# Rowing Machine: how to do it

- Main muscles: cardio, upper back
- Also works: quads, lats, biceps
- Equipment: cardio machine
- Level: intermediate
- 3D demo (side view): https://media.trainaq.com/exercises/rowing_machine/2189ef9cf0/side-m-720.mp4

## Steps

1. Strap your feet in, set the damper to 3–5 and hold the handle with straight arms.
2. Slide forward until your shins are upright and lean slightly forward from your hips.
3. Push with your legs, then lean back a little, then pull the handle to just below your ribs.
4. Return in reverse: arms out, lean forward, then bend your knees and slide forward.

## Cues

- Legs, body, arms; arms, body, legs.
- Push hard, return slowly.
- Handle moves in a straight line.

## Common mistakes

- Pulling with your arms first: push with your legs before the arms bend.
- Rushing forward: take about twice as long on the way forward as on the push.
- Hunching over: sit tall with your shoulders relaxed and your chest up.

## The version in our demo

A steady stroke on an air rower at 24 strokes a minute: legs, then body, then arms on the drive; arms, then body, then legs on the recovery. This is the stroke ACE and Concept2 both teach.

## Starting position

Set-up: damper (resistance lever) at 3–5, not higher. Hold the handle with an overhand grip, hands about shoulder width, wrists flat, thumbs under the handle. Body: seat slid forward, shins vertical (never past vertical), arms straight, torso leaning forward from the hips about 30° (the "1 o'clock" position), shoulders level and relaxed, head neutral, eyes forward. Chest close to but not on the thighs.

## The movement

1. Drive: push through the feet so the legs straighten first while the torso holds its angle and the arms stay straight; once the legs are mostly straight, swing the torso back through vertical; finally pull the handle in with the arms. The handle travels in a straight, level line. 2. Finish: legs straight (not locked), torso leaning back about 30° (the "11 o'clock" position), handle just below the ribs, elbows bent past the body, core braced. 3. Recovery: in reverse order and slower: straighten the arms, pivot the torso forward to 1 o'clock, and only once the hands pass the knees, bend the knees and slide the seat forward to the catch.

## Breathing

Breathe out during the drive; breathe in during the recovery.

## Tempo

One stroke at 24 a minute, 2.5 s: drive 0.8 s, recovery 1.7 s (drive to recovery about 1:2, Concept2).

## Form in numbers

- Handle path level and straight, passing just over the knees; the handle never dips or rises in an arc.
- Elbows at the finish bent about 90–110°, just behind the torso, close to the sides; forearms level.

## Sources

1. [ACE, "Reap the Benefits of Rowing With 3 Fast and Efficient Workouts"](https://www.acefitness.org/resources/everyone/blog/5881/reap-the-benefits-of-rowing-with-3-fast-and-efficient-workouts/)
2. [Concept2, "Indoor Rowing Technique on the Concept2 RowErg"](https://www.concept2.com/training/rowing-technique)
3. [Cleveland Clinic, "Top 7 Great Rowing Machine Benefits"](https://health.clevelandclinic.org/rowing-machine-benefits)

Source: https://trainaq.com/exercises/rowing-machine