Knee stress

onekgguy · Post by **onekgguy** » January 3rd, 2009, 8:39 pm

I'm a 51 year old avid cyclist who rides 6000-9000 miles per year. I'm considering buying a rowing machine to help develop my upper body and give my knees a bit of a break. I've watched some videos and it appears that there's a considerable amount of driving force exerted through the knees and quads. Maybe this isn't such a good idea for me after all.

Is there anybody here who is both an avid cyclist and rower who can give me a comparison between the two activities and how they relate to knee strain?

Thanks,

Kevin g

Cyclist2 · Post by **Cyclist2** » January 4th, 2009, 12:16 am

Kevin; I'm a pretty avid cyclist (just did 65 miles today) but have been rowing and erging for over 20 years. Fortunately I don't have knee problems, so can't address that directly, but the forces from the erg and the bike seem about the same to me. Maybe a little less stress on the erg since you are using both legs together, rather than one at a time. The alignment may also be better- straighter pushes.

There are lots of cyclists on this forum, so you'll get other responses, I'm sure.

Welcome. I don't think you'd regret erging. Try one for a while at a gym to see if it suits you.

onekgguy · Post by **onekgguy** » January 4th, 2009, 2:11 am

Hi Mark,

Thanks for your reply. Yes, I'm hoping to be able to spend a little time on a friend's rower to give me a better feel for the stresses my knee will need to endure. I had someone else point out to me that there are far fewer rpm's associated with rowing than there are with cycling and rowing workouts are easily much shorter in duration. All that should work to my advantage. Thanks.

Kevin g

marvy1 · Post by **marvy1** » January 4th, 2009, 7:08 pm

Kevin - I ruptured the quadriceps tendon in my left leg Sept 12, 2008. I was not able to row for a couple of months while my tendon healed. When I started to row again, the stress on my knee was mild. In fact rowing is now good for the knee. It improves the quad muscles (as you know) and I am getting back my range of motion in the knee.

Marvin

onekgguy · Post by **onekgguy** » January 4th, 2009, 7:59 pm

Marvin,

Thanks. I was able to try a friend's Concept 2 today and I didn't feel any significant stress on my knees. I felt stress in other places, forearms and shoulders but not my knees. I think I'll be fine with it. Thanks.

Kevin g