... And then when they get off the water, what do they do? Hop on a Concept II until their hands bleed and their legs turn to jelly. Something decidedly un-human about that.
Oh look, what's that gathering dust at the end of the room? My testament to my days as a lycra clad boatie. My Concept ... Read review
Advantages: fantastic quality Disadvantages: expensive and need alot of space
...they do? Hop on a Concept II until their hands bleed and their legs turn to jelly. Something decidedly un-human about that.
Oh look, what's that gathering dust at the end of the room? My testament to my days as a lycra clad boatie. My Concept II. This is the most expensive thing I own. It's worth more than my car, and really I should use it more often than I use my car, but at the moment that is just not the case (I smoke, I drink, ... ...ago I kept seeing the Concept II adverts in the press. Usually in the sunday newspapers, and I toyed with the idea of hiring one to try and get back in shape. I visited www.concept2.co.uk to have a look, and hiring one cost £50 a month. Well, I could have a gym membership for that, so I abandoned the idea. However, a little angel in the form of my Mum and her credit card came along, and loaned me the money to actually buy my own Concept II, a professional ... more
Boaties. Honestly, all those hours sliding up and down inside a boat, being shouted at by a small person with an attitude problem, sweaty, in pain... and loving every second of it. And then when they get off the water, what do they do? Hop on a Concept II until their hands bleed and their legs turn to jelly. Something decidedly un-human about that.
Oh look, what's that gathering dust at the end of the room? My testament to my days as a lycra clad boatie. My Concept II. This is the most expensive thing I own. It's worth more than my car, and really I should use it more often than I use my car, but at the moment that is just not the case (I smoke, I drink, I eat too much these days)
But I wouldn't get rid of it. No chance.
I got hooked on rowing when I was at uni. I rowed Women's 1st VIII for my college, and a huge part of our training involved land training sessions on the 'erg', that's rowing machine to a normal person. All eight of us would row away in time on these things in the boathouse. I have never been so fit in my life, I loved every second of it, on and off the water. When I had to quit rowing (impending finals made sure of that) I put on weight very quickly as my boatie muscle slowly turned to fat. Great!
About a year ago I kept seeing the Concept II adverts in the press. Usually in the sunday newspapers, and I toyed with the idea of hiring one to try and get back in shape. I visited www.concept2.co.uk to have a look, and hiring one cost £50 a month. Well, I could have a gym membership for that, so I abandoned the idea. However, a little angel in the form of my Mum and her credit card came along, and loaned me the money to actually buy my own Concept II, a professional standard rowing machine. A couple of days after ordering from the official site, it was here in the house, taking up most of my bedroom.
This s some pretty serious equipment. It's what you'd find in rowing clubs up and down the country. It has a covered flywheel at the front, with a lever to adjust 'water resistance'; a computer screen (PM2) which displays time, power, speed, calories, etc etc; and the handle, seat, slide. It comes mostly made up, you have to put the feet on yourself, but it's pretty easy to do, and then it's ready to get sweaty on...
It comes with a bottle of special oil to keep the chain lubricated with, and a book with suggested exercises and training ideas. It also gives you some tips for technique so that you get the most work out of each movement, incase you have never been in a boat in your life. It has a years warranty for parts, but I reckon it'll last a lifetime because they are so well made. If you look after it nothing should ever need repair. Which is just as well, cos take a deep breath while I work up the courage to tell you the price... these usually weigh in at about £950. You mght get a second hand one for £500/600 depending on mileage and condition. There are links on the concept II website to second hand sellers.
If you haven't rowed before, and if you don't have a big credit limit to fill, you can get a much cheaper rowing machine of sorts from mail order catalogues or sports retailers, but I want to start club rowing again, and this is one of the best ways to build fitness and strength without losing technique, as it essentially allows you to make the same movements that you would in a boat, and to chart your progress with the monitor, ideally keeping your split time (the time it takes you to cover 500m) as low as possible.
This gets 5* from me, because it is a great piece of equipment. It'll last forever, and when I do manage to motivate myself to stub out my ciggie and strap my feet into it, it's the quickest way imaginable to build strength and cardio fitness at the same time.
Even if you do have the money to burn though it is absolutely no good if you are pushed for space as it is 2.4m long. Though it does fold in half and you can stand it up in the corner. And then use it to hang clothes on...http://www.concept2.co.uk/v4/rower.htm
Advantages: Great machine for developing fitness and losing weight Disadvantages: Repetition of movement, boredom
The Concept 2 is the best rowing machine available and can be found in nearly every gym around the world. It is used by people looking for some light exercise and rowers around the world to train for their sport, even at the highest Olympic level. Benefits of the Concept 2 rowing machine
Rowing strengthens upper and lower body with a smooth powerful motion. The movement is impact free and uses nearly all muscle groups, hence teaches co-ordination ... ...Training on the Concept 2 rowing machine is great to lose weight (see examples at bottom), gain fitness and build muscle. The machines last forever and do not break unless they are treated really badly, you are more likely to break than the machine. The low impact form of exercise enable recovery from injury and self determination of the intensity of training you want to acheive; individuals can train on these machine whether they are retired mothers ...
hert1137 16.02.2007 (19.02.2007)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Concept II Professional Rower
Advantages: Ease of use and worlds best Disadvantages: Huge! Very costly.
...pieces of gym equipment. The Concept 2 Rower is bar far the most superior rower I have used. I use the Model E which is a newer version of the rower and immediately recongised by the frame being higher off the ground allowing a raised seating position which in my opinion is a far more natural and comfortable position. This rower is fitted with a performance Monitor known as PM4, simply the key pad you enter the distance/time and so forth. Being wireless ... ...concept 2, as well as wireless heart rate monitoring.
The rower even has a game function which allows you to actually add some enjoyment into your workout, it consists of a simple fish game where you must avoid the larger fish and eat the smaller ones with movement up and down the screen enabled by rowing harder or slowing down.
Prices do vary and unfortunately it is not uncommon to find them new available for over £1000 however there are many ...
cxg101 06.09.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Concept II Professional Rower
Advantages: Solid Construction Disadvantages: Uncomfortable Seat
...bits start chaffing. On the Concept II, the seat is quite hard and after 45 minutes you begin to notice. The handle is foam padded but also begins to chaff a little.
The worst designed part is just the battery cover which is impossible to slide off without sticking a knife into the gap and pushing it.
Would have been nice if there was a heart rate monitor included especially considering the price which is probably too high even considering the ...
Gooseberry 01.08.2004 (15.08.2004)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Concept II Professional Rower
