There is a reason that your gym or fitness center has only two or three rowing machines on the cardio floor…they just aren’t as much fun as other types of cardio equipment, but Indo-Row promises to change the minds of skeptical fitness enthusiasts.

<strong>What is <a href=”http://www.indo-row.com/”>Indo-Row</a>?</strong>

Created by World Rowing Champion and endurance athlete, Josh Crosby, Indo-Row is indoor rowing formatted for group fitness and it is spreading like wildfire through southern California. In fact, celebrities are flocking to their favorite gyms for what the company claims is, “The Perfect Calorie Burn.” And the perfect calorie burn it is!

My first experience with Indo-Row was at IDEA’s Fitness Fusion conference in Chicago in 2009. As a competitive runner, exercising sitting down seemed pointless, yet the workout was challenging (I’m talking BURNING quadriceps) and the competitive nature of the group class kept motivation high. Added bonus: the time flew by!

Find a class near you:

<a href=”http://revolutionfitness.net/Indo-Row.htm”>Revolution Fitness,</a> Santa Monica, CA
<a href=”http://www.thesportsclubla.com/site/”>The Sports Club LA</a>

This is actually one of the better questions I’ve received recently. Instinctively, my first thought is NO. More on this in a minute.

If, however, you are new to fitness and just starting to exercise regularly, then by all means do whatever type of exercise you like, even if it means doing the same thing every day. You will eventually reach a point when the results taper off, you lose motivation, get bored, or all of the above. That is when you’ll want to mix it up.

Even if you are a fitness guru, there will come a time when your “normal” workout routine isn’t working, or you suffer from burnout (this is common). To keep your muscles challenged and continue to see results, you need include the following components in your routine:

1. Variety

2. Cardiovascular exercise

3. Muscle strengthening exercise

4. Progression (which is just a fancy word for, “gradually making it harder” so that muscles and/or cardiovascular fitness continue to improve)

5. Stretching

Variety is the spice of life, and also the key to a successful workout routine. By continually surprising your muscles with new challenges, they will in turn adapt and become stronger, more efficient.

To mix up your routine, you  might try martial arts, swimming, weight training, yoga or Pilates, Zumba, BodyPump…you get the picture. This is also called “cross training.”

Cardiovascular exercise is the calorie-burning equivalent of driving your car on the highway. Aim for 30-60 mins on most days of the week.

Strength training is beneficial in many ways. It builds lean muscle, which increases resting metabolic rate. It also helps prevent injury by strengthening the muscles around the joints.

Progression will get you from A to B. You can progress both your cardiovascular and strength training routines, and there are many ways to do it. Read more about how to progress your routine.

Stretching We sit all day, move forward  most of the time, and, as the title of this post would indicate, tend to do the same workouts over and over. As a result, muscles get T-I-G-H-T. Stretching at least a few times a week for 15-20 minutes (2-3 minutes for each major muscle if you do 8 stretches and hold each one 15-30 seconds, and repeat), will go a long way toward improving elasticity, and help prevent injury. I’m a fan of yoga, as well as Pilates, but really, any stretching is good in my book.

You might also like: Is your workout working?and, Strength Training 101

Do you have a favorite “mix it up” routine? What do you do to add spice to your workouts?

I’ve been bombarded recently with questions related to interval training and how to incorporate them into a regular routine. Intervals are all-out spurts of effort (85-95% of max heart rate), usually spaced systematically throughout a workout. A simplified example of a running workout with intervals might look something like this:

5 min warm-up
2 min run at moderate pace (6-7 on RPE scale of 10)
1 min run at fast pace (8-9 on scale of 1-10)
1 min recovery (4-5 on scale of 1-10)
repeat 4-6 times

You could also replace the speed work with hill repeats, or use a combination of both throughout the workout. The point is really to increase the intensity for short bouts of time. You’ll burn more calories in less time doing intervals, and also notice an improvement in your cardiovascular level. Intervals are an excellent way to add variety to your routine, move off of a fitness plateau, or cross train.

* Note: Blue Sky Gym and the author disclaim any liability for any injury, physical or emotional, suffered during or as a result of exercise or activities recommended. As always, you should use common sense and consult your health professional before beginning any exercise routine or program.