8 Erg Workout Ideas for Kids

If you have an erg, and kids, there are many fun ways to get those kids active at home. Here are a few of our favorite workouts, suitable for all ages. We also offer suggestions for setting up the RowErg for kids.

1. Music makes working out fun. Put on your favorite song(s) and take turns rowing, skiing or riding to the beat. Try to match the rhythm of the song. You can try working harder through each chorus or row every other song. (Pop songs tend to be about three minutes long each. Add stretches and additional exercises as you rest.)
2. Draw a pyramid. What does it look like? Try a “pyramid workout”. Why is it called a pyramid? Workout: 100m row / 1:00 rest / 200m row / 1:00 rest / 300m row / 1:00 rest / 400m row / 1:00 rest / 300m row / 1:00 rest / 200m row / 1:00 rest / 100 row.
3. When you work out, you create power. What is wattage? Look around the room. How many watts are needed to light up a lightbulb? Use the units of “Watts” on the Performance Monitor to see if you could power up a light or other appliance for four minutes or more.
4. Try the “Staying Alive” Game: Set the monitor to a time or distance workout, such as 2 minutes or 500 metres. Each athlete starts with three “lives”. Complete your workout with a constant stroke rate (such as 22 spm) or a stroke rate “zone” (a range such as 22-28 spm). Give approximately 10 starting strokes to allow the athlete to find the target. Every time the athlete leaves the goal stroke rate or zone, they lose a life. Try to finish the workout before you lose all three lives.
5. When we exercise, we burn Calories. How many Calories are in an apple (or Hershey kiss, or other food in the house)? Look it up. Can you complete the same number in Calories when you exercise? How long does it take? You can set up a Calorie workout to count down your workout. 
6. Add variety by combining bodyweight exercises such as air squats, lunges, jumping jacks and pushups. Canned food and water jugs make great impromptu weights. Try rowing, skiing or riding for one minute, then complete 10 reps of a bodyweight exercise in the next minute. Use any remaining time in the minute to rest. Complete as many rounds as your age.
7. The distance that athletes row in the Olympics is 2000 metres. Try rowing this distance. You can try rowing four sets of 500 metres (rest for 1 minute in between each section) to see how hard it is to finish. The fastest times rowed (indoors) for kids under age 12 are 6:57 (boys) and 7:26 (girls). That’s fast! See how you compare.
8. The Concept2 Rankings show the fastest times for kids age 0-12 for specific workouts on the RowErg, SkiErg and BikeErg. Some categories may not have many results entered, so race your best and enter your result to see how you compare!

Bonus: Math problems for Older Kids

• Nevaeh skis 2000 metres. On average, it takes her 2 minutes and 30 seconds to ski each section of 500 metres. How long does it take her to finish 2000 metres?
• Joseph rows 22 strokes per minute. He rows for 5 minutes. How many strokes did Joseph row?
• A marathon is 26.2 miles. If 1 mile equals 1609 metres, how many metres are there in a marathon?

You might also want to check out how you can integrate math and physical education, while having fun and staying active!