Roei Fitness blew up in Belgium – ditched treadmill, found my winter cardio savior 🚣‍♂️🇧🇪

So yeah, “roei fitness” (rowing for us Dutch-speakers) is suddenly a thing here. I’m 27, teacher in Mechelen, and 10 weeks ago I rage-quit the treadmill (knees hated me) and hopped on a Concept2 I grabbed from Decathlon (€800… wallet cried but worth).

Rowing = low-impact, full-body (like 80% muscles?? wild), ~600 cals/hr, and my posture’s less “desk goblin.” Did steady 20min 3x/week + some 500m sprints. YouTube fixed my tragic chicken-wing pulls.

Results: VO₂ up ~15%, back feels stronger, no bulk. Bonus: blasting Dua Lipa while pretending I’m racing on the Scheldt. Fuel = stoofvlees before sessions (don’t judge).

Belgian twist: anyone got erg hacks? Wallonia clubs? Is this sustainable long-term or am I just in the honeymoon phase? Drop your splits, memes, or survival tips.

Let’s race 2k times 😂. Mechelen erg club exists btw, join us. Your intervals killed my beer belly too. Belgian hack: “beer row challenge” (don’t ask). My PB = 7:45,

what’s yours OP?

Solid blueprint. Quick tech note: most newbies rush the recovery phase, so watch that. Keep stroke rate ~24–28 spm. Antwerp Rowing Fed has good form clinics if you’re nearby. Your VO₂ gains line up with physio data (avg 12–15%). Keep tracking watts, not just time.

Same boat (pun intended). Switched from treadmill → erg, knees say thanks. Also stoofvlees pre-row?? Genius. I row outdoors on the Dijle till it freezes. OP, how do you keep motivation? I use streak apps, otherwise Netflix wins.

Your plan’s solid. If you want progression, add pyramid intervals (250–500–750–500–250m) around week 4. Teachers’ schedules = chaos, so 20min sessions are gold. Nutrition tip: 4g carbs/kg bodyweight pre-training.