If you have just purchased a new rowing machine, or about to join a gym to use and indoor rowing machine for the first time please follow our guide.

Its very easy to jump on a rowing machine and go hell for leather for the first minute and them stop as quickly as you started. You will need to pace yourself to get the most out of rowing machine training.

Rowing Machine exercise can be very rewarding and also very relaxing, almost sending the mind into a hypnotic state, the slow rythmic pulls, the reputition of what your doing can be very relaxing even though your getting fitter and burning calories !!!

First of all lets get your machine ready for action, set the resistance level to around 3-5 with 20 being the hardest.

Try to avoid jumping on the machine and doing 30 minutes flat out. You will need to adjust your body to rowing as it really does work every part of you body, you will suddenly find that you have exercised muscle you didnt really now you had.

First Workouts

The Very Time you start Rowing

Avoid  the temptation to row for flat out for 30 minutes the first time you get on the machine. I would recommend starting with no more than 3–5 minutes at a time to let your body adjust. Then take a break to stretch and walk around. If you feel good, do up to 4 of these short intervals of rowing.

The Second Time you Row

Experiment with stroke rate and power, this is how far you travel on the seat back and forwar along with pulling the T bar. The  stroke rate is your cadence in strokes per minute. Keep an eye on your LCD display if your rowing machine is fitted with one, this will indicate your performance on the rowing machine.  The display should also show  a choice of units such as watts, calories, or pace. Spend 3 minute intervals of rowing, varying stroke rate and pace, as described below.

Workout

• 3 min at 20 spm, comfortable effort; 1 min rest
• 3 min at 22 spm, harder effort; 1 min rest
• 3 min at 24 spm comfortable; 1 min rest
• 3 min at 24 spm, harder, 3 min rest.

End with 10 minutes of steady state rowing at whatever spm and power are comfortable. Be sure to note the power and spm you settle on—you will use it next workout.

The Third time you Row

Introduce longer and faster rowing with stroke variations.

Workout

Do four 5 minutes pieces, varying the stroke rate as follows:

• 20 spm for first 2 minutes
• 22 spm for next 2 minutes
• 24 spm for last minute
• Then rest by rowing very easily for 2 minutes, before starting the next 5 minute piece.

Your work out pace should increase to a faster level than your previous 10 minute pace from last workout.

The Fourth time you Row

Longer steady rowing, harder more energy in your stroke but at the same time keep the pace and speed down.

Workout

• Two 10 minute pieces with 3 minutes rest in between.
  Try to alter your pace, try to increase more than you did for the first 10 minute workout 2. Stroke rate 20–24 spm.

The Fifth time you Row

Short intervals for variety and for a chance to see how fast a pace you can achieve.

Workout

• Row 1 minute hard, 1 minute easy for a total of 20 minutes.
  Watch the central display for your pace. Stroke rate 20–24.
  Record your paces after the workout using the recall/memory function on the Performance Monitor.

Benchmark Piece

• 30 minutes, non-stop.
  it may help if you record your times, pace, distance calories burnt and watts generated. You need to bench mark how well your rowing. You will start to feel good about how you have progressed and hopefull you will be on the start of a great form of exercise. Rowing can be carried out by people of all age groups from the young to the not so young .
• Do remember that before starting any form of exercise, you need to build up gradually and rest accordingly.

Many thanks to Peterborough Wedding Photography for use of the great pictures