The rowing machine, also known as the “erg”, is one of the most effective pieces of fitness equipment for burning fat and improving conditioning. The rower is one of the few machines that provides both cardio and strength training benefits, and will work both your upper and lower body muscles. It’s also a great non-weight bearing exercise machine, so it allows you to increase your intensity without increasing your impact. This is especially useful for injury prevention and means you can still get a tough workout in without the DOMS that come from other activities.
So if you’re a bit over the treadmill or stationary bike at the gym, try mixing it up with a workout on the rowing machine and improve both your cardiovascular fitness and overall strength. Enjoy these 6 workouts!
Workout 1: Speed
100m row, 30 seconds of rest x5
150m row, 45 seconds of rest x5
200m row, 60 seconds of rest x5
2 minutes of rest
200m row, 60 seconds of rest x5
150m row, 45 seconds of rest x5
100m row, 30 seconds of rest x5
Workout 2: Endurance Pyramid
Warm up 5 min easy row
1 min row, 1 min rest
2 min row, 2 min rest
3 min row, 3 min rest
4 min row, 4 min rest
3 min row, 3 min rest
2 min row, 2 min rest
1 min row, 1 min rest
Workout 3: Strength & Power
Warm up 5 min easy row
Interval 1 –
30 sec sprint, 30 sec rest x5
50 air squats
Interval 2 –
30 sec sprint, 30 sec rest x5
20 push ups
Interval 3 –
30 sec sprint, 30 sec rest x5
30 Russian twists (weighted)
Workout 4: Upper Body Focus
Row 1,000 meters
10 pushups
Row 750 meters
15 pushups
Row 500 meters
20 pushups
Row 250 meters
25 pushups
Workout 5: Lower Body Focus
Row 100 meters
Bodyweight squat 10 reps
Row 200 meters
Bodyweight squat 10 reps
Alternating reverse lunge 20 reps
Single leg glute bridge 10 reps each side
That’s 1 round. Do 3 total rounds, resting when needed.
Workout 6: Full Body Cross Training
5-minute easy row warm-up
10 pulls; 5 push-ups + 5 V-ups. Repeat 2 more times.
20 pulls; 10 reverse lunges + 10 squat jumps. Repeat 2 more times.
30 pulls; 10 burpees. Repeat 2 more times.
30-second row; 30-second plank hold off the rower. Repeat 5 times.
Cool down
