First Degree Fitness Fluid Rowing Machine

First Degree Fitness Fluid Rowing Machine The Fluid Rower is an exciting club-quality, commercial grade, water rower meant for serious usage. The rower uses water in its polycarbonate tank to pleasantly simulate the sound and feel of outdoor rowing. With an unparalleled computer monitor to measure distance, energy consumption, time, # of strokes, strokes per minute as well as 20 different levels of resistance, you are sure to stay motivated and challenged. The seat sits at 18 inches high, the equivalent of a standard office chair, so its perfect for all users.
Customer Review: Tough to review, as its specific to the user
I bought one of these rowers and returned it. However, I must explain why, as the product is very well made.

This rower is rock solid, ultra smooth, almost frictionless, it will last a life time, regardless of your weight. It has a very high seat height, which is very helpful for those who struggle to get up from the ground, where most seat heights are at. The water system is super, just plane fabulous…. It will easily accomodate the tallest people….

I had ONE major problem with this rower. I am middle aged and not in great shape. I wanted a good cardiovascular work out. But regardless how fast I tried to row on this machine, I could NOT get my heart rate up, even after 40 minutes. The problem is, although ultra smooth, the water wheel simply did not produce enough resistance for my strength. Even though I am not that fit, I am relatively strong vs. an average person, but certainly no olympic class athlete So this may not be the case for everyone. The company was very forthright regarding the product… they did mention it was made for long haul endurance training where the cardio came from exploding back at super fast speeds, not so body friendly for older people… rowing can be very demanding at the competitive end…but yet, if the machine had more resistance, you could get a good work out without moving at speeds not possible for the average person, specially the 40+ crowd.

Clearly, if this company every replaced the water inside the tank with some highly viscous liquid, which would raise the resitance tremendously, I would buy another one…. the machine is the best ergonomic rower made, a joy to use…. I would reccomend trying one first and seeing if it meets your cardio needs as this machine is big and bulky, sending it back is no fun for you or the maker. In the end I spent more money on a Tunturi rower…not as smooth, seat too low to the ground, etc. but much greater resistance, so it worked better for me. But I sure hope the maker listens to this suggestion, as I think the machine can operate using a more viscous fluid, which means no changes to the machine, only a different liquid to load in the tank for more resistance.

The price may seem high, but the build quality is so good, its worth every penny if it meets your cardio needs.