A Health, Fitness, and Nutrition Directory - Rowing Machines

What is Rowing Machine Exercise Equipment?

Rowing machine exercise equipment is designed for a comprehensive full-body workout, especially back, chest, arms, shoulders and abdomen. The design principle of a rowing machine is based on a natural rowing motion such as that of rowing a boat. Rowing machines are excellent for both cardiovascular workouts and for rowing ‘sprints’ to develop power.

Choosing a Rowing Machine

Choosing quality rowing machine exercise equipment involves some research for a first purchase. There are mainly two types of rowing machines: Air resistance and Hydraulic. Air resistance rowing machines uses fans to create resistance, while hydraulic rowing machines use hydraulic cylinders with a tension adjusting knob. Some of the important features worth considering in rowing machine exercise equipment are:

1. Comfortable seat and rowing position - Try some of the machines to find which one matches your height and body contours and is an overall pleasure to use. The chassis of the rower should be lengthy enough for free movement of your legs.
2. Suitable foot stops - The rower should have large, wide and non slippery foot stops so that the user doesn’t get hurt if foot slips while doing rowing exercises.
3. Panel functions - Availability of basic functions on the panel such as distance rowed, time spent and calories burnt is essential. The machine should have feature of varying the resistance so that it can be used for both cardio and power training.
4. Budget - The typical price of rowing machines ranges from 300 to 3000 dollars, with the higher priced rowing machines having more features. So, strike a balance between the features and the price and buy one that offers you the most in terms of both. Never buy a machine that offers you features which you will probably never use.
5. Space - If you have less space then you should consider a rowing machine that can be folded.

Before using the rowing machine, the proper warm up of your body is very essential. You can do warm up at tread mill and jump rope for a combined duration of 15 minutes. After warm up, you can use rowing machine to do conditioning of your whole body.

Rowing can be done with hands or legs alternately. If you want to rest your legs, then you can row with your hands and if you want to rest your arms then you can keep them still and use legs to do the rowing. Thus rowing nearly covers the complete upper and body muscle groups.

Resistance can be increased if you want to build your muscles. One important point not to be forgotten before exercising on rowing machine is to consult your physician if you already have back related problems. Working out on rowing machine ignoring your pre-existing back issues can lead to serious back related injuries and complications.

Written by LiftW8 Everyday
LiftW8 health, fitness, and nutrition directory.