Water Rower vs Air Rower: What's Better for Your Home Gym?

Rowing is on its way to becoming the newest fitness craze. It targets all your key muscle groups, builds cardiovascular endurance and is low impact. But if row, row, rowing your boat merrily down a stream isn’t your ideal weekend activity, then you should invest in a rowing machine—all the benefits of rowing without the close proximity to water.

Why should your next workout be a rowing workout? 

• Low-impact exercise. This is a great form of cardio and is especially forgiving to beginners due to placing less impact on your joints.

• It can improve your posture. Great for those of us that spend a large portion of their day hunched over a desk or phone. 

• It can supplement other workouts. Whether you want to add cardio to your strength routine or want active recovery for your runs, this is the perfect form of low-impact cardio. 

• Easily keep track of your progress. Most rowers will have a built-in display that allows you to track your stroke rate, time and distance—perfect if you need some motivation of just how far you have come. 

• Hard to slack off. Rowing machines are a killer cardio workout as they offer no momentum, so everything you accomplish in a rowing session is entirely through your hard work.  

What rowing machine is best for your home workout?

There are four styles of rowing machines: air, magnetic, water and hydraulic. While this may seem a daunting prospect, there are two types of machines that are more popular than the rest: water rowers and air rowers. This is because they are mechanically simple and fall into an affordable price range. 

Water Rower 

The advantages of selecting a water rower for your home gym is that they make less noise than their air counterparts and offer a smooth, consistent resistance throughout the entire stroke. This is the machine style for you if you want to get as close to traditional rowing as possible. More water means heavier strokes, and less water means lighter strokes—simulating the drag resistance expected when rowing in an actual boat. 

If this seems like a piece of equipment you want to add to your home gym, then you can’t look past WaterRower Classic Rowing Machine, Australia’s most popular rowing machine. Made of American black walnut, you can experience running water’s serene effect while exercising. Are you lacking in space? No worries, this machine can be stored standing up when not in use! 

Air Rower 

Air rowers’ key benefits are that they are typically lower in price than a water rower, take up less space and have a more accurate monitor due to their built-in resistance settings. The machine’s resistance comes from a flywheel as opposed to water, making the machine generally lighter and has the added bonus of fanning you during your workout! 

If this seems more your style, we recommend adding the ARROW® Commercial Air Rower R900A to your home gym. It uses air and resistance levels to give you the ultimate full-body workout at home. What more could you want from a piece of equipment? It even helps you hit your goals by allowing you to enter race or training mode so that you work towards a target each session. 

When it comes to what rowing machine is better, it largely comes down to personal preference. But if you are still trying to decide what machine is best for you, contact us for more information about rowers or any other fitness equipment you may be considering.