Like many individuals, I ended up in a fitness rut in 2020, and after lacking my studios for months, I bought a Peloton bike. Although I loved having a bit of kit in my residence—and Peloton does supply quite a lot of courses past the bike itself—there was nonetheless one thing lacking. I struggled to stay to my routine, and sadly, my shiny spin bike, as soon as a beacon of hope, grew to become a shrine of disgrace within the nook of my front room.
However final summer time I bought the prospect to attempt a brand new piece of at-home exercise tools, the LIT Strength Machine, that promised to get me again on monitor when it come to figuring out. Half rower, half Pilates equipment, half…one thing else completely. Through the use of water for resistance, a sliding carriage, and totally different resistance bands, the one machine is ready to supply a number of train choices.
As a result of this is not a linked gadget, there aren’t any hooked up electronics—or chords—which has allowed me to get pleasure from outside exercises within the California solar, and I can use the arm attachment to carry my iPad for guided exercises, which come as a part of your month-to-month subscription to LIT’s health app. As well, it folds up, so so long as you might have about two ft of house (extensive) for the bottom of the machine, and at the least seven-foot tall ceilings, you possibly can preserve it saved upright when it’s not in use.
At $1,800, it’s positively nonetheless a dear piece of kit, however in case you mix the prices of shopping for a hydro-powered rowing machine and a reformer, you would be spending that a lot (almost certainly extra) simply—and have to determine the place to retailer two items of kit, which can or is probably not a deal breaker relying on the scale of your private home. (LIT additionally provides financing, FYI.) Other than the price of the {hardware} itself, you are $25 a month (or $240 per 12 months) for a subscription to the platform’s digital health library. With that being mentioned, you don’t essentially want the category subscription, although I do suggest it.
The exercises
In order you’ve most likely already gathered, you’re not just doing rowing workouts on this machine—the app provides over 2,500 courses, starting from 10-minute to at least one hour, with in style music, and a dozen instructors—although rowing makes up a major class and is really such a powerful (and underrated!) exercise category, in my humble opinion. Astronauts use rowing machines to train in space as a result of they’re so rattling efficient, and use so many muscle teams concurrently, together with the legs, again, arms, and abdominals. Throughout a rowing stroke, the muscle mass which can be used probably the most are the again muscle mass, quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes. The arms, shoulders, and belly muscle mass are additionally used to assist generate energy and management the rowing stroke.
Associated Tales
You then’ve bought Pilates, which is, after all, one other full-body exercise—the LIT Technique machine has parts of a classic Pilates reformer, utilizing the seat as a small carriage, with resistance bands added into totally different routines.
On prime of that, there are harm restoration courses, core and conditioning exercises, stretching periods, postnatal choices, and even barre. In case you don’t really feel like doing a guided class, there are additionally “scenic rowing” movies the place you possibly can just about row your self by way of aquamarine seas or tropical lakes.
My expertise utilizing the LIT Energy Machine
One in every of my favourite components about this machine is how low-maintenance, simple, and ass-kicking it’s. But it begins out feeling like a “lazy’ exercise”—I roll out in pajamas (not even athleisure) and no footwear, sit on the carriage, slide my naked ft underneath the foot straps, and begin rowing. Whether or not I exploit one of many guided row exercises, or do my very own mixture, the result’s all the time a full-body, sweat-soaked expertise that hits each main muscle group in my physique.
I like doing a easy 10-minute endurance row with Jazmin R on the app, or two totally different 10-minute periods again to again. She teaches numerous foundational expertise that construct correct type and power to organize you for different courses (each on and off the machine). The music is usually digital, pop, and hip hop (assume: something from a Hardwell dance anthem to Snoop/Dr. Dre’s “The Subsequent Episode” to one thing vibey by SZA). I dial into my rowing form and movement pattern; she’ll remind me about my grip and posture; and I am going to work by way of a sequence of clean energy strokes, in addition to sprints. Jazmin’s power is electrical, so even probably the most primary newbie courses nonetheless really feel sturdy and uplifting.
You may modify the resistance with a dial on the water tank (which, IMO, is so cool… it’s all primarily based on water!). This lets you handle how difficult your exercises are, and make adjustments as wanted.
Then there’s the Pilates courses—I missed the studio reformer exercises a lot, and was craving a return to my favourite type of train. One memorable class I took was set to a Billie Eilish/Cardi B soundtrack (a profitable combo) and used the seat and resistance bands with handles to copy the lengthy straps and carriage on a reformer.
I did a core sequence sitting on the seat, a strap deal with in every hand, utilizing a spinal twist movement back and forth and the power of your arms to drag the carriage out and in. We additionally did an “elephant,” which is a signature reformer train, once more utilizing the seat because the carriage. We completed with some lateral lunges with one foot on the seat. These courses are dynamic, difficult, form-focused, and by no means boring or monotonous.
In the course of the pandemic years, small (just about insignificant) boundaries to entry felt insurmountable—to me, at the least! One thing so simple as needing to placed on biking footwear and clip in was, for no matter purpose, one thing that bought in the best way of figuring out greater than as soon as. With the LIT Energy Machine, I don’t even put on footwear half the time. I can simply sit down and begin rowing… no class, no footwear, no further tools mandatory. I’ve actually carried out exercises in my pajamas, barefoot, a number of instances.
All in all, the LIT Energy Machine provides a number of the most secure, strongest, efficient, and accessible types of train that anybody can profit from. The range out there retains it fascinating on your mind and physique, and the instructors preserve issues constructive and inspiring, whereas nonetheless serving to you’re feeling considerably held accountable. The capability to retailer it upright (or outdoors), and use your personal up-to-date know-how as a display screen make this a house gymnasium possibility that may evolve over time and work for a variety of settings and existence.
