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Those serious about getting the best possible rowing machine workout in have no doubt noticed that there workout monitoring console shows a “Watts” readout – and the odds are good that you might not have realized exactly what this reading means and how it impacts your fitness.
A measurement of the power that you are putting out, and a great way to tell just how hard you are working, the Watts reading is a great way to track your progress while you are working out on your rowing machine.
For instance, your average level of fitness individual is going to be able to put out 1.35 W per pound, while elite level athletes are going to be putting out closer to 2.7 W of output per pound. For a man with average fitness weighing in at 200 pounds their wattage output should be at right around 270.
After figuring out how many watts you should be pumping out (on average) according to your weight you’ll want to use the Tabata wattage interval workout I highlight below to maximize the time you spend on this machine.
What are Tabata workouts?
Named after legendary fitness coach Izumu Tabata, this workout methodology takes advantage of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) to produce improvements in both your aerobic and anaerobic systems. These workouts are designed to be relatively short in duration compared to more traditional workouts, but are considerably more challenging.
Obviously, they are more intense and will task you with pushing through any preconceived notions you have about your fitness level to complete them in the assigned time.
By taking advantage of these kinds of workouts, however, you are going to be able to really develop the kind of power you need to blow past any of your personal records that you held previously on the rowing machine – as well as in the rest of your workouts as well.
Tabata workouts (combined with more traditional exercise programs) can overhaul your level of fitness, dramatically improve your level of endurance, and give you the kind of body transformation results you are after any much shorter amount of time.
All told, this workout is going to take about four minutes of your time – yes, just four minutes – but it’s going to be one of the most grueling workouts you’ve ever tried to tackle. Prepare yourself!
Right out of the gate, you’re going to need to calculate the amount of wattage you need to hit for each of the individual “steps” throughout the Tabata process. But after that’s done, the mental heavy lifting is taken care of and you’re good to go!
For more Tabata workouts head over to Perfect Rower.
Target Wattage = Your Body Weight + 10% (EX – 150lbs + 15 = 165 watt target)
The Workout
Warm Up (5 mins of easy rowing)
Step 1 – 20 seconds @ 165 then 10 seconds of rest
Step 2 – 20 seconds @ 182 then 10 seconds of rest
Step 3 – 20 seconds @ 200 then 10 seconds of rest
Step 4 – 20 seconds @ 220 then 10 seconds of rest
Step 5 – 20 seconds @ 242 then 10 seconds of rest
Step 6 – 20 seconds @ 266 then 10 seconds of rest
Step 7 – 20 seconds @ 293 then 10 seconds of rest
Step 8 – 20 seconds @ 322 then 10 seconds of rest
Cool Down (3 minutes of easy rowing)