Cecilia B., CF-L1 trainer and FIPE (Italian Weightlifting Federation), tested the new Xebex Air Rower 2.0
If you are one of the fitness addicted who is looking for a rower machine for your training area, in order to place it at home or in your garage gym, you would have surely noted that this research lately is not easy.
In the last few months, in fact, finding a cardio machine (rowers, bikes, ski ergs) to buy in the European market became quite impossible. The reason is to find in product demand which raised esponentially, from the moment in which che gyms have been closed. The production capacity was not able to follow the market requests, due to the fact that there had been several delays in material supply and shipments caused by Coronavirus.
In this uncertain scenario, Research and Development Department in Xenios USA immediately tried and succeeded in finding a solution to the lack of cardio machines on the market, evaluating a collaboration with different companies leader in their business and selecting finally the product from the company Xebex Fitness, in order to allow you to train at home, in your garage gym or in your boxes.
Why Xenios USA chose Xebex?
Xebex Fitness is a company with Design and Projecting Department in America and Manufacturing in Taiwan. This is one of the most reknown companies in the world for fitness conditioning machines, with more than 30 years experience and with resellers in more than 40 countries in the world.
Xenios USA was looking for a reliable and trustworthy partner, that knows well the branch our company is working in: in fact, design and production department in Xebex Fitness is composed by engineers, athletes and coaches who have a great knowledge in functional fitness and crosstraining market, so that their products are designed for and resistant to high intensity training. Xebex strength lies in the knowledge of this market and reliability in production materials, with resistant high quality long lasting parts.
In addition, speaking of brand reliability, the Xebex Air Rower 2.0 is in compliance with EN-20957, tested in TUV laboratories, with electronic parts (consolle) in compliance with ROHS and REACH.
Product Features
After this brief introduction to brand Xebex reliability, let’s see this rower main characteristics.
Net Weight: 42.1 Kg (95 LBs)
Shipping Weight: 50.8 Kg (110 LBs)
Shipping dimensions: 146 x 66 x 38 cm
Assembled dimensions:
– Length: 213 cm (7’3″) Front Stabilizer to Rear Stabilizer. 243 cm (8’4″) from Fan to Rail;
– Width: 50,8 cm (20″).
Max User Weight: 226 Kg (500LBs)
Rowing machine type
The Xebex Air Rower 2.0 is an air resistance rower, this is the kind of rower most commonly used in indoor training and can be found in many boxes and gyms across the world. It is a model of row that can be commonly found in indoor rowing competitions as well.
This kind of rower has a lateral fan, on which is located a damper that allows to set the amount of air that enters the fan, on a 1-10 ratio. Thanks to damper setting, you will be able to constantly monitor the air entrance, therefore your effort can be set and machine resistance as well. The amount of work and the effort you will do on the cardio machine is directly correlated to the stroke strength. The harder you will row, the fastest you will go, you will however always be able to modify damper settings as you like to make the struggle of the stroke more or less intense.
This kind of resistance mimics the paddle resistance in water and will make more or less intense your training session, customizing the effort you will make on your cardio machine. Fan design, in this model, makes the stroke pleasant and smooth and reduces noise when in use.
Screen Features
Thanks to its electronic part and its essential and clean screen, which has big and visible numbers, you will be able to monitor all the data you need regarding your training, they are displayed all the same screen if you need: time in use, meters, strokes per minute, calories, watt, 500 m split time, calories per hour, meters per stroke average.
Bluetooth/ANT+ Connection
In addition, with the new feature added to its electronic device, the machine is compatible and can be connected with Bluetooth/ANT+ to your cardio band with 5 kHZ connection or to your smartwatch. You will be able to view and synchronize your data on many training apps, such as Kinomap, Gymtrakr and Selfloops Group Training Apps. Your heart rate can be constantly monitored then during your training sessions.
Design and comfort
Xebex rowers are known for their durability and solidity. The base, which weighs approximately 45 kg, ensures excellent stability for users of every weight. Many parts of the machine are made in metal or steel, even where usually other brands use plastic instead.
Machine design is essential, solid and reliable in material choice, without compromising the comfort while in use: seat is higher than other rowers we are used to (50,8 cm) and is defined by the company at “dining chair height”. Seat has been designed in this way to facilitate getting in and out the rower, making the rower suitable for users of every age and in every physical condition.
Other comfortable and unique features of this rower are the seat cushion, padded with ergonomic high-density foam and the rower handle, which is extra padded too. Not forgetting mentioning the easy setting of feet hooks and smoothness of the seat that flows on the rail, seat that is very stable and allows to use it for a long time in your training session without compromising its comfort. Consider that Xebex Air Rowers have been tested with 1,000,000 consecutive pulls from Robotic Arms without failure!
Easy to stock
The most unique feature for this Xebex rower is the easy way in which it can be stocked: in fact, this machine is foldable and, when folded, its dimensions are smaller than 50% rather than the dimensions it has when in use. Its foldable structure is extremely solid and easy to use and close. This offers a level of comfort and manageability with no other examples like this on the market.
Once closed, with a procedure that lasts 5 seconds, this rower is just 91 cm long and 50 cm large. Using its 4 wheels on its base, this rower can be moved easily by using just one hand.
User Experience
After this detailed explanation of the main features of this rower, you could ask me: so, what about the machine when in use? Did you try it?
The answer is yes, I had the pleasure to try this rower exclusively and I am reporting my user feedback.
As a CF-L1 trainer and FIPE trainer, in several years of coaching in a boxes like Crossfit Riccione in Italy and Crossfit 3 Towers in the Republic of San Marino, I understood how important it is to have solidly built cardio machines, reliable and trustworthy, inside your training area.
Surely the first characteristic which can catch the attention of every trainer or of a private which would like to place this rower at home, is the fact that this can be folded and can be stored easily in a small space. As folded, in fact, the machine is extremely manageable, I was pleasantly impressed with how easy and intuitive it was to use this folding system and how much space you can save by using this feature.
Regarding the machine in use, assuming the fact that is never easy to approach a new training tool, I can say that the impact has been positive from the beginning: the seat height is very comfortable and the extra cushioning gives immediately a feeling of comfort when using it. The stroke is very smooth and gives a comfort sensation when compared to other rowers, the more intense and strong the stroke is, the better is the response you get from the machine, feature that makes also the most grueling and long lasting rowing sessions extremely enjoyable.
In addition, the screen is very clear and very understandable, the numbers are big and well defined and is very useful that in the main screen you can find displayed all the data at the same time: meters, calories, time in use, watt, meters per stroke. All these data can be monitored at the same time.
In conclusion, the heart rate monitoring system through Bluetooth/ANT+ connection is a plus that adds value to the rower, which can be a valid training ally for every kind of user: from the beginner to the most experienced user.
Conclusions
The user experience for the Xebex Air Rower 2.0 has been, without any doubt, a positive experience and left me highly satisfied: it was easy to get used to the rowing style of this machine and to its innovative and interesting features.
More infomation can be found about this product directly on Xenios USA website, go and check this link.
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