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Concept Two Indoor Rower
by greenierexyboy
I am someone who has spent over a quarter of a century lurching dramatically between wanton slovenliness and the most manic of fitness fanaticism, and when you couple this with my barely repressed hoarding tendencies there's a degree of inevitability in the amount of sports equipment I've acquired during those years. Golf clubs ... languishing in the attic. Fell running shoes secreted at the back of the wardrobe. But constantly on display throughout my era of self-delusion (and periodically subjected to the most vicious of abuse from its owner) is my Concept Two rowing (mine is a Model C; the current version is the D) machine, an ever-reliable implement of cardio-vascular improvement and absolute agony.
The Concept Two is easy to assemble (proof? I assembled it, and my DIY incompetence is legendary) and straightforward to maintain, a periodic dab of oil (supplied with it) and the mopping up of several oceans of sweat having seen it right for well over ten years. If the rower is in use it requires a space roughly ten feet long and wide enough for the user to splay out their elbows; the sensible will decide upon extra provision to ward off claustrophobia, or to allow for some nearby entertainment/distraction. (When I used to be a five-nights-a-week-at-the-gym-bore the line of huge television screens in front of the rowing machines would have a constant diet of Mariah Carey and Westlife videos on repeat, as if to encourage you to row even more frantically in the hope of getting away from them as quickly as possible. For some reason it never occurred to me to bring along my iPod). For storage purposes it breaks down into pieces no more than six feet long and relatively slim; I've moved house with mine three times and the space it consumed in the van (or indeed my car on one occasion) was comparatively negligible.
Seating yourself on the rower is fractionally uncomfortable before the deliberate discomfort even starts: the moulded plastic seat is rather unyielding to the bonily-behinded such as myself. The stirrups for your feet can seem a bit over-slim to anyone wearing chunky trainers. In addition, the rubber coating on the rowing bar you pull on has a terrible tendency to bring the ungloved hand out in blisters. (These flaws were addressed to a moderately successful degree by the Model D). But I very much doubt anyone is going to buy a 'proper' rowing machine for its comfort. For this sort of investment you'll be wanting performance from the machine and improved performance from yourself. And in that regard the Concept Two delivers, and no mistake.
The sheer versatility of the Concept Two is difficult to beat within the confines of a single piece of fitness equipment. It can be applied to increasing your personal power, anaerobic endurance and endurance, or decreasing your weight, depending upon what sort of speeds, durations or intervals you decide to utilise. All of these are easily read/judged from the display that sits in front of the fly wheel (a display with pretty decent battery life, it should be noted...personally it annoys the life out of me when I have to replace batteries) as well as calories burned and stroke rate. (Users with a Polar Heart Rate Monitor can view their pulse too. Given that mine once claimed my heart was pumping at 320 bpm during a session, I'd take its readings with a pinch of salt). In addition, if it's not painful enough already you can increase the resistance to the flywheel by means of a lever to make pulling it harder.
The other area in which the Concept Two scores very highly is its ability to train/wreck almost your whole body rather than just a small bit of it. You can make it train just your arms and shoulders by having really useless technique, but if you're using it properly your legs will be wishing your father had never met your mother too (the stroke should begin with stretching the legs out before the torso then the arms come into play). And boy does it hurt if you really commit to using it: many has been the occasion when I've finished a session pumped sufficiently beyond belief for my dismount to involve rolling off the Concept Two because I was utterly incapable of standing up.
Now, one shouldn't feel obliged to indulge in that sort of level of self-abuse to gain some benefit from this particular fitness gear, but like all fitness gear it only really repays whatever level of dedication and effort you put in (and for this much of an outlay you'd hope that both of those would be substantial). For those with the right sort of attitude, you won't go far wrong with a Concept Two. And for those who tend to give up at the first sign of lactic acid...well, I still have those golf clubs in my attic. Make me an offer.
Recommended to the serious fitness enthusiast with a decent amount of money to spare.
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Pro-Form R500 Rower
by QuinDogg
If you are one of those with legs not strong enough to climb, hike, bike etc.. then you should definitely try this rower. I bought it second hand from a friend, but even full-price it's not that expensive considering you'll keep it for years and it's cheaper than a gym membership!
The most important thing that really makes me ... love it is the comfortable seat that allows you to train for hours without feeling any bum pain or numbness. Also its sleek and thin design makes it very convenient to fit wherever in your house. I keep mine in my room which isn't very big and it does not get in the way at all.
I have always thought that the upper body is the most important for your looks since it is what people first notice when you go in a swimming pool or at the beach. With this rower machine you will start noticing immediately how your arms get toned and you start getting rid of those fatty bits around your belly up to your chest. I walk a lot keeping my legs quite toned but I have had problems with slight bingo wings and my thighs putting on a bit of weight too, so I use this machine to help build muscle and lose weight in those areas.
It's really comfortable and you can use it while watching tv and you won't be jumping a lot like you would be on a treadmill being impossible to concentrate on the program, plus, this rower is practically silent, which is great to not bother the ones around you.
Definitely worth a purchase!
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