Yes, you can, and it’s highly recommended. In fact, it may be the best exercise for Max-OT Cardio.
Here’s why. Rowing incorporates the most muscle groups during the movement than any other cardio exercise. Research shows you actually recruit over 85% of your body’s muscle mass during the rowing exercise. When you are maximizing the muscle mass contributing to the exercise, you’ll burn more calories. It takes more energy to fire all those muscle groups, and that translates into serious fat burning.
What you need to do is follow the same Max-OT Cardio principles and apply them to training on a rowing machine. Let me warn you if you have never been on a rower before you are in for quite an experience. Rowing incorporates so many muscle groups, and that’s what makes this exercise extremely intense – which is exactly what you are looking for. Max-OT Cardio is intensity based and the greater the intensity, the greater the results.
Most rowers have display panels that measure time, strokes, distance, etc. Keep things simple to measure your intensity. I recommend dividing the distance by the number of strokes. This will give you a distance per stroke and if a very accurate measure of intensity. Remember, Max-OT Cardio dictates that each Max-OT Cardio workout should be more intense than the one before. Keep a record of each Max-OT Cardio session and make it your goal to beat the previous workout. Continually increasing your cardio intensity should be your primary goal. Beating each previous workout will turn your metabolism into an inferno.
