York R101 Rowing Machine Review

Product Description

The York Fitness R101 rowing machine is a multi use rower and one of the most popular rowing machines of the York Fitness range. As a compact and smooth rowing machine, the York Fitness R101 is fantastic for an all over body’s muscle workout and features 12 resistance levels, a computer displaying distance, calories, strokes, time and strokes per minute.

Our Review

The York R101 Rowing Machine is one of the best selling rowing machines around, available at a low price and perfect for beginners and for casual to medium-intensity use.

It’s easy to assemble, fitting together with little effort, and feels sturdy. Yet it’s lightweight enough to easily transport, and its size makes it easy to fit under a bed or in another small storage space.

There are 12 resistance settings, and at a mid-level resistance I found myself getting tired after about 10 minutes. Even the lowest resistance this machine can be quite a challenge, and crank it all the way up to the top  and you’ll really feel the burn, so for the price it’s a rowing machine with some real power built into it. You do have to get off to adjust the resistance, so you can’t switch it up a gear mid-row, but this is only a minor complaint.

For those of you new to rowing, make sure you read the York R101’s accompanying booklet. There’s a section at the back focusing on the different ways you can use it to target different muscles, which we found quite useful.

The only difficulty with this product is it might not be great for overly tall users – if you’re over 6 ft you might struggle to extend your body fully, though at just under 6 ft I managed to stretch out without a problem. It also has a maximum weight limit of 90kg (14st, 2lbs), so larger users might need to invest in something a bit sturdier.

Its on board computer records time, distance (km), number of strokes and strokes per minute, making it easy to keep track of your progress.

While this may not quite live up to a Concept2 rower – not many things do – it is certainly worth the money, and at around £100 it is significantly cheaper than anything coming off the Concept2 conveyor belt. If you’re looking for a well-priced lightweight rower that gives an excellent workout, you’ll do well with the York R101 Rowing Machine.

If you’re looking for something you’re going to hammer day in day out then you might be better off spending a bit more on a machine with a higher build quality, but for casual users looking for an evening workout to get the heart pumping, then for the price we certainly can’t complain.