Ive had these machines in two gyms before and the taller guys, by far, were better. This guy though is showing me that I should of been doing it how I felt was right all along lol beacause ive been taught to do it as you have been doing it. The tall guys way lol. Im also very powerful at a 1 minute row, top 30 for my age bracket if the online results are accurate. I always assumed i could never compete in the erg ski thing. Ill give it another whirl now only ever tried it a few times
Managed an 18.7 on my 3rd go after watching this video aged 58. Quite pleased with that as I'm 5ft 9 and 175lbs. These guys are absolute units in comparison.
That’s a fascinating watch Mark… the way you do it is - essentially - the way I’d always been taught: maximum travel distance of the handles = maximum power… … looking forward to trying this! James has such a good teaching style.
I think it depends. Like he said if you apply enough power in the pull to get the flywheel going super fast, then the tricep extension won’t really apply much force. I think most of us don’t apply a ton of power in the pull so the tricep extension still drives the wheel. Ie if the extension can drive a wheel at 200rpm but your pull got it up to 500rpm vs if your pull was only at 200.
Another cracking tutorial, courtesy of James Hall. James conveys some brilliant insights into both Rowing/Skierging for sure. I had the same impression, initially, that the SkiErg stroke was all about length, when really - as with Rowing - it's all about the connection, and applying maximum power in that range, with the hip swing etc. Great content as always, many thanks :-)
It’s mad to think all the Hyrox demos and techniques I’ve seen before aren’t the most optimal. Makes so much sense to do it like this! Will have to give it a go 🙌🏼
Hyrox is all about efficiency in the demos IMO. When you set a world record you usually only do the 1 exercise. So technique from one doesn’t necessarily mean the same for the other. I do think saving your quads is important and this other technique does that well. I’m curious moreso on its affect on heart rate. If you toast HR in hyrox on the 1st exercise then anytime you save will be lost later. I didn’t see the other video so is this world record guy also a hyrox athlete? Also I assume weight of the athlete helps with power output on ski.
@@Pepesilvia267I tried this technique yesterday at Hyrox. I wasn’t going for any PBs, but I was faster than most and required very little energy. It’s more efficient no matter how you look at it.
This, and the previous video had a lot of great tips. You should try to do the “Ragde challenge”. Developed by a Norwegian long distance cross country skiing team by the same name. The challenge is 5k on a treadmill on 10% incline, straight to a 5k ski-erg and then 2k on the rowing machine.
Hi Mark, You actually caught on pretty quickly..must be hard to change like that. Good for you! Jen. (Little ol' lady from the USA) PS ) whipped out an early run this morning, 2 miles, didn't even breathe hard..LOVE IT! All thanks to you! "Just be above average".
This makes good sense if you think about using ski poles. You wouldn't want poles over your head and push so far down. You would want it around shoulders and put your core into just like James Hall is showing here.
As a biathlete and cross country skier, I can say this is one of the better examples of using the skiErg. We use the the skierg like we were on our skis / roller skis. There are a couple of points here that id add, but otherwise a good explanation from James Hall
11:24 Something of relevance you didn't mention here is the stroke rate. James' was super high! You're right about loosing cable length per stroke, but the increased stroke rate makes up for it. I look forward to giving James' technique a go! 🙂
1:40 Nice Milwaukee Eight 114 in the back ❤️🔥 With that whole going as fast as possible, I have issues with that… Do you want to beat a timer or do you want to train your body as good as possible? I mean faster isn’t always better. In weightlifting or with bands you would deliberately slow down to maximize the time under tension and you would use the full range of motion. I mean if the goal is to beat somebody in a race, then go for it. But to me your old technique looked way better as a training then the fast and more sloppy method.
Summary: all power via lats & hips in very short stroke. And bottom of stroke with elbows straightening isn't doing much more than pushing torso back upright ready for the next stroke.
If you were cross country skiing… your technique is pretty good!! Which is what the machine is designed to emulate. You’d beat him over a distance on skis… if you can also stay upright 😂
One important thing that makes it easier to not bend the knees too much is to focus on activating the core when going down. On a another note it would be facinating to see him try cross-country skiing (the ski-erg is based on one of the techinques in cross-country skiing) the only problem is that you need plenty of snow for that😅
Mark can you record you HR using your current technique for a 1k ski. Record it a few workouts to get an average HR. Then once you have the new technique dialed in do the same. I assume the time will be faster but I’m curious what the difference will be in HR. I think you will apply a lot more power but will also spike the HR.
10 years of using a Ski Erg the wrong way 😞 Interested to see what this method looks like on the PM5 power curve. I imagine it will match the bell shape curve you get on a rower - which makes complete sense.
I doubt it but I have no experience at all to say it. This feels like a technique for max power output like sprinting. You run slightly differently for a 10k than a 1k so I think this technique might be harder to do for 10k without putting you in zone 5 the whole time. I’d love it if someone tried it so we can see how the two affect HR for a medium distance ski
Thank you that was interesting. I'm nowhere near as tall as you but I also tend to try to maximise length of stroke and catch way too high. One question - should there be any adaptation for a Hyrox event where obviously we are not sprinting at 100m, 1km or even 2km pace (unless over excited of course). I've noticed the elites tend to have a slow cadence but really rip it, I guess the key is to still use the bigger muscle groups with efficient technique
Were this business, the warning against letting the metric become the goal would apply. The now typical skierg movement is already different than how the instrument was intended to be used, and this moves the goal further still. Eh, at least it's still safer and more useful than the Crossfit pull-up.
He had to add weights because he's all but jumping off the platform. So he's pulling down with bodyweight, which would be the max possible. Flat footed means weight is being left on the ground.
I guess it all comes down to what you are training for. If you primarily use the SkiErg to prepare for the x-country skiing season, it seems that a combination of the two is the way to go (as demonstrated here by former world champion and olympic champion Anders Aukland): th-cam.com/video/rYyoeQMPKkg/w-d-xo.htmlsi=-ZdFydQCJQxSRYdb
New at ski erg. I feel it mostly in my bootie and lats. Legs don't get tired. Do you think I'm on the right path???? I am a tallish gal but I find I'm on my toes initially and I throw my weight down and it wears out my bootie 1st. Lats feel super pumped later.. I don't have stanima but apparently have dominant fast muscle twitch. I really enjoy this erg!!❤
World’s fastest ski erger = Andreas Nygaard. Power to weight is significantly important with indoor machines, and Nygaard destroys everyone (especially in the real thing)
There is a problem with the James Hall approach to the SkiErg, and his approach is 100% correct if you are going to break a SkiErg record or you are going to do Hyrox or Crossfit. Keep in mind that squatting and feeling it in the quads while doing the SkiErg is maybe a good thing if this is a conditioning tool, the quads get the burn and you are hitting the upper body. You get a great stimulus when you do this with 50% or regular wattage (400W on a bike for me is nothing, 200 on the SkiErg kicks my ass) on other machines. Is this a bad thing? No, no it is not. if the goal is conditioning and longevity. Concept 2 machines are low-impact, but you can get hurt. I have the rower and the skierg, the rower can hurt your lower back big time. If you do this as James suggests, which is the most efficient way to do it, you can hurt your lower back. There is no free lunch in biomechanics and physics when you generate so much force with your hips.
Who's getting a better workout though? It's all good having speed if you're goal is winning in the pm5s numbers but if your goal is fitness then I think your original technique is the winner.
You didn’t get it… he’s explaining the technique to be as efficient as possible ; he didn’t talk about time or beating time while he was explaining. Just try to use the movement that he explained in a regular no beating time workout and you’ll be way less tired than Mark’s movement, and on the side your numbers will be better. ;-)
@@matt09ward but that doesn’t fly in any other form of exercise? Nobody goes jogging swinging their arms wildly in the air and then has people support that technique as being better exercise. 😂
@@MarkLewisfitness jogging no, but sprinting yes, for whatever reason sprinters do big arm movements so it must be the optimal technique for that. I guess the question to ask is, is his optimised technique transferable to the snow. Or is it only useful with the erg. As an Aussie who's never seen snow I'd have no idea. To me speed and numbers isn't everything, I'd rather get a full range of motion than cheat just to get a higher number on a machine. It's like watching people bang out pushups without doing a single chest to the ground rep. Kipping pull up would be another example.
Worth learning how to do all movements as efficiently as possible I'd say, especially as the point of something like Hyrox is to be functional in your fitness. You can just do different movements if you want to train different muscles
I assumed length was everything. As seen in this video, there’s more to it than that. 😂
No, it's: Length times Girth over Angle of the Shaft (aka YAW) divided by mass over WIDTH.
I've learned that it's all about proper hip motions!
It’s all about motion in the ocean
I love a dick joke
Ive had these machines in two gyms before and the taller guys, by far, were better. This guy though is showing me that I should of been doing it how I felt was right all along lol beacause ive been taught to do it as you have been doing it. The tall guys way lol. Im also very powerful at a 1 minute row, top 30 for my age bracket if the online results are accurate. I always assumed i could never compete in the erg ski thing. Ill give it another whirl now only ever tried it a few times
This is the BEST explanation of the SkiErg movement seen on the web no question. Nobody explained it like James Hall does here !
Wow, James Hall is not only a beast, he's also a brilliant communicator. Great teacher.
Training time with this guy was probably the most valuable thing you've gotten from being a TH-camr. Master class.
James is a good coach.
"med-ball slam" is a great analogy... my best 2K is a 7:40, but next time I will keep "med-ball slam" in my head while I'm doing it.
Managed an 18.7 on my 3rd go after watching this video aged 58. Quite pleased with that as I'm 5ft 9 and 175lbs. These guys are absolute units in comparison.
That’s a fascinating watch Mark… the way you do it is - essentially - the way I’d always been taught: maximum travel distance of the handles = maximum power…
… looking forward to trying this!
James has such a good teaching style.
I think it depends. Like he said if you apply enough power in the pull to get the flywheel going super fast, then the tricep extension won’t really apply much force. I think most of us don’t apply a ton of power in the pull so the tricep extension still drives the wheel. Ie if the extension can drive a wheel at 200rpm but your pull got it up to 500rpm vs if your pull was only at 200.
Another cracking tutorial, courtesy of James Hall. James conveys some brilliant insights into both Rowing/Skierging for sure. I had the same impression, initially, that the SkiErg stroke was all about length, when really - as with Rowing - it's all about the connection, and applying maximum power in that range, with the hip swing etc. Great content as always, many thanks :-)
Thanks Mark, I've been looking forward to this after watching the row video. Super useful and looking forward to trying that technique out.
Unexpected collab, great video with the best skierg explanation om the internet.
Only perfect practice makes perfect. Wow James is one hell of a coach.
It’s mad to think all the Hyrox demos and techniques I’ve seen before aren’t the most optimal. Makes so much sense to do it like this! Will have to give it a go 🙌🏼
@@gracey62uk for Hyrox, this is even more important because it saves you over using your quads which you need for running.
Hyrox is all about efficiency in the demos IMO. When you set a world record you usually only do the 1 exercise. So technique from one doesn’t necessarily mean the same for the other. I do think saving your quads is important and this other technique does that well. I’m curious moreso on its affect on heart rate. If you toast HR in hyrox on the 1st exercise then anytime you save will be lost later. I didn’t see the other video so is this world record guy also a hyrox athlete? Also I assume weight of the athlete helps with power output on ski.
@@Pepesilvia267I tried this technique yesterday at Hyrox. I wasn’t going for any PBs, but I was faster than most and required very little energy. It’s more efficient no matter how you look at it.
"Use the thing...the force.". You're not a Jedi. 😂
This is a great explanation of the ski erg 👏🏻
What a humble person.
This, and the previous video had a lot of great tips. You should try to do the “Ragde challenge”. Developed by a Norwegian long distance cross country skiing team by the same name.
The challenge is 5k on a treadmill on 10% incline, straight to a 5k ski-erg and then 2k on the rowing machine.
Top advise (forehand to relax @ hand in pocket- - thanks so much !
Brilliant. Saved on favourites for future reference
The best time of the day is when we get a Mark Lewis upload!!!! Loving the journey mate.
Awesome walk through. Recently started looking at Ski Erg and think it’s the next addition
If you could combine your race walk technique with your locomotion technique, the internet would go into meltdown
I have the popcorn ready!
That was very good coaching.
You picked it up super quick well done
Spent all video going "He kinda looks and sounds like Eddie Hall"... What a family 😅
Hi Mark, You actually caught on pretty quickly..must be hard to change like that. Good for you! Jen. (Little ol' lady from the USA)
PS ) whipped out an early run this morning, 2 miles, didn't even breathe hard..LOVE IT! All thanks to you! "Just be above average".
I'll be darned. I've been doing this sub optimally. Excellent turorial.
Me too , always felt burnt out quads and triceps 😢
This makes good sense if you think about using ski poles. You wouldn't want poles over your head and push so far down. You would want it around shoulders and put your core into just like James Hall is showing here.
Is this Eddie's brother?? Looks and sounds like him, and it's on that Beast merch!
What a family!
It is. Check out their video together on the rower.
As a biathlete and cross country skier, I can say this is one of the better examples of using the skiErg. We use the the skierg like we were on our skis / roller skis. There are a couple of points here that id add, but otherwise a good explanation from James Hall
How far off his world record are you?
Such a useful video, I keep coming back to it 🙂
Great tutorial! Will definitely try that technique!
11:24 Something of relevance you didn't mention here is the stroke rate. James' was super high! You're right about loosing cable length per stroke, but the increased stroke rate makes up for it. I look forward to giving James' technique a go! 🙂
I suppose it also depends whether you just want to go as fast as possible, or exercise more muscles.
Would you do claps over your head while you were cycling?
@@garycalvert5406 Strange question
Best info on that maschine ever!
Fully expecting the 5:02 clip to be used as much as duck pond is going forward
I can’t believe no one else is catching onto this. James certainly reacted and I burst out laughing when I saw that.
I only recently started using a Ski Erg. I’ve been wondering if I was doing it right. This is a very helpful video.
Why are the Halls so f... crazy? James looks like a smaller clone of his brother Eddie. Amazing family
Great video, sure I have heard James say for efficiency the erg should be set at 6.5/7
You know the more athletic things I see, hear of, and do the more I think wow form for nearly everything, is actually just physics in disguise.
Absolutely, it's ALL Newton's Laws really (Mechanics)
It took me too long to connect the dots. I was listening to him and thought, "Why does he sound like Eddie Hall?" Then I saw the T-shirt. Haha.
Well I be damned! I too thought that the goal was to get a long stretch to pull more on the rope. I will be trying this tomorrow
That Hyrox top spot is now just waiting for you
Competition, watch out.
#MarksLearning
Well, I'm unable to "compete" at Hyrox.....but yes, I will be taking part soon!
1:40 Nice Milwaukee Eight 114 in the back ❤️🔥
With that whole going as fast as possible, I have issues with that…
Do you want to beat a timer or do you want to train your body as good as possible?
I mean faster isn’t always better.
In weightlifting or with bands you would deliberately slow down to maximize the time under tension and you would use the full range of motion.
I mean if the goal is to beat somebody in a race, then go for it. But to me your old technique looked way better as a training then the fast and more sloppy method.
The way James argues it is he has the world record!
The hall family genetics is amazing. 🧬
Great to see Eddie Hall's long lost brother. Keep the videos up! great work! 😂
Thanks!!!!
Summary: all power via lats & hips in very short stroke. And bottom of stroke with elbows straightening isn't doing much more than pushing torso back upright ready for the next stroke.
I don't understand a lick of this. But I row a real boat. Best exercise ever.
Great video and excellent tutorial! Less 🚂 and more channelling the inner Shakira 😄 I shall remember that
If you were cross country skiing… your technique is pretty good!! Which is what the machine is designed to emulate. You’d beat him over a distance on skis… if you can also stay upright 😂
Amazing such great detail. Next up Bike Erg…?
One important thing that makes it easier to not bend the knees too much is to focus on activating the core when going down.
On a another note it would be facinating to see him try cross-country skiing (the ski-erg is based on one of the techinques in cross-country skiing) the only problem is that you need plenty of snow for that😅
He wouldn’t survive cross country skiing. He’s too heavy which the ski erg favours.
@@jimjamthebananaman1 That's true, it would probably be hard to find skis that are stiff enough. He would get super good grip though :P
So this technique is good for smashing out a fast time, but is there a more ROM technique for just getting a good, full body aerobic workout?
Thanks. Great.
My daughter once said to me "you're Not As Shit As I thought you'd be" when I took up on water rowing. So James just said you're NASA (7.04), Mark.
Mark can you record you HR using your current technique for a 1k ski. Record it a few workouts to get an average HR. Then once you have the new technique dialed in do the same. I assume the time will be faster but I’m curious what the difference will be in HR. I think you will apply a lot more power but will also spike the HR.
Different strokes for different folks as they say
This guy needs his own channel
I can see you winning another medal next to a duck pond before too long.
T-Rex goes choo choo
10 years of using a Ski Erg the wrong way 😞
Interested to see what this method looks like on the PM5 power curve. I imagine it will match the bell shape curve you get on a rower - which makes complete sense.
"You're not truly connected with yourself"
Brilliant video. Is this technique also suitable for more endurance distances greater than 10km?
I doubt it but I have no experience at all to say it. This feels like a technique for max power output like sprinting. You run slightly differently for a 10k than a 1k so I think this technique might be harder to do for 10k without putting you in zone 5 the whole time. I’d love it if someone tried it so we can see how the two affect HR for a medium distance ski
Watch the guy that does the marathon ski. Very similiar technique with short sharp pulls rather than long drawn out ones.
Love this advice
Thank you that was interesting. I'm nowhere near as tall as you but I also tend to try to maximise length of stroke and catch way too high. One question - should there be any adaptation for a Hyrox event where obviously we are not sprinting at 100m, 1km or even 2km pace (unless over excited of course). I've noticed the elites tend to have a slow cadence but really rip it, I guess the key is to still use the bigger muscle groups with efficient technique
Were this business, the warning against letting the metric become the goal would apply. The now typical skierg movement is already different than how the instrument was intended to be used, and this moves the goal further still. Eh, at least it's still safer and more useful than the Crossfit pull-up.
Top double polers use the same technique.
I have never really tried distance in a certain time but ive reaced 3600kcal/hour on the skierg with the resistance on 10.
How's your ski now Mark, have you dialled in the tekkers since filming and have your times improved?
He had to add weights because he's all but jumping off the platform. So he's pulling down with bodyweight, which would be the max possible.
Flat footed means weight is being left on the ground.
Isn’t this only good for sprinting? Would you still apply that range of motion or cadence to a 10 or 20 minute time domain on the ski?
Interesting that the ski erg is much slower than actual double pole skiing.
I guess it all comes down to what you are training for. If you primarily use the SkiErg to prepare for the x-country skiing season, it seems that a combination of the two is the way to go (as demonstrated here by former world champion and olympic champion Anders Aukland): th-cam.com/video/rYyoeQMPKkg/w-d-xo.htmlsi=-ZdFydQCJQxSRYdb
Are we gonna see an update on you 100m split in a few weeks?
New at ski erg. I feel it mostly in my bootie and lats. Legs don't get tired. Do you think I'm on the right path???? I am a tallish gal but I find I'm on my toes initially and I throw my weight down and it wears out my bootie 1st. Lats feel super pumped later.. I don't have stanima but apparently have dominant fast muscle twitch. I really enjoy this erg!!❤
Theres no glutes in the erg at all
What damper setting are you using on each machine when going for a record?
Around 6-8
Comments full of skiers talking about real life and how you're doing it wrong.😂
I was doing the exact opposite!
I find that sometimes this can hurt my lower back doing that movement
So it's confirmed that size isn't everything 😂
The nicer of the two brothers
So James has the mid distance world record, and his brother, Eddie, has the sprint record, no?
James has weight on his side to produce force.
Utilizing weight (even if less than his) and your centre of gravity will be more powerful for anyone than simply pulling down with the arms.
Actually there is now difference to the real world cross country skiing.
World’s fastest ski erger = Andreas Nygaard. Power to weight is significantly important with indoor machines, and Nygaard destroys everyone (especially in the real thing)
But not over a distance that most people have much interest in. 100 m, 1000 m, 2000 m all held by the hall Brothers.
Everytime he speaks all I see is Eddie hall 😂
Get on the shell in the water or get your skis on the snow, then I'll be impressed.
ok seen enough
There is a problem with the James Hall approach to the SkiErg, and his approach is 100% correct if you are going to break a SkiErg record or you are going to do Hyrox or Crossfit. Keep in mind that squatting and feeling it in the quads while doing the SkiErg is maybe a good thing if this is a conditioning tool, the quads get the burn and you are hitting the upper body. You get a great stimulus when you do this with 50% or regular wattage (400W on a bike for me is nothing, 200 on the SkiErg kicks my ass) on other machines. Is this a bad thing? No, no it is not. if the goal is conditioning and longevity. Concept 2 machines are low-impact, but you can get hurt. I have the rower and the skierg, the rower can hurt your lower back big time. If you do this as James suggests, which is the most efficient way to do it, you can hurt your lower back. There is no free lunch in biomechanics and physics when you generate so much force with your hips.
is he natty?
Nope.
Who's getting a better workout though? It's all good having speed if you're goal is winning in the pm5s numbers but if your goal is fitness then I think your original technique is the winner.
Exactly, I just commented the same thing…
Do you want the best for your body or just beat a time
You didn’t get it… he’s explaining the technique to be as efficient as possible ; he didn’t talk about time or beating time while he was explaining. Just try to use the movement that he explained in a regular no beating time workout and you’ll be way less tired than Mark’s movement, and on the side your numbers will be better. ;-)
@@matt09ward but that doesn’t fly in any other form of exercise? Nobody goes jogging swinging their arms wildly in the air and then has people support that technique as being better exercise. 😂
@@MarkLewisfitness jogging no, but sprinting yes, for whatever reason sprinters do big arm movements so it must be the optimal technique for that. I guess the question to ask is, is his optimised technique transferable to the snow. Or is it only useful with the erg. As an Aussie who's never seen snow I'd have no idea. To me speed and numbers isn't everything, I'd rather get a full range of motion than cheat just to get a higher number on a machine. It's like watching people bang out pushups without doing a single chest to the ground rep. Kipping pull up would be another example.
Worth learning how to do all movements as efficiently as possible I'd say, especially as the point of something like Hyrox is to be functional in your fitness. You can just do different movements if you want to train different muscles
Okay now... Does this strategy work for a 148cm human? 😅 Asking for a friend
No different, just use a ladder to get started 😂
I don’t have a ski erg so I have to practice on my wife’s ponytail.
3rd😊
and second 🙂
First 🙂