Peloton Row Hands On: Form Assist Is a Game Changer for Indoor Rowing

pcmag.com:

If you're new to rowing, it can be tough to know if you're doing it right. With a unique feature called Form Assist, the $3,195 Peloton Row aims to solve this problem. 

Using sensors in the handlebars and seat, the Peloton Row can track your movements to determine whether you're performing each stroke correctly, and warn you if you're not. For rowing newbies, Form Assist is a total game changer. 

Smart strength-training machines from Tempo and Tonal offer real-time form feedback to help you stay safe when lifting weights, but this is the first time I've seen this feature on a rower. Needless to say, when the team behind the Peloton Row gave me a first look at the new machine and its unique Form Assist feature over Zoom this week, I was pretty stoked and couldn't wait to try it myself. I drove to the nearest Peloton showroom at the International Plaza and Bay Street Mall in Tampa to check it out.

Experienced rowers know it's one of the most efficient and effective forms of exercise, offering a full-body, low-impact cardio workout that puts minimal stress on your knees and other joints. But here's the thing about rowing: It's a technical sport that requires coaching and practice to learn. 

The rowing stroke is a complex movement consisting of four parts: the catch, drive, finish, and recovery. You start out leaning slightly forward with your knees bent and your arms extended holding the handle (the catch), then push your feet into the footboards to extend your legs before you hinge at the hips to slightly lean your torso back (the drive), and finally, bend at the elbows as you pull the handlebar back to your sternum (the finish). You move in this order: legs, body, arms. On the recovery, you reverse that sequence to make