Customer Reviews

LifeSpan Fitness RW1000 Rowing Machine

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I loved this rower at first, although if you have small feet, it's difficult to keep them from pulling out of the pedals while rowing. 6 broken straps, several emails to Lifespan (they did replace them for me), a change to a different type of shoe, and that problem was finally fixed. Then the pulleys started to break. Ordered a new set and replaced those (those I had to buy). Now the flywheel will not recoil. Took it apart...I would have to replace the magnetic wheel assembly. It's time to give up, it just wasn't made to be used. I used this rower for 2 1/2 years. My last rower was a cheap old piston type, it lasted 12 years. I finally broke the frame. I used the rower 4 times a week, this one just couldn't hold up. And, no, I'm not some 350 pound body builder...I barely make it over 5 feet and am under 135 pounds. I don't think I should be killing rowing machines.

I bought my LifeSpan rower about a year ago and have used it a lot with no major problems. It does the job and seems to be a good value for the money, but it definately is not a performance rower.

PROS:
Cheap
Compact
Folds Easily
Simple Digital Display lasts a very long time one one battery

CONS:
No chain, the pull mechanism is a strap of fabric.
Plastic wheels support the seat and pull movement. Mine have note worn out yet but they're not that smooth and they do feel as if they have worn down significantly during the year that I have used my rower.
The pull movement creates no momentum as with a fan or water resisting model, so you really cant build up much inertia and each pull feels like you're starting from a stp, which is not mych like real rowing.

All in all it's a good unit but if you're looking for something that will really take a beating and last a long time and also emulate the feel of rowing much better, get a concept 2 model D or E. I wish i had spent the extra $400 at the time, because now I have to sell my current rower first. Interested?

We ordered this product to help in a revamping of our exercise program, and it is absolutely great in that mission. The device assembles very easily and quickly; 15 minutes or less if you lay the parts out. There are two major assemblies, and you just attach the seat and put the two pieces together. In action, the device is smooth and quiet, and it can give you a very good workout in a relatively short period of time. The electronics package is good; the only issue some may have is that changing rowing resistance doesn't appear to change the calorie count.

The only problem we had was with Amazon in shipping. This is shipped in two boxes but for some reason Amazon seems to lose sight of that fact on its own tracking. If the two boxes become separated (which ours did) and only one is delivered, they show status as "delivered". I called customer service to try to get them to help with the other box and they continually insisted that the order was one box and was complete. Finally they gave me the UPS premier shipping contact but didn't tell me I would need their shipper number to use it! The other box finally arrived after about five emails to them, two calls to UPS and one call to Amazon. It's worth the wait, though. This is a really great rowing machine!

UPDATE:

We've used the rower for over a month now and so I have some notions of how it works. First, it's deceptive when you start rowing for the first time because the effort level seems light so you tend to crank it up to 4 or 5 (the top). Don't do that unless you're in decent shape or you'll bonk pretty quickly. What seems to work best is to start off rowing for about 10 minutes at about 25 or so strokes per minute according to the timer, at a 1 or 2 level. When you see how you'll do, you can then increase time, stroke count, and effort level. In terms of subjective effort, every jump of one in effort level seems to give you the equivalent of about a 10% increase in stroke count. When I go up in effort level, I'll drop my stroke count 10% until I'm used to the new one. If you're not a young athlete (which I'm surely not) then you will probably find 15-25 minutes of rowing at a pace of about 27 strokes per minute a good workout at level 2 or 3.

This machine undoubtedly gives the most concentrated workout of anything I've used. In 20 minutes I'm sweating big time!

Shipped quickly from amazon, good price. My 10 yr old son set it up in a few minutes and I love it ! Use it everyday for strength training (arms/legs) and cardio (takes a little work to work up a sweat but easy on the joints). Doesn't take up too much room, easy to read monitor. Low impact - easy on my feet, knees, back. Would recommend highly.

sturdy, good price, could use a little more tension but good enough for the casual user - 40-60 min. a week. time will tell how long the rollers last but you still have to keep the track clean with wd40.

Bought it in a store (2nd Wind Fitness) for $450 if memory serves, 3mo's ago. Great workout, folds up easily, stows away in a corner, sturdy. Couldn't ask for more for the price. Very, very pleased!

I'm a runner but needed a quieter workout (my treadmill can't really be used in my new condo). Stupid neighbors.

I'm glad I chose this model instead of going for the one that is just a little over $100. The assembly instructions were cryptic (there is a blown-up bill of materials that inaccurately showed over 100 parts). I found it too daunting (due to cognitive deficits, maybe) and asked my brother-in-law for help. It took him only 15 minutes; homie even said it was EASY.

I watched a few how-to-row-properly videos online and that made a difference. The machine folds up nicely and I can easily wheel it to the corner of the room. It makes little contact with the floor so I don't feel that a mat is necessary. This is my first rower and it's amazing how much I sweat during a 30-minute workout (about 600 strokes). I'm losing weight like a bastard.

I highly recommend the LifeSpan Fitness RW1000.

This was officially my first home fitness equipment purchase. I researched many, many rowing machines for a period of 3 weeks. i noticed at my old gym that they used this brand and saw good reviews on it, so i purchased it. The unit seems to be very sturdy. The seat is fairly comfortable and the velcro foot straps securely hold my feet during the workout. Probably one of the biggest things i noticed during my workout is how relatively quiet the machine is. My workouts thus far feel very good. I'm only at resistance lvl 1, but i feel as though i'm getting a very effective workout after every use. A slight drawback is the screen for the machine. It is very inaccurate in counting calories burned, but it does have a timer on it, which is really all i wanted.

Assembly of the machine was not as easy as i would have liked. The instructions lacked in detail and the pictures provided were very lackluster. I will compliment PCE though. I gave them a call when i was having difficulty assembling the machine and they were very polite and courteous to walk me through it. I didn't even have to provide them with a serial number or anything, they just helped me.

If your a novice to rowing such as me and are wanting to find a very effective machine to get a solid workout i would recommend this one. I would of liked to of gotten a concept 2, but i just couldn't justify giving that much money for my first rower. For the price, this machine is the best bang for your buck.

I bought this rowing machine several months ago and have been very pleased over all. My doctor recommended a rowing machine for cardio exercise that was not weight bearing on my knees. My knees were getting bad enough that I could not walk or treadmill fast enough to get my heart rate up where I wanted it for a workout. You can get a really good work out with this machine. It has 5 levels of resistance; I am up to the third level. It seems well made and is sturdy. I have been using it for several months and have no doubt that it will last several years. The foot straps hold your feet tightly. The seat and seat wheels work well. The rower folds up for storage and it rolls easily. You can workout in the middle of a room and store it in a closet or corner.
I have two issues that made me give it a 4 star rating rather a 5 star. The most serious issue is that the "computer" display only worked some of the time when I first got the rower and now does not work at all. This does not affect the quality of the workout you get with the machine. It doesn't bother me, but if you want to know strokes per minute or distance, this would be a problem. The other minor issue is that the wheels are a hard black plastic that left marks on the slate floor. They are not a problem on carpeted areas. I solved the problem by gluing a strip a carpet to the wheels. It rolls safely on any floor surface now.
Overall, I am very happy with this rowing machine. You can get a very good workout and it appears that it will last a long time under normal use.

The digital monitor simply counts the back-n-forth movement of the seat.
It's not connected to the fly-wheel at all. So the calorie count is
meaningless - the monitor doesn't even know the flywheel resistance level
you're using. I don't really care about it that much, but it would have
been nice to be told of this beforehand. I realized it just because the
wire from the monitor only went backwards, towards the seat. If you stand
up from the seat and row, the monitor stays blank. If you leave the rowing
bar alone and just push the seat back-n-forth with your hand, the monitor
shows plenty of activity!

The machine has three supports, but the middle support is actually slightly
off the ground. Not sure if that's intentional. The middle support bears
weight only when the machine is folded up.

Anyway, the machine looks fine for light use. For heavy-duty use, you
probably need something sturdier.