Rowing Machine Fans?

Not much to add to the above. The C2 website has a forum page. There's one called the Pete Plan. The Pete Plan is named after Pete Marston, a well-known UK Indoor rower that competes and created a simple to follow training plan that's very popular. I was very, very active on the C2 forums for years and many of us did the Pete Plan often together.

Anyway, that Pete Plan thread (which I created, BTW), became a fantastic resource for new Indoor rowers. It started with a few yearly PP threads where many of us were asking a zillion questions, learning about Indoor rowing (not Over the water) rowing over the internet -- not ideal, but in my case necessary. Because so many people were asking questions like me (and wanting to train together), we created the thread. It should be titled, "everything you wanted to know about Indoor Rowing but were afraid to ask!". It has tons of information on that thread and many indoor rowers that have forgotten much more than I'll ever know are contributors to answering questions. I'd check that thread out specifically for more information.

Some other people here have already discussed form.
My wife is on a rowing team, so any time I get on an erging machine she kinda chuckles at me.
And I have rowed a fair amount and received many tips and pointers.
They say I still don't row very well and don't get as much out of it as I might.
Point being: Most rowing clubs have free introductory programs, as someone here already mentioned. You might consider one to get some actual coaching before you start out. Erging properly is not as simple and easy as it might appear.

AnnPT77 wrote: »

GiddyupTim wrote: »

Some other people here have already discussed form.
My wife is on a rowing team, so any time I get on an erging machine she kinda chuckles at me.
And I have rowed a fair amount and received many tips and pointers.
They say I still don't row very well and don't get as much out of it as I might.
Point being: Most rowing clubs have free introductory programs, as someone here already mentioned. You might consider one to get some actual coaching before you start out. Erging properly is not as simple and easy as it might appear.

Unfortunately, it's not intuitive, not even close.

There are starting to be a few rowing machine specialist gyms around the country, and some certifying/training organizations for instructors. Some of those may be good (check credentials), and I know a few are excellent. I've known good on-water rowing coaches to offer Winter rowing machine workshops, too, but I suspect their openness to true beginners would vary.

There are also existing rowing clubs/teams that offer erging courses in the winter specifically for adult beginners. Mine does, there are likely a handful of clubs in Puget Sound area that do, and I know that there are others on the East Coast that do as well (just based on clicking around websites). I'm assuming the rest of the West Coast as well as other parts of the country have similar things going on here, though it'll always be a "Google/ask around" sort of thing. That said, these classes are distinct from team erg practices.

AmyMummyTummy2 wrote: »

After I had my kids, and not being able to go to the gym anymore i was advised to look into getting a rowing machine at home because aswell as the cardio excersize it provides it helps to strengthen the core and increasingly tone the muscle. Which is exactly what I needed! I've been consistently using my rowing machine now for 15 months, 5 days a week, 45 mins per day (in 45 mins I can row 14.5km) and I've lost 4 stone whilst toning the stretched skin on my stomach. It is literally the best decision I ever made to buy a rowing machine. Sometimes i do longer on lower tension and other times do a HIIT workout on there on a higher tension.

Good for you! Congrats! That's awesome!