Only training on the indoor rower

[sven.cie]

Hey all,

I am new to this forum and since a couple of weeks i am hooked to the indoor rower!

So, I joined a gym recently and I really enjoy the indoor rower. I also run and get on the stationary bike very often.

But my question is as follows: according to a study, the indoor rower uses up to 86% of your muscles. Mostly quads, hams, core, upper back and biceps.
I think that pecs, triceps and front shoulders don't really work during a indoor rowing session? (correct me if I'm wrong)

So, if the above statement is correct (about the pecs and tri's), is there a high possibility that there will be a muscle imbalance if I only keep rowing for upper body?

I am not really interested in strength training. I have always been more a cardio/endurance (and sometimes interval training in the mix) minded guy.

All answers are appreciated!

PS: English is not my first language. So my apologies in advance, if there are a few errors in the text

Cheers!

[gilles13006]

Hi!

You will see many papers on which muscles are working while rowing. From what i read, only elliptical bike makes more muscles work, but rowing is quite a whole body killing machine. After my first 100% indoor rowing year, i can say my whole body transformed, more athletic, better sleep, metabolism, more fit. Some muscles really pumped up (legs shoulders and back), others a little less (arms, abs), but everything clearly was sollicitated.

But like every movement, we are not a mechanical piece which is designed to make the same exact movement life long. « Danger » with rowing, like swimming, is to develop strong muscles with weak articulations, since they are not sollicitated, in force speeking. This is why it’s good to also walk or jogging regularly. Moreover, jogging is more stressful for body so it’s good to remind to it which some stress looks like. I personally do indoor rowing 90% jogging 5% and bike 5%.
It’s good for my body, my social life and my tan haha

[Ombrax]

Welcome to the forum, Sven!

Unless you truly are single-minded in your focus and sufficiently motivated by only one type of exercise (albeit, a very good one) another reason, beyond just variety for your body, to do more than just row indoors, is variety for your brain. If you only do one thing you're (in my opinion) much more likely to get either bored or burnt-out, and run the risk of losing interest and possibly even quitting completely.

Bottom line, even though the row-erg does exercise a number of different muscles, it's in both your body and your mind's best interests to do a variety of different exercises.

[jamesg]

So, if the above statement is correct (about the pecs and tri's), is there a high possibility that there will be a muscle imbalance if I only keep rowing for upper body?

Rowing is 80% legs and hips, not upper body; they're large, so we use them. For upper body, freestyle or kayak, both twist the spine, which is important too.

Swimming also offers more opportunity for the long stuff, and the effort can be balanced between legs and shoulders as necessary. It's easier to swim for two hours than row for one, there's no seat and we pull one side at a time.

In rowing our high leg strength and using two together gives high peak power and offers endurance for medium distance work, since what gearing there is for 2 to 5k.

[Dangerscouse]

But my question is as follows: according to a study, the indoor rower uses up to 86% of your muscles. Mostly quads, hams, core, upper back and biceps.
I think that pecs, triceps and front shoulders don't really work during a indoor rowing session? (correct me if I'm wrong)

So, if the above statement is correct (about the pecs and tri's), is there a high possibility that there will be a muscle imbalance if I only keep rowing for upper body?

Welcome to the forum Sven

There is a upper body posterior muscle dominance in rowing, so all I suggest to do is some press ups if you don't like doing weights.

The muscle imbalance will take a long time to develop so don't worry about it too much

[sven.cie]

Hi everyone,

Thank you all for the great answers so far. Much appreciated!

I also jog (treadmill or outside) and use the stationary bike pretty often. Most of the time i start my training with a 10 minute warm-up, followed by a 5k rowing. Trying to beat my PR, if I'm feeling good, which now stands at 20:44. After a (short) break, I either hop on the stationary bike or jog on the treadmill or do both if I have enough gas in the tank. I try to do this 3x a week. But 2x is a minimum. I have a one year old son and it's not always evident to make it to the gym with work and family, but i try.
I also regularly go for a long distance walk in the weekend, albeit not every weekend and mostly in the spring and summer.

The tip of doing some push-ups is a good idea to balance all the posterior work.

A side question as a novice rower: what is the resistance level that is mostly used on the indoor rower. I use 5, but what do you guys use? Is this just personal preference or is there a "better" resistance for faster rowing times?

And also: what is a "good" 5k and 2k time to aim for?

Thanks a lot, guys, for the great answers thus far!

[Tony Cook]

A side question as a novice rower: what is the resistance level that is mostly used on the indoor rower. I use 5, but what do you guys use? Is this just personal preference or is there a "better" resistance for faster rowing times?

And also: what is a "good" 5k and 2k time to aim for?

Thanks a lot, guys, for the great answers thus far!

Hi Sven,
Look up ‘drag factor’ for the resistance level. The number on the fan will be different on different ergs. It’s a personal thing and a good idea to try different DFs to find what suits you. 120 is a good starting point.
A good time depends on a lot of personal factors. Age, sec, height, weight, body type, fitness level, training/sporting background.
Have a look at https://log.concept2.com/rankings to see how people in your age, sex and weight class groups to see what other similar people are doing.

[JaapvanE]

Have a look at https://log.concept2.com/rankings to see how people in your age, sex and weight class groups to see what other similar people are doing.

And be reminded that some are/were Olympic or World class rowers, so don't get intimidated by their times, it is just a not so subtle hint what you could have achieved if you were dedicated to this sport for a huge part during your adult life. My point is: don't be afraid to look at the lower parts of these rankings were the normal mortals are...

[GlennUk]

And be reminded that some are/were Olympic or World class rowers, so don't get intimidated by their times, it is just a not so subtle hint what you could have achieved if you were dedicated to this sport for a huge part during your adult life. My point is: don't be afraid to look at the lower parts of these rankings were the normal mortals are...

It is worthwhile reminding ourselves that when you look at the rankings for any given class, they encompass all potential C2 rowers , potentially including those capable of getting work class medals.

However that does not mean we are not aloso athletes, merely ones that are not 'quite' as fast as some others. Even at the elite level, not everyone wins gold at the olympics/world champs, many will compete and never medal, they are stil lathletes, and so are those of us lower down.

[JaapvanE]

However that does not mean we are not aloso athletes, merely ones that are not 'quite' as fast as some others. Even at the elite level, not everyone wins gold at the olympics/world champs, many will compete and never medal, they are stil lathletes, and so are those of us lower down.

I wholeheartedly agree with you here. When I look at the rankings of my C2-affiliation, I see 85+ year olds making as much meters as I am (50 years old with too much energy), heading for 1 to 1.5 million miles a year. They aren't as fast as I am, but they are on that erg and even making the same meters, and they are superior athletes in my book.

I think we all have our own road to walk/row, some are faster, some are slower, but all are true athletes. I am a firm believer of the "Beat Yesterday" mantra, which can take different forms for different people. That is why I feel some objection to comparing to the rankings: some are people who have rowed all their adult life, some just started. Some log their casual steady states, some are doing carefully planned timed pieces. Some are 1.60 meters long with a bit too much weight, some are 2.10 meters long and build like Schwarzenegger. Some are recovering from serious injury. Without knowing such a background, it is hard to pick the right reference.

So when people ask what a good 5K time would be for them to strive for, I would say "Your PB/SB minus a second".

[Dangerscouse]

I'm always reluctant to suggest what a 'good' time for any distance is. Good is subjective to what you're capable of, and if you're properly giving 100% effort, then that is a good time; whatever that happens to be imo.

There's a fine line between motivation from aiming towards a specific time, and comparison. Motivation is constructive and will help you when you need it. Comparison is the thief of joy, and will erode your ability to be content with what you're capable of.

I think that the best option is as Tony suggested, to look at the relevant rankings and aim for the 50 percentile of your age and weight groupings. The sheer amount of 'normal' people on there far outweighs anyone who is capable of world class results. As an example for the 5k, for all ages of HWTs, Andy Tomlinson is currently top of the list, at 16:09, but the average from 3878 participants is 21:18.

FWIW, Andy is a fireman and I don't think any Olympic rowers are allowed to post their times anymore. They used to years ago, but nowadays I know that British rowers can't, and I assume the same applies to every other country.

[mitchel674]

Welcome!

I find pushups and pullups to be excellent complements to rowing. I try to get in 100 pushups every day. You should also consider adding yoga or pilates to your routine. These different movements and poses will be very helpful in the long run.

As for drag factor, starting at 120 and adjusting for your personal preference is what I suggest for most.

[sven.cie]

Thank you all for the great information.

I'll definitely experiment with different drag factors and see what feels best for me.
I'll also look in the rankings to see at what level I am, but like someone pointed out: a good time is your PB minus one second. I really like that and it's true!
Always trying to improve yourself and give your 100 % is all that matters.

I am looking forward to getting better and better and be the best version of me I can be!

It has been a long time since I was so motivated to get better at a sport, since my wrist injury that had me quit boxing for good in april 2018.
Although I never quit sport after my injury (I still was jogging and cycling on my stationary bike at home), I never felt the motivation to get better at running for example. With rowing, I do have that motivation and it feels great.

Thanks again, everybody, for all the information provided. It's very much appreciated!

[Dangerscouse]

You should also consider adding yoga or pilates to your routine. These different movements and poses will be very helpful in the long run.

Yeah, good point.

I've been doing hot dynamic Pilates once a week for almost 10 years now, and I highly recommend it if you can find somewhere to do it. I'd also do Yin Yoga (long stretches) if I had the spare time.

[jamesg]

And also: what is a "good" 5k and 2k time to aim for?

You can see plenty of times by others in the C2 logbook, for your age and size (LW or HW).

"Good" might be around 3W/kg in the 5k and 4W/kg in the 2k.

Ages over 60 will have lower Power rates, but there's still a lot of variation due to style. Remember that performance depends on the quality of your stroke (ie it's Work content), since there's a limit to the number we can pull in a minute.

At age 62-63 I could pull a 2k at 3.5W/kg (280W at 80kg) and a 5k at just under 3W/kg. I had learnt to row at school, but had no strength other than that needed to walk. Endurance was as produced by about fifty 5ks in a year.