← EXERCISE LIBRARYConditioning
Rowing Intervals
Hard repeated efforts on the erg. Full-body, non-impact, and the split readout gives immediate honest feedback on whether the effort is holding.
- 01Row five to ten minutes easy, then a few ten-stroke build-ups to warm up.
- 02Set the damper between four and six and note your split on the first hard effort.
- 03Row 500 metres at RPE 8, driving with the legs first, then the back, then the arms.
- 04Rest two minutes with light rowing or off the machine, then repeat for six to eight intervals.
- 05Hold every split within two seconds of the first and stop the session if it slips further.
- 01Legs, back, arms on the drive. Arms, back, legs on the recovery.
- 02Chain stays flat, do not pull to the chin.
- 03Watch the split, not the clock.
- 01Opening the back before the legs finish, which loads the lumbar spine and wastes the strongest segment.
- 02Cranking the damper to ten, which slows the stroke rate and turns rowing into low-quality lifting.
- 03Chasing a fast first interval, which makes the remaining reps slower and the session pointless.
Note: Reference material, not a prescription. Load, volume and whether this movement suits you at all depends on your assessment — if something hurts, stop and get it looked at.