They’re a staple in most CrossFit boxes. Trendy fitness classes are being created in their honor. Even Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright are sharing serious screen time with them on House of Cards. Yep, rowing machines that once collected dust at gyms are coming back in a big way—and that’s sweet news for your bod. “People are starting to see the erg—short for rowing ergometer—as a one-up on more popular cardio machines,” says Stella Lucia Volpe, Ph.D., R.D., an exercise physiologist and nutrition professor at Drexel University. “Which is great, because it is.”
More precisely, rowing is a total-body, strength-meetscardio activity. In one stroke, you engage your calves, hamstrings, quads, glutes, abs, lats, shoulders, biceps, and (phew) triceps—in total, using 70 percent of all the muscles in your body. And…
