Can Smart Indoor Rowing Machines Help You Lose Weight?

One of the most popular concerns when it comes to working out and exercise is whether or not a particular discipline or machine will help with weight loss. It is important to point out that there are no magical schemes or quick-fix solutions. There are not even machines that will guarantee that you lose weight.

Particularly if you don’t put the work and effort in. That’s what the real key to losing weight and seeing real noticeable results is – determination, perseverance, and lots of hard work, sweat, tears, and even a little blood (though don’t purposely hurt yourself).

Of all the many different exercise machines available these days, there is one particular piece of exercise equipment that has become increasingly popular. That piece of equipment is the indoor rowing machine.

Before we go any further, let’s clear it up once and for all – in answer to the question posed in the heading – yes, you can lose weight using an indoor rowing machine. We understand that is not enough information. This is why we are going to open up the subject a little more in the following post.

Weight Loss and Rowing

Although there are a lot of different exercise machines out there right now, there is one that has been proven time and time again to help with weight loss and that is the rowing machine. According to Harvard Health Publishing, the reason rowing machines stand out from the sea of others is that they offer a workout experience that is the closest thing to engaging all the muscle groups in your body, which is key to losing weight.

What Are the Muscles Actually Used When Rowing?

Following on from the last point, a great resource (Fitness Training Star) compares Hydrow vs Ergatta vs CITYROW Go, and they proved that it makes sense to discuss the actual muscles that are engaged when you workout using a smart rowing machine. You may or may not already know that there are more than 650 different skeletal muscles throughout the body. All these individual muscles play important roles in supporting your health in general, which is why it is so vital to keep them healthy and strong by using them, i.e. through exercise.

You will find that most exercise machines focus on one specific muscle group. For instance, exercise bikes tend to focus on lower body muscles like hamstrings, calves, and glutes.

Interestingly, the International Sports Sciences Association stated that around 86% of all muscles are engaged in each and every stroke on a rowing machine, when executed properly.

Let’s break this down further. In the lower part of your body, rowing works your calves, quads, glutes, and hamstrings. During the first part of the rowing motion, the pulling section, your trapezius, rhomboids, pecs, wrist flexors and extensors, triceps, and deltoids are engaged in your upper body.

When you complete the full pull-back motion. Don’t worry about your obliques or abs in your core, as these are also fully engaged during rowing.

How do you Actually Use Weight Rowing?

So, we have so far discussed the potential and possibility of losing weight through rowing. You are probably wondering now, how it is actually done. As we have already noted, it involves a determined and consistent approach. To give you some help, though, we are now going to discuss some specifics you can incorporate into your workout.

Check out the following link for more of the health benefits with rowing.

Sit-In your Rowing Machine Taller 

If you are interested in really firing up your core, you need to keep the correct posture and alignment. To do that, you need to sit in your rowing machine as tall as you can and stop rounding your back and hunching over. Lift up your chest, look forwards with your chin up and avoid dropping your head down. You will be able to keep the airways open and you will have a more effective and efficient rowing machine.

Concentrate on Your Legs

With each rowing stroke, it is important to drive your legs fully into the heel-rest. This helps to engage the bigger muscles that your lower body consists of, such as the glutes, and this will in turn help you to burn even more calories.

One mistake that a lot of people commonly make is focusing on utilizing their upper body as the main driving force. However, if you are looking to get the very best results possible from workouts with your rowing machine, you need to put those strong leg muscles into good use and work them hard.

A good rule of thumb about getting the best from your rowing is that 50% from your legs, 30% from your core and back, and 20% from your arms.

Do Power Strokes Intervals 

Once you have finished stretching and warming up, mix up your exercise routine into three sets of powerful strokes. These are explosive and fast strokes that are amazing for burning calories and melting fat. Although you should stick to the same rhythm throughout your workout interval, you will pull much harder with your arms and core and push much harder with your feet for rowing faster.

A good idea is to try and do 10 power strokes with a rate of 24 strokes every minute, and then 10 recovery strokes. Next, you need a secondary set of 26 strokes every minute and then follow it with another recovery set of strokes and then a final 28 strokes every minute.

HIIT or High-Intensity Interval Training exercises are the kind that is most effective for getting the most out of workouts to burn calories and melt that fat.

Try Endurance Training

Although HIIT training types of exercises are the most effective way to get the weight loss gains you are looking for, you should still use the slower and steadier endurance style workouts that can also increase your weight loss and calorie burn.

So, there you have it, the short answer is still that you can lose weight from using a rowing machine. By following the tips above and remembering the advice we have noted, you can really benefit from using a rowing machine indoors, especially if you are restricted for choice and have to pick one particular piece of equipment.