In this guide, we are going to show the perfect setting procedure of a rowing machine to have a more effective and fruitful training session.
If you are using the rowing machine for the first time, you need to set it properly to make the workout low-impact and efficient for your body.
The main things you need to adjust before starting your workout are the foot and body positions, resistance level, screen setting, etc. After setting the rowing machine properly, you can be ready to go in a minute. You should always go through the full guide to know about the setting process.
Adjusting Body Position
First of all, keep your feet on the pedals and sit on the rowing machine with your glutes toward the back of the seat, so that the seat’s dip supports your tailbone and stiffen the straps according to your comfort level. Push yourself back until your legs are straight, activate your quadriceps, make your arms are straight forward, gripping the handle
Calculate how much further you should go towards the machine now. The catch, which is the most forward position of your paddle, varies depending on an individual’s flexibility and catch the water in the real boat. According to Kreck, Maintain a wide chest by holding your shoulders back the whole time, if you find that your shoulders are collapsing inward, you’re too much forward.
When you’re in the catch position, your torso should be somewhat forward-leaning and If you’re too far forward, you risk overworking your upper body, which will make the workout high-impact. The ideal catch requires little effort when in motion. Simply brace your arms and chest while accelerating the flywheel with your legs in a comprehensive and smooth splat.
Adjusting Feet Position
After setting the body position, now this is the foot position’s turn and you need to adjust the foot stretchers and straps. At the catch position, make sure your arms are slightly over your knees and tighten the straps over the balls of your feet.
You can make the foot stretchers in higher or lower positions according to your need which will put your feet in the correct form. Generally, longer shins require a lower stretcher height. Try different settings of the stretcher until you get the perfect position which will allow you to get sufficient space to drive without making contact between your knees and forearms.
Adjusting the Resistance Level
In the Concept 2 rowing machine, you can adjust the resistance by shifting the damper setting. You will get the handle beside the flywheel and can set the resistance from level 1 to 10 which will determine the amount of airflow into the flywheel.
When the resistance is at level 10, it will allow most airflow and when it is at level 01, it reduces the resistance and passes little airflow. Beginners should set the resistance in between levels 3 to 5 as higher settings make the workout more powerful which may be difficult to sustain for the beginners.
You don’t need to adjust the resistance on the water rowers as it will depend on your rowing speed just like real boat rowing.
Display Setting
The displays of both Concept2 and Water Rower show the resistance, speed, stroke rate, time, calorie and distance of the workout. On Concept2 you need to select the “Just Row” option for a quick-start.
The display will show the strokes, distance, time and 500 meters spit time. You can press units for switching from meters to pace, watts or calories and you can press the “workout” button for finding the 5 pre-set workout programs.
Finally, observing the drag factor is also important because this is the most precise way to calculate the resistance. The drag factor fixes the differences in the intake of air into the flywheel. The drag factor will be around 90 in resistance level 1 whereas it would be around 220 in level 10.
On the other side, you can control the speed unit such as miles/ hour and meters/ second, 2000 and 500 meter split times, calories/ hour and watts by pressing the down and up arrows on the display. If you change the distance options such as miles, meters, strokes and kilometers you need to press the units button 3 times.
If you are rowing for the first time, you need to keep the damper setting in between 3 to 5 and adjust the handles to your required position to have a powerful and intense aerobic session. In this setting, beginners should be able to do 24-30 strokes/ minute.
After becoming comfortable in this setting you can increase the resistance level by selecting “more options” then “display drag factor”. You can easily change the resistance level with the drag factor whenever you want.
If you are a beginner and worried about the setting of your rowing machine properly, you can go through our article. This write-up will guide to adjust the body and feet position, resistance level and the monitor.