We may earn a commission from links on this page.When someone experienced uses a rowing machine, its almost a thing of beautya continuous rhythm, their entire body continuously moving back and forth as the numbers on the screen rise higher and higher. So why, when you get on, does using it immediately feel impossible, and also your back hurts? You probably have the settings wrong, and chances are your technique sucks too. Let's fix both of those.There is a learning curve to the rowing machine (also called an erg), but you can master itprobably more quickly than you think. Its also common to note the damper setting and assume it works the same way as the resistance setting on any other cardio machine, but thats not exactly the case. Once youve fixed your technique and learned where to set the damper, and soon youll be sliding along rhythmically yourself. Concept2 RowErg Model D Indoor Rowing Machine - PM5 Monitor, Device Holder, Adjustable Air Resistance, Easy Storage with Black Sweat Towel $1,294.99 at Amazon Get Deal Get Deal $1,294.99 at Amazon The only "resistance" setting you need is #4On other cardio machines, you usually have a control that makes your workout harder, like the resistance knob on a bike, or the speed and incline controls on a treadmill. So you look at the rowing machine, see the damper that has settings from 1 to 10, and figure that you must want to crank this up to get a harder workout. If you think you're a tough guy, you'll set it to 10. But please don't. Youre best off setting it to number 4 (out of 10) and leaving it there, no matter the workout. Thats because the damper is not really a resistance setting, even though a lot of people mistake it for one. It makes more sense to think of it as being like the resistance of the water if you were in a real rowboat or rowing shell. You dont get a harder workout by moving your boat to a lake made of, I dont know, mercury. You stay on the water and you either row faster or push harder. At the highest settings, like 10, its hard to get the flywheel spinning, and the flywheel also slows down more before the next stroke. Rowing machine maker Concept2 compares rowing at a high damper setting (above 5 or so) to rowing a clunky rowboat: you need to push harder, and cant easily get into a continuous rhythm. You can do it if you want a more strength-based workout, in the same way that runners can focus on strength by doing sprints up a steep hill. But its not the way you would expect to do most of your training. To drive the point home, Concept2 surveyed Olympic rowers on what settings they actually use. Rather than damper number, serious rowers tend to look up their drag factor (which you can find from the little screen on the rowing machine) and adjust the damper as needed to get the drag factor they want. But the settings they described typically correlate to a damper setting of around 3 to 5, so 4 is a safe bet.Push with your legs, then pull with your armsThe biggest technique mistake most of us make is to grab the handle and immediately yoink with our arms. After all, the point is to row it toward us, right? Not really. The first thing you need to do, after youve gotten the handle in your hands, is to push with your legs. This is the part of the movement where you need to apply the most force, and conveniently, your legs are home to your biggest muscles. You power into the stroke by treating this initial phase almost like a squat.Then you can get your upper body into it. Once your legs are mostly straight, lean back from the hips; only then should you pull with your arms. So the sequence goes: Push with the legsLean back a littlePull with the armsIf youre used to doing cable rows or barbell rows in your strength training, that pulling motion is similar to the last step here. You can use your usual cues, but only after completing the first two steps. Once youve done all three parts of the stroke, youll be leaning back with legs straight and the handle at your chest. What now? Just reverse the movement: Allow your arms to straighten outReturn your torso to its upright positionBend the legs and slide your butt back to the starting position.Just repeat to yourself: Legs-back-arms, arms-back-legs. Once you get that basic rhythm, you can look up videos on the finer points of technique, like these from Concept2.