Rowing = muscle building

[Hoofy]

okgo said:

Hoofy said:

I suppose it's what happens when people see a professional athlete doing whatever sport they do and so they assume that they got their body by just playing that sport. The reality is that any professional athlete will be using the gym under the guidance of their coaching team and that will include all manner of exercises including compound lifting to develop power.

Probably, but for amateurs to get as good as you can at most endurance sports (which rowing is really) you'd be best off spending your time doing it vs other stuff that will probably make little odds if you are not a full time athlete.

Rowing much like cycling isn't a sport that requires 'strength' as much as it requires aerobic power (which can be measured in watts, C2's do this) and that isn't about how strong you are but having the CV system to allow you to continue that motion at a high rate for a long time, the maximum force put through a rower will be minimal on both legs and arms I should imagine.

Oh, definitely. I think the question was more about whether it was a good sport for building muscle.

[So]

People who just row, or do too much rowing to the exclusion of other exercises, rarely look good in my opinion. They tend to have well-developed rec fems, with the other leg muscles left slightly behind and back development can leave them looking like they have a slight hump.

[Zod]

So said:

People who just row, or do too much rowing to the exclusion of other exercises, rarely look good in my opinion. They tend to have well-developed rec fems, with the other leg muscles left slightly behind and back development can leave them looking like they have a slight hump.

What a bunch of deformed freaks!



Of course, these guys, as I posted above do a lot of gym work on top of the rowing.

[AndrewEH1]

To be honest, look at the muscle right about their knees. That isn't 'normal'.

[Zod]

AndrewEH1 said:

To be honest, look at the muscle right about their knees. That isn't 'normal'.

That's their quads in relaxed state. It's completely normal for someone with developed quads.

[okgo]

Zod said:

That's their quads in relaxed state. It's completely normal for someone with developed quads.

+1

Normal is a fat st who can't lift his own weight, of which the pavement is awash.

[So]

Zod said:

So said:

People who just row, or do too much rowing to the exclusion of other exercises, rarely look good in my opinion. They tend to have well-developed rec fems, with the other leg muscles left slightly behind and back development can leave them looking like they have a slight hump.

What a bunch of deformed freaks!



Of course, these guys, as I posted above do a lot of gym work on top of the rowing.

So what's your point?

[clonmult]

So said:

People who just row, or do too much rowing to the exclusion of other exercises, rarely look good in my opinion. They tend to have well-developed rec fems, with the other leg muscles left slightly behind and back development can leave them looking like they have a slight hump.

No, and, er, no. The only time someone would look like they have a slight hump from rowing is if they're doing it wrong.

[So]

clonmult said:

So said:

People who just row, or do too much rowing to the exclusion of other exercises, rarely look good in my opinion. They tend to have well-developed rec fems, with the other leg muscles left slightly behind and back development can leave them looking like they have a slight hump.

No, and, er, no. The only time someone would look like they have a slight hump from rowing is if they're doing it wrong.

I don't agree.

Whilst rowing is principally a leg exercise, it's also a pulling exercise for the upper body. If you don't counter it with some pushing you can end up with poor muscular balance front to rear.

[AndrewEH1]

okgo said:

Zod said:

That's their quads in relaxed state. It's completely normal for someone with developed quads.

+1

Normal is a fat st who can't lift his own weight, of which the pavement is awash.

Perhaps I mis-typed, I thought we were talking about all round muscle development. Rowing only will cause over development of some muscles. Which is why if your goal is only to build muscle rather overall CV fitness you'll need to use a range of equipment.

[clonmult]

okgo said:

One of the things that most rowers have to overcome when they start competitive cycling are the shoulders and upper body bulk that rowing has given them. Clearly you'll never look like Ronnie Coleman from rowing, but you'll certainly develop muscle. I'd say it was probably one of the best all round things you can do for both appearance muscle wise/cardio vascular fitness.

1. Rowing works the legs, core and arms/shoulders. primarily the legs. If someone has had their upper body bulk up from rowing, then they've been rowing wrong.

2. Obviously explains why Hamish Bond set multiple outright wattbike records (back when Wattbike did list the records) and has been finishing top 3 in cycling events </sarcasm>

3. Rowing is probably just behind cross country skiing for overall cardio vascular fitness (cross country skiers have the highest recorded VO2 Max figures iirc)

[Zod]

So said:

Zod said:

So said:

People who just row, or do too much rowing to the exclusion of other exercises, rarely look good in my opinion. They tend to have well-developed rec fems, with the other leg muscles left slightly behind and back development can leave them looking like they have a slight hump.

What a bunch of deformed freaks!



Of course, these guys, as I posted above do a lot of gym work on top of the rowing.

So what's your point?

Er, that rowers don't have humps.

[So]

Zod said:

So said:

Zod said:

So said:

People who just row, or do too much rowing to the exclusion of other exercises, rarely look good in my opinion. They tend to have well-developed rec fems, with the other leg muscles left slightly behind and back development can leave them looking like they have a slight hump.

What a bunch of deformed freaks!



Of course, these guys, as I posted above do a lot of gym work on top of the rowing.

So what's your point?

Er, that rowers don't have humps.

As you've pointed out yourself, they will have done a LOT of exercise in addition to rowing.

My comments relate to people who row to the exclusion of all else, or with a significant neglect of anything else. Regularly putting muscles under load will, generally speaking, make them hypertrophy. There are muscles worked by rowing and there are those that aren't. An overwhelming bias towards rowing will at best not promote a well-balanced physique and can cause the problems I mention above.

[Zod]

No remotely serious rower from club level upwards just rows. That is why your point is nonsense.

[okgo]

clonmult said:

1. Rowing works the legs, core and arms/shoulders. primarily the legs. If someone has had their upper body bulk up from rowing, then they've been rowing wrong.

2. Obviously explains why Hamish Bond set multiple outright wattbike records (back when Wattbike did list the records) and has been finishing top 3 in cycling events </sarcasm>

3. Rowing is probably just behind cross country skiing for overall cardio vascular fitness (cross country skiers have the highest recorded VO2 Max figures iirc)

1. Nearly all rowers I know who ride or have come from rowing to riding, and that is many (inc ex olympians) are generally carrying mass they wouldn't have if they just cycled, which obviously is generally an issue if they want to be truly good.

Re Hamish (who just started riding with the same sponsor as me for time trials) - yes, he's obviously got a fantastic CV system and will (and has) done well in cycling events. But that's little to do with muscle size or strength as I'm sure you know.

While its obviously very important, its not the be all and end all (vo2)

[So]

Zod said:

No remotely serious rower from club level upwards just rows. That is why your point is nonsense.

Wait a minute.

The conversation has been about whether rowing builds muscle. I said it does but that on its own it can lead to muscular imbalances, so additional forms of exercise are required.

You then posted a picture of the men's Olympic team in order to disprove my point and then added, "but of course they do other exercise as well".

You're apparently trying to argue with me by agreeing with what I am saying. So, there is certainly is some nonsense being spoken Zod, but it's coming from your direction.

[Zod]

You are raising a non-existent idea of a person who does no exercise other than rowing.

[throt]

Welshbeef said:

What weight dumbbells and number of reps per set?

15kg and 25 reps per 4 sets of chest press, once every two days. These are the only weights I use and its done after 55mins of cardio completed on my elliptical trainer.

On days in between I use the floor of whatever part of the house I am in to do, press up - 4 sets of 50 reps. leg raises - 4 sets of 50 reps. tummy scrunches - 4 sets of 110 reps. I adjust my leg degree to cover different parts of my mid section during the scrunches..

Edited by throt on Monday 5th June 15:46

[LordJammy]

When I was a teenager I rowed at a national level, spent nearly as much time running, lifting weights and in the gym as I did out on the water or on the C2.
As for now I still row a lot in the gym, mainly training in splits and the rest is all either body weight excersise or kettle bell work. The idea that someone would only exclusively row is rubbish. Additional excersises compliment a proper powerful technique with correct form.

[throt]

[quote=clonmult]

1. Rowing works the legs, core and arms/shoulders. primarily the legs. If someone has had their upper body bulk up from rowing, then they've been rowing wrong.

"Primarily Legs"?..

You may remember me clonmult, giving me advice.

After rowing for 6000m ( when using my C2 ) I can honestly say my legs didn't really feel as if they got a workout. As I say, upper body gained muscle fast, nice muscle, not beef cake look, but Its not my cup of tea. Maybe I was doing something wrong. Always had strong legs from my football days, ran 10k in under 36 mins, as a casual after work road runner for example. During 2k sprints I could only really feel my upper doing the work, damper 10, pulling hard all the way back from the nearest point of the fan, legs in sync with the arms, moving together. However, 7.20 mins ( I am sure it was that ) was my best over 2k after training on it for 3 1/2 month and then I stopped.

Will get back on it though and have a dabble...