Exercise Bike Vs Rowing Machine: Which One To Choose?
If you’re thriving to get fit, chances are you’ll first consider joining a gym. And if you’re lucky enough to have one nearby, there’s a good chance that the equipment in your gym will include an exercise bike and rowing machine.
Let’s see Exercise Bike Vs Rowing Machine, a detailed comparison.
Both of these pieces of equipment are popular with fitness enthusiasts for a reason: they offer challenging workouts that can help tone your body and improve cardiovascular fitness levels. But which one is right for you?
Let’s take a look at how each machine works and what it can do to help decide which one is best suitable to your needs!
Rowing Machine Vs Exercise Bike:
Advantages of Rowing Machine
- Full-body exercise
The rowing machine is exceptional in that it targets 85% of your body’s muscles, allowing you to perform the full movement or stroke properly even though it may appear like it’s all about your arms and legs.
Your back, arms, legs, and core must all actively contract, giving you a full-body workout that will improve both your cardiovascular and physical fitness. - Low impact workout
Even the most strenuous rowing exercises have almost little impact, making them mild on joints and a great choice for anyone recovering from recent injuries or those who have permanent ailments.
Rowing is frequently suggested to folks who are recovering from an injury or worried about falling because you remain seated the entire time you work out. - Suitable for the lungs and heart
Your cardiovascular system, which consists of your heart, blood vessels, and blood, is strengthened by rowing as a cardio workout. This system is in charge of distributing vital substances like oxygen and nutrition throughout your body.
Because rowing is such a demanding exercise, your heart must work extra hard to pump more blood into your body. This may strengthen the heart. - Beginner-friendly
The fact that beginners can easily attempt it is one of the added advantages. Beginners appreciate how soon they may see and feel results. To achieve this, though, you must persevere for a longer period.
Due to boredom or bewilderment, gym attendees frequently hop on and off a rowing machine within five minutes, skipping those outcomes. To show an improvement in your form and to get your heart rate up, persevere for 10 to 20 minutes. - Time-efficient
Rowing is a particularly time-effective workout since it uses so many different muscles and burns so many calories. Right after the first few strokes, you’ll start to feel tired. Particularly when you’re first starting out, you can complete a worthwhile training session in as little as 15 or 20 minutes.
Disadvantage Of Rowing Machines
- Not recommended for back injuries
Your lower back moves excessively when you are pushing and pulling on the rowing machine. Additionally, if your muscles are working too hard and become exhausted, you may start to lose your proper posture. This will make your back discomfort or injury worse. - Noisy
Consider the fact that rowing machines frequently make noise. This is especially true for rowers who use the air and water. The machine squeals loudly each time you draw back.
Rowing machines might not be the best option if you share a small home or apartment with others. Every time you try to exercise, they can become irritated due to the noise you make in the corner. - Cannot make the bones stronger
If you wish to stop bone demineralization, you must include weight-bearing activity in your program. For example, walking is a fantastic substitute for your relaxation days.
Advantages Of An Exercise Bike
- It burns calories
How long and how hard you pedal affects how many calories you burn. With “gentle effort,” a 150-pound person can bike for 30 minutes and burn roughly 170 calories. The number of calories burned increases to 239 for “moderate exertion”.
The number of calories burned during your workout rises when you ride harder. A harder ride increases your calorie burn for hours after you finish. Yes, you can still burn calories while you sleep. The additional calorie-burning benefit is totally dependent on how hard you pedal. - low-impact exercise
A low-impact exercise that uses smooth motions to strengthen bones and joints without placing a lot of strain on them is a stationary bike workout. As a result, it’s a terrific training choice for those who have joint problems or injuries.
Running, jogging, jumping, and other high-impact aerobic exercises can place a lot of strain on your ankles, knees, hips, and other joints. - Strengthen your legs
The biceps, abdomen, and back muscles can all be toned while exercising on a stationary bike, in addition to your legs, thighs, and buttocks. When you use your exercise bike’s increased resistance, your muscles are particularly worked. Low resistance is ideal for enhancing endurance and for warming up, but not for gaining muscle.
Disadvantages Of An Exercise Bike
- Can be pricey
Based on the type of bike you purchase. High-end exercise bikes can be pretty pricey, but they frequently come with a lot of features and advantages that cheaper ones do not. Spending several hundred dollars on a top-of-the-line bike that will endure for years is likely necessary. - Can get boring
If you consistently utilize the same one. It can become boring after using the same exercise bike title for a while. Try changing things up sometimes to keep things interesting.
Rowing Machine Vs Exercise Bike Calories Burned
As you might expect, the exercise bike burns more calories than the rowing machine. This is because it uses more muscle groups and works them at a higher intensity.
However, if your goal is weight loss, this isn’t necessarily a good thing—the rowing machine burns more calories per minute (roughly 500 compared to 300).
And if you’re looking for something that targets different muscles than your legs and lower back (which are worked by both exercises), think about investing in a weight bench or squat rack instead. It will help improve your balance as well as strengthen your core while building overall muscle mass throughout the body.
Rowing Machine Vs Bike For Weight Loss
If you’re looking to burn fat, then the rowing machine might just be your best friend. A study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research found that rowers burned more calories than cyclists, treadmills, and ellipticals.
A 150-pound person will burn roughly 9 calories per minute on an exercise bike, or 12 calories per minute at a moderate pace on a treadmill or elliptical machine — but 150 pounds person will burn up to 20 calories per minute when using a rowing machine!
So, if you want to lose weight and get fit quickly while also improving your cardiovascular health (a win-win), consider adding one of these machines to your workout routine.
Rowing Machine Vs Bike Muscle Targeted
Both the exercise bike and rowing machine use lower body muscles, but the bike only utilizes your leg muscles. The rowing machine takes it one step further by activating your arms and back as well.
This means that for every stroke you take on a rower, you’re also utilizing your upper body to pull with all of your might—you won’t be able to achieve this kind of full-body workout with other cardio equipment.
Rowing Machine Vs Bike For Knee And Back Problem
The rower is the best option if you have knee or back problems. The movement of the rowing machine is much more fluid than that of an exercise bike, which can create a lot of impact on the joints.
While it is true that there isn’t much difference in the amount of force applied to your legs between these two machines (the pedals are both moving at approximately 12 miles per hour), there is still a higher impact on your joints if you aren’t careful.
This is why I recommend using a rowing machine if you’re keen on getting fit but also want to avoid putting too much wear and tear on your body.
Physical Limitations
When starting an exercise program, especially if you are recovering from an injury or just want to start your fitness, we recommend consulting your doctor first. It is not uncommon for previous injuries to creep back up and affect your body and the way you move over time.
Exercise bikes are perfectly suitable for this task. Exercise bikes tend to be more forgiving than rowing machines, even though both machines are low-impact when compared to running. Especially if you have poor form, back and knee issues can worsen. Muscles and joints tend to be less stressed when riding an exercise bike.
Muscle Tone and Technique
Both machines are great for muscle tone and technique, but rowing has the advantage of providing a more complete workout for the upper body. When you row, you work your arms, back, shoulders, legs, and core all at once — but you also use muscles in your lower back that you are not using too much during a bike ride.
The stationary bicycle also provides an excellent lower-body workout but doesn’t work as many upper-body muscles as rowing. If you’re looking to improve muscle tone throughout your entire body, rowing might be your best choice.
Top 3 Things To Consider When Choosing Between Exercise Bike Vs Rowing Machine
If you’re in the market for a home gym, here are some things to consider before making your decision:
- Costs: Both row machines and exercise bikes are relatively affordable (though the price does vary significantly).
For example, you can find a decent quality rowing machine for $150 or less at many sporting goods stores, while some models cost as much as $300 or more.
While exercise bikes range from $100 on the low end to several hundred dollars for high-end machines with built-in televisions and other extras. - Space Requirements: The amount of space needed by each type of equipment also differs significantly. Exercise bikes take up very little room compared to rowing machines (which have large flywheels), but they’re still larger than most other pieces of fitness equipment in your home gym.
If you don’t have enough space in your home gym area, then you may want to consider using a rowing machine instead of an exercise bike because it will take up less room when you store it. - Workout Variety: This one goes both ways — rows can offer more variety than bikes but once you start pushing yourself on an exercise bike, you’ll get results much faster than on a rower (depending on your level).
On the other hand, if you have specific injuries or mobility issues that make it difficult for you to do certain exercises on a bike or rower, then that could sway your decision as well.
