Exercises for Competitive Rowing

Good rowers and crews make rowing look easy and effortless, but it’s actually one of the most demanding sports and all-around forms of exercise out there. A breakdown of the biomechanics of rowing makes it clear why: The rowing stroke requires every major muscle group in the body, including the back, abdominals, arms, legs and glutes. Although rowing at the competitive level requires hours of practice on the water, the strengthening and conditioning exercises you do off the water can help you win more medals on the racecourse.

  1. Muscles Used

    • Before developing an off-season training plan, it's important to understand how your muscles are used when rowing. In the front catch position, the body is coiled like a spring with the triceps working to extend the arms to full reach, while the back muscles are stretched and relaxed. As soon as the blade enters the water, the lats and shoulder muscles engage, and the legs initiate movement toward the bow, while the rower’s body weight is suspended on the oar handle and foot stretcher. As the legs push the body away on the drive, the back starts to swing open for added power and momentum, and the biceps engage to pull the oar handle to the body. The glutes and hamstrings extend the hips, the entire upper body provides power for the arm pull-through and the core provides stability into the finish. As the body moves back up the slide on the recovery, the core and hamstrings provide stability and control, while the triceps push the arms away from the body to the catch once again.

    Lower-Body Exercises

    • Contrary to what many think, rowers rely primarily on the lower body for power. For this reason, squats, deadlifts and power cleans are some of the most important rowing exercises. Squats target your quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings, hip adductors and even portions of your back and abdominals. To ensure equal distribution of leg strength while fine-tuning your coordination and balance skills, try single-leg squats.

      The deadlift and power clean engage the most important rowing muscles -- the legs, glutes and back -- with added help from the hips, abdominals and forearms. Because it's always important to work opposing muscles to prevent muscular imbalance and injury, try pairing the stiff-legged deadlift with regular deadlifts for increased emphasis on the hamstrings. Incorporating these lower-body lifts into your strength routine enables you to initiate and finish the drive with more power, which translates into extra speed in the boat.

    Upper-Body Exercises

    • The bench press, seated row and bench pull are ideal for your upper-body rowing workout. The bench press works the pectorals and triceps, as well as the core and legs for stability and added power. The loaded push can also help prevent muscular imbalance that may develop from the repetitive pulling motion of rowing and can protect against injury and help strengthen the core.

      Like the bench press, the seated row and bench pull effectively target your major back muscles, as well as your biceps, shoulders and forearms, promoting the full-body coordination essential to rowing. Although your legs are stationary, constant pressure should be applied on the foot plate to provide stability and increased power. Just as a rower catches the water with the back while keeping the arms extended, the initial load of the seated row and bench pull should be primarily in the back rather than the arms.

    Core Work

    • Core work is a very important part of any rowing regimen, as almost every part of the rowing stroke uses the core muscles. While many lower- and upper-body compound exercises also work your core, core-specific exercises, like the plank and the bridge, will give you the best results. A strong core not only helps to stabilize the body while rowing but also helps prevent back injuries common to rowers.