# Ski Erg: how to do it

- Main muscles: cardio, lats
- Also works: triceps, abs
- Equipment: cardio machine
- Level: intermediate
- 3D demo (side view): https://media.trainaq.com/exercises/ski_erg/78275c3c6d/side-m-720.mp4

## Steps

1. Set the damper to 3–5 and stand facing the machine, feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Hold the handles just above eye level with your elbows bent.
3. Crunch your stomach and hinge at your hips to drive the handles down, letting your arms follow.
4. Finish with the handles beside your thighs, then stand up tall as your arms rise for the next pull.

## Cues

- Core first, arms follow.
- Hat to pocket.
- Hinge, don't squat.

## Common mistakes

- Pulling with just your arms: start each pull by crunching your stomach and hinging.
- Squatting down: push your hips back before your knees bend.
- Rushing back up: take about twice as long to rise as to pull.

## The version in our demo

The standard double-pole stroke: both handles pulled down together by crunching the core and hinging at the hips, the arms following, the knees bending last. This is Concept2's taught technique, based on cross-country double poling.

## Starting position

Set-up: damper at 3–5. Stand facing the machine, feet shoulder width apart and 45–60 cm (18–24 in) from the flywheel housing. One handle in each hand. Body: standing tall, knees slightly bent, core braced. Arms bent about 90° at the elbows, hands holding the handles slightly above eye level and about shoulder width apart, elbows in front of the shoulders. A slight rise onto the toes at the start of the pull is normal.

## The movement

1. Drive: start by crunching the core and dropping the head, chest and shoulders; hinge at the hips (hips push back slightly) before the knees bend; the arms follow, pulling the handles down in an arc close to the front of the body. 2. Finish: handles beside the thighs, just below the hips, arms extended along the hips but not locked, wrists straight, torso hinged forward, knees bent. 3. Recovery: stand back up and let the arms rise with the cord to the start, slower than the drive. "Hat to pocket": hands start no higher than just above the head and finish no lower than the hips.

## Breathing

Breathe out forcefully on the pull; breathe in as you rise.

## Form in numbers

- Finish: elbows bent 10–20°, hands beside the front of the thighs at hip to mid-thigh height.
- Heels may lift 1–3 cm at the catch and settle back during the drive.

## Sources

1. [Concept2, "SkiErg Technique"](https://www.concept2.com/training/skierg-technique)
2. [Concept2, "Getting Started With The SkiErg"](https://www.concept2.com/skierg-start)

Source: https://trainaq.com/exercises/ski-erg