost effective than buying machines for home use. I use Retro Fitness. My monthly membership is $22 including taxes. My health insurance reimburses me $20 for each month I go 12 times. A good machine, will cost in excess of $1000 ($3000 for a good elliptical or treadmill) At this cost it would take me over 3 years at the gym to exceed the cost of the machine (without considering the Health Insurance reimbursement). Plus at the gym I get to use the rowers, the ellipticals, the treadmills, stationary bikes, stair climbers, free weights and weight machines. My options are almost unlimited, my cost is bearable, I don't lose space in my home and I'm not committed to ONE machine.0
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I love my concept 2 and have used it for an hour every other day for 2.5 years, BUT... I would never spend $1,000 on something like a rower if that was a significant portion of my savings. Sounds like the OP is looking to lose weight, as others have said you don't need any exercise equipment to do that.
If anyone is interested in buying a concept 2 another way to save a few bucks is buying one from a rowing competition. A lot of larger cities have rowing competitions once a year that feed into the CRASH-B competition. They will buy 100's of brand new concept 2's to be used that one day and then they sell them for a few hundred dollars under the going price for a new one. They aren't brand new, but have only been used for a few races for one day. The other plus is no shipping costs, you pick yours up from the race site.1 -
maddiewilliams231 wrote: »I’m looking at a concept 2 model d (seems to be the only long-lasting quality one on the market) and debating if I should buy one. I made a little over $1000 at my part time job last summer and the rower will cost all of that. Here are my pros and cons, tell me what you think:
PROS
1. need to lose weight (fat)
2. need to gain full body strength
3. need better cardiovascular health (breathing + heart)
4. don’t currently do cardio consistently
5. low impact exercise (bad knees)
6. indoors and convenient - no excuses (full workout in <hour)
CONS
1. never rowed before, don’t know if i’ll like it (I kayak a lot though and like that, not sure if it’s similar though)
2. cost = $1,000 (one summer’s wages)
3. time - make excuses about not having enough time
thank you!!
If you like Kayaking why not take that up more regularly? I find gym machines boring as.. but I joined a local rowing club and do that weekly now, so much more fun on the river than looking at a wall!1 -
I don't know that I'd spend 1/4-1/3 of my annual salary on a single piece of equipment that I had never used before and wasn't certain would be a good fit.1
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maddiewilliams231 wrote: »I’m looking at a concept 2 model d (seems to be the only long-lasting quality one on the market) and debating if I should buy one. I made a little over $1000 at my part time job last summer and the rower will cost all of that. Here are my pros and cons, tell me what you think:
PROS
1. need to lose weight (fat)
2. need to gain full body strength
3. need better cardiovascular health (breathing + heart)
4. don’t currently do cardio consistently
5. low impact exercise (bad knees)
6. indoors and convenient - no excuses (full workout in <hour)
CONS
1. never rowed before, don’t know if i’ll like it (I kayak a lot though and like that, not sure if it’s similar though)
2. cost = $1,000 (one summer’s wages)
3. time - make excuses about not having enough time
thank you!!maddiewilliams231 wrote: »I’m looking at a concept 2 model d (seems to be the only long-lasting quality one on the market) and debating if I should buy one. I made a little over $1000 at my part time job last summer and the rower will cost all of that. Here are my pros and cons, tell me what you think:
PROS
1. need to lose weight (fat)
2. need to gain full body strength
3. need better cardiovascular health (breathing + heart)
4. don’t currently do cardio consistently
5. low impact exercise (bad knees)
6. indoors and convenient - no excuses (full workout in <hour)
CONS
1. never rowed before, don’t know if i’ll like it (I kayak a lot though and like that, not sure if it’s similar though)
2. cost = $1,000 (one summer’s wages)
3. time - make excuses about not having enough time
thank you!!maddiewilliams231 wrote: »I’m looking at a concept 2 model d (seems to be the only long-lasting quality one on the market) and debating if I should buy one. I made a little over $1000 at my part time job last summer and the rower will cost all of that. Here are my pros and cons, tell me what you think:
PROS
1. need to lose weight (fat)
2. need to gain full body strength
3. need better cardiovascular health (breathing + heart)
4. don’t currently do cardio consistently
5. low impact exercise (bad knees)
6. indoors and convenient - no excuses (full workout in <hour)
CONS
1. never rowed before, don’t know if i’ll like it (I kayak a lot though and like that, not sure if it’s similar though)
2. cost = $1,000 (one summer’s wages)
3. time - make excuses about not having enough time
thank you!!maddiewilliams231 wrote: »I’m looking at a concept 2 model d (seems to be the only long-lasting quality one on the market) and debating if I should buy one. I made a little over $1000 at my part time job last summer and the rower will cost all of that. Here are my pros and cons, tell me what you think:
PROS
1. need to lose weight (fat)
2. need to gain full body strength
3. need better cardiovascular health (breathing + heart)
4. don’t currently do cardio consistently
5. low impact exercise (bad knees)
6. indoors and convenient - no excuses (full workout in <hour)
CONS
1. never rowed before, don’t know if i’ll like it (I kayak a lot though and like that, not sure if it’s similar though)
2. cost = $1,000 (one summer’s wages)
3. time - make excuses about not having enough time
thank you!!
I had a rowing machine and the only exercise I ever received was moving it.
Gym membership a much better deal but the best deal of all is free...go for a walk
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I agree with the others that a gym membership will be a cheaper alternative that will allow you to try different equipment to see what you like best. If you decide you want to go through with purchasing a rower, I highly suggest you look for used equipment. Check craigslist, Facebook marketplace, etc. I was able to purchase a used WaterRower for $600 compared to $1k new. The WaterRower also stores upright so it doesn't take up much space.0
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maddiewilliams231 wrote: »I’m looking at a concept 2 model d (seems to be the only long-lasting quality one on the market) and debating if I should buy one. I made a little over $1000 at my part time job last summer and the rower will cost all of that. Here are my pros and cons, tell me what you think:
PROS
1. need to lose weight (fat)
2. need to gain full body strength
3. need better cardiovascular health (breathing + heart)
4. don’t currently do cardio consistently
5. low impact exercise (bad knees)
6. indoors and convenient - no excuses (full workout in <hour)
CONS
1. never rowed before, don’t know if i’ll like it (I kayak a lot though and like that, not sure if it’s similar though)
2. cost = $1,000 (one summer’s wages)
3. time - make excuses about not having enough time
thank you!!
Why don't you buy a fitbit?
You could then work on bringing your general movement up - walking is really good for you. Add in some running or short blasts of sprints?1 -
KeepRunningFatboy wrote: »Sometimes the gym is a good investment. Numerous machines and weights and opportunities to vary exercise. Treadmills, elliptical, bikes, rowing machines, weights. All for one monthly price that can be renewed or cancelled. Also the gym maintains the equipment if defective or broke.
Unfortunately, this can't be said to be true especially for Concept2 rowers. I went to an LA Fitness and myself and all the other rowers had to pretty much band together to inform them that their C2 was dreadfully broken. Most fitness instructors don't row (or barely do cardio for that matter). When I frequent other LA Fitnesses around town, all too often the rowers are broken, which is a huge shame. I usually have to point out to the staff which rowers are in good form and which need desperate attention.
When you try a machine out, there should be no unusual clicking, sounds, skipping feel to the chain. It should be smooth throughout. Also, you should be able to get a decent "Drag Factor" on a machine unless it's really, really dirty.
C2s, with very little maintenance (like lubing the chain every four months and changing the batteries occasionally along with cleaning the fan off inside the fan guard) are so easy to maintain but the gyms fail in this regard so bad I had to buy a rower after it became my exercise of choice.0 -
MikePfirrman wrote: »C2s, with very little maintenance (like lubing the chain every four months and changing the batteries occasionally along with cleaning the fan off inside the fan guard) are so easy to maintain but the gyms fail in this regard so bad I had to buy a rower after it became my exercise of choice.
Agreed.
My experience w/equipment generally and C2's in particular in gyms is that they are very poorly maintained and only get mechanical attention when broken.
The 2 at my gym both have dead batteries in their PMs (so that you cannot use a USB stick to record your workout) in the newer one w/the PM5) and the older one of them is so worn that you cannot set the drag factor at an acceptable level even when you set the fan lever at 10 max, where it is always improperly set by users who incorrectly think that that setting should be used to increase rowing resistance/difficulty which is probably why the rower is worn out in the 1st place.
Fortunately, I have my own C2 and have no need to use them but, based on my assessment, its obvious that one of them needs to be reconditoned or replaced and the other is in need of basic maintenance that it apparently never receives.1 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »I wouldn't buy a Concept II unless I knew for certain that I would not only use it, but that it would be my primary exercise modality.
I bought a Stamina air rower a few months back and I'm pretty happy with it at a $300 price tag. It get good reviews for the price. I use it once per week to supplement my cycling, so I didn't want to get anything crazy expensive.
https://bestreviews.com/best-rowing-machines
As other's suggested, you might just want to join a gym that has one and try it out there...a gym will also make available to you all kinds of other equipment and a weight room. Conversely, there are a lot of things you can do from home that are free. There's absolutely no need to spend a lot of money on your fitness, especially when you don't really have it.
We got the stamina too, but it isn't built to last. It's pretty much fallen apart piece by piece over the last year. First the battery compartment fell apart, then the foot bar pieces fell off and dissapeared, and now the seat won't stay tight. I'm a strong proponent of get the best you can afford, so it will last longer, and I always regret it when I let my hubby talk me into a cheaper version. However, this is a big monetary commitment, so defintely try to get some day passes or week passes at a gym and see if you even like the darned thing, before plunking down $1000 plus bucks on it.
How often do you use it? I've had mine for about 3.5 months and no problems so far, but I only use it once per week and not all of that time is spent rowing. I do these 20-30 minute rowing videos where I row some easy, sprint, then get off and do some various calisthenics, back on the rower, rinse and repeat.
My thoughts were that if it lasted 2-3 years I'd be ok with that and then upgrade if I was still actually using it. Most indoor cardio equipment I've ever bought ends up just sitting there eventually.0 -
Get a gym membership, become good at rowing on the Erg. Then decide.
Form is VERY important with the rower. I learned it the hard way in college (lower back injury that took a while to recover)
Do not spend $1k on a technical piece of equipment that you don't know how to use0 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »I wouldn't buy a Concept II unless I knew for certain that I would not only use it, but that it would be my primary exercise modality.
I bought a Stamina air rower a few months back and I'm pretty happy with it at a $300 price tag. It get good reviews for the price. I use it once per week to supplement my cycling, so I didn't want to get anything crazy expensive.
https://bestreviews.com/best-rowing-machines
As other's suggested, you might just want to join a gym that has one and try it out there...a gym will also make available to you all kinds of other equipment and a weight room. Conversely, there are a lot of things you can do from home that are free. There's absolutely no need to spend a lot of money on your fitness, especially when you don't really have it.
Thanks for posting this. I've been researching water rowing machines and I found a Stamina for a decent price and I only see recommendations for the Concept. Yes, it is the "gold standard" but I'd rather a mid range item to initially use.0
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