Gym Rowers- not seeing the value?

This article was posted in the Washington Post in November 2005:

Rowing Against the Current of Fitness Habits
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
by John Briley

We get occasional e-mail from experienced rowers here at Moving Crew World Headquarters. And while we typically decline their offers to whack us upside the head with an oar, we concede we are overdue in recognizing rowing as an excellent and efficient full-body workout. (Since most of us would be ill-suited to, and perhaps outright dangerous around, a scull on the Potomac, we speak here mainly of rowing machines used in health clubs and homes.)

Rowing "burns more calories for equivalent power output than cycling or treadmill running," said Frederick C. Hagerman, director of the Work Physiology Lab at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. Rowing for 20 minutes at a given perceived rate of exertion (say, a 6 on a 10-point scale) burns 10 to 15 percent more calories than would cycling at the same time and difficulty, he said. This is because rowing engages more muscles than most other forms of aerobic exercise, thus burning more energy. Hagerman has published many rowing studies in peer-reviewed journals.

Rowing "uses more muscles than any other sport except cross-country skiing," said Noel Wanner, a rowing coach, former member of the U.S. national rowing team (1992-1993) ... Read the Full Article

gym, health facilities, exercise, Fitness, rowing, fitness rowing