10 Best Concept2® Workouts for Every Fitness Goal

Before diving into the workouts, it is important to understand the four main categories of training that make up a balanced Concept2® program. Each type serves a different purpose and should be included in your weekly routine in the right proportions.

This is one of the most popular Concept2® workouts for good reason. The 40/20 format keeps your heart rate elevated throughout the session, maximizing calorie burn while being manageable enough for beginners. The short rest periods prevent full recovery, forcing your body to work in the aerobic-anaerobic transition zone — the sweet spot for fat oxidation.

Steady state rowing is the single most important workout type for building your aerobic engine. This is the workout that elite rowers spend 80% of their training time doing. The goal is to maintain a consistent pace at a heart rate of 130–150 bpm (Zone 2) for the entire 5,000 meters. It feels easy — and that is the point. The adaptations happen over weeks and months of consistent aerobic work.

The Tabata protocol is the most scientifically validated high-intensity interval format. Originally developed by Dr. Izumi Tabata for Japanese Olympic speed skaters, the protocol consists of 8 rounds of 20 seconds maximum effort followed by 10 seconds of rest. Despite lasting only 4 minutes of actual work, a true Tabata session produces the same VO2max improvements as 60 minutes of moderate cardio. This is the hardest workout on this list — and the most time-efficient.

Pyramid workouts are a staple of competitive rowing training because they teach you to manage effort across varying durations. As the intervals get longer, you must pace more conservatively; as they get shorter, you can push harder. This workout develops lactate threshold — the intensity at which your body can no longer clear lactate as fast as it accumulates. Improving this threshold is the key to faster race times.

This is the workout that separates recreational rowers from competitive athletes. Four repetitions of 2,000 meters at near-race pace with 3 minutes of rest between each piece. The goal is to hold a consistent split across all four pieces — ideally within 1–2 seconds of your target 2K pace plus 3–5 seconds. This workout builds the specific endurance needed for 2K and 5K race performance.

Recovery workouts are just as important as hard sessions — they promote blood flow, reduce muscle soreness, and reinforce good technique. The Power Tens format, recommended by Concept2®, alternates between very easy rowing and short bursts of 10 strokes with slightly more intensity. This keeps the session engaging without creating additional fatigue. Use this workout the day after a hard interval session.

The 500m repeat is the bread-and-butter interval workout for rowers who want to get faster. Each 500m piece takes 1:30–2:00 depending on fitness level, with 1:30 of rest between pieces. The relatively short distance allows you to maintain a high intensity without the pacing complexity of longer intervals. This workout builds anaerobic capacity and teaches you to produce power when fatigued.

If you have access to multiple Concept2® ergometers, the multi-erg triathlon is one of the most effective and enjoyable workouts you can do. By rotating between the RowErg®, SkiErg®, and BikeErg®, you work different muscle groups while maintaining cardiovascular intensity. Rowing opens at the hip while skiing closes at the hip, creating a balanced workout. The BikeErg® adds lower-body cycling power to the mix. This is the workout that ErgUltra was built for — tracking performance across all three machines in a single session.

The SkiErg® is the most underrated Concept2® machine for upper body development. This 30/30 interval workout targets the lats, shoulders, triceps, and core while driving your heart rate into the anaerobic zone. The equal work-to-rest ratio allows for higher intensity than the 40/20 format, making it ideal for building explosive upper body power. This workout is particularly popular among CrossFit athletes and Hyrox competitors who need strong pulling power.

Inspired by the Backyard Ultra running format — where athletes complete a 6.7 km loop every hour until only one remains — this workout adapts the concept for the ergometer. Every 5 minutes, you complete a 4:20 effort (representing the time to complete a loop) followed by 40 seconds of rest (representing the transition). The workout is open-ended: you keep going until you can no longer maintain your target pace. This is the ultimate test of mental toughness and the signature workout format of ErgUltra's Last Erg Ultra events.

The key to effective training is not just doing the right workouts — it is doing them in the right order. Never schedule two high-intensity sessions on consecutive days. Always separate hard efforts with easy days or complete rest. Here is a sample weekly plan that balances all training zones for optimal adaptation.

While the PM5 displays real-time data during your workout, it does not provide long-term analytics, social features, or cross-erg tracking. ErgUltra fills this gap by connecting to your PM5 via Bluetooth and automatically recording every workout across all three Concept2® ergometers.

With ErgUltra, you can track your progress over weeks and months, compare your performance across RowErg®, SkiErg®, and BikeErg® sessions, share your workouts with the global ErgUltra community, and compete in virtual Backyard Ultra events. The app turns your solo training into a connected experience — making the invisible visible.