Rowing

I used to row in international races. A few times in the Henley Regatta. Usually in eights (eight people to a boat), fours, or sometimes singles. The boats were beautiful Italian made racing shells, so thin that if you stood in the wrong place your foot would go right through the hull. But very, very fast boats. an image - please see terms of use

A great sense of camaraderie in the crew. We would meet a the water at five AM, go for a 20 Km run, return to the boat house to do some weight training (under the guidance of a neurologist who had developed amazingly good brain-body-interval-training techniques), then wax the boat and take it out onto the racing course. There we would practise for a few hours rowing the 5000m course with the coach shouting instructions from his comfortable speed boat. We took our rowing very seriously, since most of us were on try-outs for the Olympic team - strict diets, no partying, no alcohol. We worked hard and wore cool jackets which impressed the girls an image - please see terms of use

Well, things change with serious illness. Now I ride a recumbent trike and have had to give up almost all other activities, including rowing on the water. But a couple of years ago a friend introduced me to indoor rowing. This is perfect for someone like me with long term illness since I can go at my own pace, gradually building up strength. Just like I did with the trike.

I checked out a lot of indoor rowing machines including the best sellers and top rated. None seemed to be right, or to be close to what I experienced on the water. I tried the best selling Concept II for example, but found it noisy and bulky. It seemed like good exercise, but not really similar to rowing on the water. Most of the other other rowing machines I tried seemed pretty loud, too big, bulky, and well.... not really anything close to rowing a racing scull along the waterway.

Finally I heard of something called ’WaterRower’. Unlike almost everything else I had looked at, WaterRowers actually use a paddle in real water. There is a large bowl filled with water. The paddle rotates inside the bowl. Pulling on the ’oar’ moves the paddle which in turn uses friction and micro-wave action to simulate rowing on the water. Unfortunately good rowing machines are expensive, and WaterRower is no different. But IMHO absolutely worth it! Do what I did, save until you can afford something of quality - it’s worth the wait. Long story short, after some back and forth with the very helpful customer service people at WaterRower who patiently answered all my questions, I ordered their ’Oxbridge’ model. It arrived at my door a few days later.

Appearance

Okay - the picture does not really show how great my WaterRower looks, but I wanted a closeup to show you the items I discuss later. The machine is beautifully finished, the wood shaped very nicely, and the aesthetics very good. Wood as you may know, is as strong as steel when the grain is properly aligned. The company says that all of its wood is harvested from replenishable forests - a good thing. There is a large clear plastic bowl in the front which holds the water. And a stylish easy-to-reach computer (see below) at one side. So much nicer looking in my opinion than any of the other rowing machines I had tried. I also ordered a small bottle of blue dye. A few drops of this added to the water in the bowl turns tap water the colour of a lake - a calming blue. I would suggest that if you are thinking of getting a WaterRower, you also order a bottle of their dye - it really spiffs up the look of the water.

Water

Every rowing machine I looked at, except my WaterRower, uses mechanical friction or hydraulic resistance to vary the amount of work done with each stroke. There are usually a bunch of knobs and handles which you can use to vary things according to your strength and ability. No so with the WaterRower - there are no knobs or adjustments at all. And this is a good thing, because there are no knobs or adjustments on a racing scull either. When sculling down the race course, the amount of work necessary to move the boat is proportional to the resistance of the water on the hull and drag of the paddle and stroke rate. Or more formally: resistance varies proportionally to the cube of the speed. So the faster you go through the water, the more drag you must overcome. For example, doubling your speed in the boat produces an eight-fold increase in resistance of the water to the oar.

This is exactly the same for my WaterRower. Hence rowing indoors feels very much like rowing in a racing scull down a waterway. The harder you pull on the ’oar’, the more resistance (friction between paddle and water) you must overcome. Exactly like in a racing scull. Translation: Amount of effort is as little or as much as you wish, exactly the same as in a boat. Unlike any other rowing machine, resistance is infinitely variable and is controlled by your rowing, not some setting on a big metal machine.

I can sum it up this way - of all the machines I tried prior to buying, my WaterRower is the only one which gives me a feel similar to being in boat out on the water.

Noise

Every rowing machine I tried made some sort of noise. But the WaterRower is the hands-down most quiet. It even sounds like a racing scull - the seat quietly glides with a sound similar to the seat on the boat, and the sound of the paddle in the water bowl sounds similar to the draw of the oar though the racing course. All quite quiet - I can easily hear the birds calling outside my window. Very nice.

Computer

I took a good look at the computers on the top selling rowing machines before I bought my WaterRower. Some were hard to read, hard to program, and not really all that useful - theatre security for beginners. I like the computer on my WaterRower, though. Although I would like its display to be a bit brighter since I often row in the early morning before the sun is up. (Update: Solved the brightness problem with a small £5.00 music stand light.)

Anyway, why is the computer important? If you are training, the computer carries various workout programs (see below under ’interval training’). It can be programmed with any workout program you like. It keeps track of heart rate, calories burned, etc. But more usefully for me at least, the computer on my WaterRower displays stroke rate, distance, speed, odometer, and other data. The computer allows me to easily set upper and lower limits on all of these, so that I do not over-do or under-do my workout. More about this below.

Overall I like the computer which came with my WaterRower - nice big display, easy to reach buttons, logical arrangement of functions, aesthetically pleasing. Nice, easy, and useful.

Technique

Since I already knew how to row (before I got sick I was asked to be part of the Olympic team). So I did not have to go through the literature and videos on technique which came with my WaterRower. But I can say that they are excellent - very well thought out and very well and clearly presented.

Technique in rowing is really important! With improper technique you can easily hurt knees, neck, shoulders, and back if you do not row properly. The most important thing I find is the so-called ’recovery’ part of the stroke, when you are finished pulling and are sliding back up the track for the next stroke. Almost everyone who is new to the sport (and some oldies too) do not recover properly, and ultimately end up with pulled muscles or worse. I will not describe it here, but instead suggest that you pay close attention to the WaterRower instructional videos which show in slow motion how to recover properly. Then practise, practise, practise until you do it right. When I rowed in the Henley the coach was forever correcting us crew to get recovery just right. And it paid off - almost no one got injured. And of course proper technique makes you faster and less tired during races.

Finally, after each workout ... stretch! Stretch hamstrings, shoulders, neck, and so on. The WaterRower videos show you how to do this properly. Please do not skip this step. Really important to avoid locked up muscles the next day.

Interval Training

Interval training works by alternately emphasising speed, strength, stroke rate, etc. during a 20 or 30 minute rowing session. My WaterRower came with some really excellent interval training sheets (and more downloadable from their customer-service website) for all levels of skill and health. I use these and like them a lot.

But I have some serious health issues - one side of the body does not work properly, for example. So I have come up with some exercises which work well for me.

Here is a typical one I use in winter when snow and ice prevent riding my trike, which I hope you find useful to:

Day N: Distance Row. I set the WaterRower computer to measure 5 Km course, limit the stroke rate to 30 spm high, and 24 spm low, and limit the speed to a high of 10kph and a low of 7kph with an average speed of 8kph. I also set it to give me a 5 minute warm up and a 5 minute cool down (that is to say, lower speed/stroke rate) during those times. I then start my workout. The computer display shows me what is going on during the workout, a bar graph shows me if I am getting close to the maxima or minima I set, and beeps if I exceed any of the values I set for my workout. It takes me about 30 mins to complete, followed by stretching.
Day N1: Interval Row. Here I set the computer to time 20 minutes. The set it to a 5 min warmup followed by 2min at 35 spm, 2min at 22 spm, 2min at 35 spm, 2min at 22 spm, and so on. All followed by a 5 min cooldown at 18 spm.
Day N2: Repeat Day N
Day N3: Repeat Day N1 but set the computer for a maximum speed of 15 Kph.
Day N4: Go for a long walk.
Day 5: Rest
And repeat, gradually (gradually!) increasing speed, distance, or whatever seems appropriate. I generally row a month at one setting, before increasing.

There are many other workouts available free of charge from WaterRower. But for me with my particular health issues, the above works well.

Loosing weight

Since I am a blond Adonis losing weight is unimportant for me personally (and if you believe that, I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you). Here’s what works best for me if I plump up over Christmas holidays:

Keep the stroke rate quite low.
Keep the speed quite high. Not too high though - you should be able to talk normally during your weight-loss workout.
Row for a longer time - 1/2 hr minimum - per session depending upon your overall health.

Gaining strength

Here’s what has worked best for me, in gaining strength:

Higher stroke rate than above
Higher speed than above
Use variable interval training - easy-hard-easy-hard-hard-easy-hard-hard-easy-easy is best for strength training during a workout.
Follow an interval rowing plan (such as the excellent free ones from WaterRower). That is, a plan which gradually increments difficulty each week over a six or 12 month period.

Bottom line: I love my WaterRower. It has brought back something I thought I would never have again due to illness. Namely the feel of being out on the water rowing in a racing scull. Wonderful!