Kettlebell Is Rowing Essential?

[Matt L]

Hello Friends,

I haven't done rows for a while now, I want to know if I still need to perform rows even if I have been doing swings, C&P, and bent presses. Will it strengthen those movements, or can I let go of doing rows now that I'm doing the previously mentioned movements?


Thank you very much!

 

[Maine-ah KB]

I would say no, swings, and cleans strengthen posterior chain (the back) really efficiently, all of those movement strengthen the lats. and the bent press does a good job at improving posture. IMO

 

[Snowman]

+1 to @Maine-ah KB

Unless you specifically notice weakness in your lats or rhomboids, you shouldn't need rows. In other words, With the ballistics and bent presses, rows become relegated to the realm of corrective/accessory exercises.

That being said, nobody ever regretted having a strong upper back and arms . You could use that kind of logic to justify anything, though. I use it to justify goblet curls in my warmup

 

[Matt L]

I see! Thank you very much for your insights I still do not have a grasp of how the muscles are worked by the ballistic movements hence my question haha

 

[Kozushi]

I do not think rowing is essential at all. Essential I think is supposed to be a big pull which is most essential and a big push which is still essential but less essential. If you have these two movements you have everything covered, not that other movements can't add nuance to these strengths.

 

[North Coast Miller]

I have not ever noticed good carry-over from other movements that improved my rowing strength.

Nothing else hits the scapular mechanics the same way, though pull ups come very close.

 

[Bauer]

Andy Bolton considers them a must - at least to balance out benches and to support squatting and deadlifting.

Here are to quotes from Deadlift Dynamite (co-written by Pavel)

If you want to be really strong and pull huge numbers on the deadlift, you have to have a strong back. In fact, for all three of the powerlifts (squat, bench, and deadlift), a stronger back will lead to stronger lifts. There are many exercises that you can use to train your back. In this chapter you are going to discover some of the best, how to perform them properly and where to put them in your training program. The exercises that you will use to train your back can be divided into two main categories: Horizontal pulling movements (rows) Vertical pulling movements (pull-ups/ pull-downs)

Bolton, Andy; Pavel Tsatsouline. Deadlift Dynamite: How To Master The King of All Strength Exercises (Kindle-Positionen2573-2579). DD Publications, Inc. Kindle-Version.

Here are four important tips for training your back: Do more upper body pulling than you do pressing. This is great for shoulder health and balance in your physique. If you do 100 reps of pressing in a training week, do at least 100 reps of pulling (rows and pull-ups/ pull-downs). (...) Do your upper body pulling movements after your big compound strength movements like squats, deadlifts, presses, snatches, and cleans.

Bolton, Andy; Pavel Tsatsouline. Deadlift Dynamite: How To Master The King of All Strength Exercises (Kindle-Positionen2712-2720). DD Publications, Inc. Kindle-Version.

 

[Kenny Croxdale]

Hello Friends,

I haven't done rows for a while now, I want to know if I still need to perform rows even if I have been doing swings, C&P, and bent presses. Will it strengthen those movements, or can I let go of doing rows now that I'm doing the previously mentioned movements?

Pushing and Pulling Exercise Balance

You need to maintain a strength balance between your Pushing and Pulling Muscles. Doing so, prevents injuries and ensure more strength/power is produce with a pushing or pulling movements.

One of the main reason that pitcher throw their arm out in Major League Baseball is the posterior chain of the shoulder is not strong enough to counter the anterior shoulder when throwing a fast ball.

Research demonstrated that the life span. to a large extent, of Major League Baseball Pitchers is dependent on the posterior chain shoulder strength to the anterior. Pitcher with strong posterior chain shoulder strength played longer.

Emmett Smith (Dallas Cowboy Running Back) hamstring issue was due the fact his quads produced more force that his weaker hamstring could handle.

Low Back issues are often due weaker abs; strong abs provide support for the lower back.

Training Recommendation

For each Pushing Movement you preform, you need you preform a Pulling Movement.

That means if you perform let's say a Bench Press and an Incline Press; you need to perform something like a Row and Lat Pulldown.

A 1:1 Ratio is the minimum.

Chris Thibaudeau

Thibaudeau is one of the best Strength Coaches in the business. Thibaudeau's recommendation is a 2:1 Ratio of Pulling to Pushing Movements; which I agree with.

With that said, I suggest that you include some type of Row or additional Pulling Movement into your program.

Something else to consider is...

The Posterior Chain Muscles

The muscles on the back side are the largest and strongest group of muscles you have.

The Glutes are the largest muscle group you have; the largest muscle group of the lower body.

The Lats are the largest muscle group of the upper body.

Kenny Croxdale

 

[wespom9]

I don't know if a row has to be trained like a typical grind (for max strength), but I do think the movement is important

 

[the hansenator]

Wouldn't it depend on what else you're doing? Someone who does a lot of deads/swings/cleans/snatches would already be working those muscles. If you weren't doing those exercises, I'd think rows would become more important.

 

[Snowman]

I think it also depends on how much training you're doing. If you're training is simply a way for you to live a more effective life, then a few big movements will do. No need for extra stuff unless you're prehabbing/rehabbing something specific. If you're really focused on maximizing performance, then accessory work and similar details become much more important. The majority of intermediate/elite level strength athletes spend some time doing extra work on certain muscle groups, in order to improve specific lifts or prevent injury from training those lifts. For most of us, we will either A) never get strong enough for that to be an issue, or B) take so long to develop that strength that our bodies can balance things out a little; it's easier to correct a slower moving vehicle. @kennycro@@aol.com and @Bauer both bring up very good points, in the context of certain types of athletes.

 

[Steve A]

I have not ever noticed good carry-over from other movements that improved my rowing strength.

This is an easy test for almost any motion. If improving one lift means a second lift goes up, then maybe that second life is not as needed. Of course it depends how developed you are already are. If you are not very strong yet, lots of stuff can make strength in a movement go up.

You can't go by "the muscle are involved in..." because that doesn't mean they are stimulated enough to develop strength or hypertrophy.

 

[Sauli]

If you do cleans and snatches and pull the bell down from the overhead position in presses. It is enough, but doing rows is still good option. It's much healthier movement than pullups. And there is nothing wrong with pullups, but they tend to cause some elbow problems to some people...

 

[User 6372]

I have not ever noticed good carry-over from other movements that improved my rowing strength.

Nothing else hits the scapular mechanics the same way, though pull ups come very close.

I needed to add rows as well.

 

[McGrath]

Who knows, I'd say find some sort of marker/max then stop doing rows for a couple months, then come back and see if you notice a significant difference. I can't see how doing rows would be detrimental to anything strength related. Most iconic strong men swear by them, Coan, Bolton etc..

 

[somanaut]

I do rows at the moment, because I have an injury that prevents me from doing snatches, cleans or pull-ups. When I am healed I will be ditching the rows. That doesn't mean that rows aren't good, and that a coach shouldn't prescribe them for a client. But I do consider rows an accessory exercise and not a main lift, and I prefer to keep accessory moves to a minimum (i.e. only when they re necessary to correct something, or to get one over a plateau) and focus on main lifts. I can justify this since I am not competitive athlete.