I’m 188cm tall and weigh 71kg, which is the weight I sit at naturally. Should I aim to stay lightweight or try
Credit WorldRowing: Lightweight rower
and build some muscle over the summer?
What a great question. I’m guessing you are young (under 25) and so your decision now will affect your rowing career for the next couple of years.
Facts about rowing and weight
- A Good Big’un will always beat a Good Little’un
- God gave you this body and you can influence it a bit, but if you’re fully grown there are some things you can’t change.
What I infer from these two facts is that in rowing, heavyweights will generally beat lightweights – except for exceptional athletes [you may become one of these]. And you can train your body but you are unlikely to grow a lot and grow to over 190 cm and 90kgs.
So my advice is to choose lightweight racing.
You will be able to race competitively against other athletes on a level playing field. You will also have the chance to race heavyweights (and maybe beat them and become smug) as well.
Also you will always have the excuse that you were beaten by a giant weighing tonnes more (joke).
I wish you all the best.
This rowing question was answered on Quora and is reproduced here.
Read other Lightweight rowing articles
