Cycling Vs Rowing Machine

Stinky

Stinky

Stinky

Soldato
Joined
28 Mar 2005
Posts
9,250
Hi all

so im trying to lose a bit of weight and keep fit, after loosing the weight ill want to cut.

is it best for a cardio work out to do rowing or cycling. ive done both and cant work out which one is best for my purpose

last few days ive been doing 6600 metres in 30mins on the rowing machine and then about 5miles on the bike.

any advice would be great
 
Do both? I hate the ergo and love cycling, however I feel like I'm about to die whenever I finish on the rowing machine, so it's clearly a harder workout for me.
 
From what I understand cycling isn't very effecient for burning calories unless you have hours to waste away sat on a bike, as you're only recruiting your legs.

Rowing is a fullbody aerobic workout, which requires more energy, which burns more calories, which is better for what you want to achieve.

Sure cycling is easier, but you pay the price of having to spend twice as long pedalling away.

HIIT on the rower mixed in with some Tabata Protocol, Barbell Complexes & Circuits/Conditioning 3 times a week is a great way to shed fat and is what I'm currently doing.
 
Er well it's a vote against from a personal point of view, but also a vote for from a fitness point of view :p.

They're dire for technique, can very easily promote false posture, and are generally bloody boring to sit on, but for fitness they can't be rivalled ;).
 
Yabsley said:
Benny out of interest, how do you do your HIIT on the rower? Total duration and slow/fast periods?
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20 second sprint, 40 second recovery if I'm going for 15-20 minutes.
30 second sprint 30 second recovery if I'm going for 10 minutes.

Usually see high 1:20's/500m during the sprint and nearer 2:40/2:50/500m on the recovery.
 
From a personal perspective i dont like running for 2 reasons. Firstly i find it really boring, especially so on the treadmill, and secondly and most importantly, i dont like the impact aspect of it on my knees :(.
 
UltimateBadger said:
On a calories burned per x amount of time basis? Intensity depending of course. Or am I incorrect?
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I'm not too sure. Generally speaking calorie counters on CV equipment aren't very accurate. A Life Fitness treadmill over read by 100 calories compared to my HRM that I was wearing.

Personally I find both a good aerobic workout but find that rowing is much more taxing and consumes greater amounts of energy, energy used = calories burned. With the added benefit of being low impact my preference lies with rowing :)
 
Simply put, if you've never had any formal rowing training avoid the ergo like the plague. You will completely destroy yourself given time doing rowing wrong.

Cycling is a much more sensible way to go about this, purely because you're less likely to hurt yourself.

The rowing machine however is much more time efficient. The cycling motion is the most effective mechanical way to get power out of a human being. Moreso than the rowing stroke.

Tabata protocol mentioned above is a great way to improve fitness if you're time strapped, but you do need to do it properly.

My advise would be to forsake the gym entirely, in my experience they are all dull boring places to be, and any of the machines in them are considerably less fun than actually doing the represented sport properly. I'd recmomend you head to your local rowing club and learn to row, you'll find your fitness and physique will rather quickly improve and it is a wonderful sport to get into plus with any half decent club you'll get the support of experienced coaches to push you in your training.

Cycling is also great, but personally I find it harder to maintain structured training.


Just for information, I currently work in a bike shop, riding regularly, and am a qualified rowing coach!
 
I use the rower for HIIT 3 times a week and I always end it feeling like I'm going to puke, which I suppose is a good sign.

I do 1 minute steady pace and 30 seconds maximum for 20 minutes, usually covering 4000m (unless I've just worked my legs out). Great machine and very effective imo.
 
Robbie G said:
I use the rower for HIIT 3 times a week and I always end it feeling like I'm going to puke, which I suppose is a good sign.

I do 1 minute steady pace and 30 seconds maximum for 20 minutes, usually covering 4000m (unless I've just worked my legs out). Great machine and very effective imo.
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20 minutes should be nearer the 5k mark :p.
 
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