Rugby Training On The Indoor Rower
Right from the start, one of the of the biggest markets for the Concept2 Indoor Rower has been rugby training. Coaches and players up and down the country quickly realised that the Indoor Rower was ideal for cross-training purposes for the sport, as it could be used to develop both the aerobic endurance parts of a player's game and the anaerobic explosive parts. Many early training programmes were devised for rugby players, and you can still see the results today, as rugby greats like Andy Ripley and Roger Utley have gone on to carve a name for themselves in the indoor rowing arena. In England's preparation for the World Cup, Martin Johnson's injury history meant he only did one session a day on his feet. Most of his aerobic work was done on a Concept2 rowing machine.
Rugby players need whole body aerobic fitness, not just individual muscle fitness, to perform. To raise the aerobic fitness level the entire body should be exercised and exercise on the Indoor Rower uses both upper and lower body muscles, therefore recruiting a very large muscle mass.
The Rugby Training Guide has been created to help coaches and players get the most out of the machine as possible. The Guide has been written by Peter Herbert, a retired exercise physiology lecturer who was Fitness Adviser to Llanelli RFC (1985 - 2000) and the Wales Rugby Team between 1992 - 1994 and 2000 - 2002. During these periods Llanelli enjoyed their most successful period winning numerous National League and Cup Finals, reaching the European Cup semi-finals twice and beating Australia, the then World Champions in 1993.