What you'll gain

• One of very few cardio machines driven mainly by the upper body and trunk rather than the legs.

• Trains the same proximal to distal chain used in double poling, from trunk flexion to elbow extension.

• Non-impact and upright, so it loads the posterior chain without any landing forces.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. 1

   Stand about eighteen to twenty-four inches from the flywheel with your feet shoulder-width apart.

2. 2

   Take a handle in each hand and raise them slightly above eye level with the elbows bent to about ninety degrees.

3. 3

   Brace the core and start the drive by dropping the head, chest and shoulders so the arms follow.

4. 4

   Push the hips back into a hinge and drive both handles down alongside your thighs.

5. 5

   Finish with the knees bent and the arms extended by the hips, thumbs pointing toward the thighs.

6. 6

   Stand back up and lift the arms into the next stroke, taking about twice as long as the drive.

Common Mistakes

• Squatting instead of hinging, which takes the trunk out of the drive and leaves the arms to do the work.

• Pulling with the arms from the top, which starts the stroke with the weakest link in the chain.

• Bending the wrists or fully locking the arms at the finish, which stresses the joints with no added power.

• Rushing the recovery back to the top, which shortens the next stroke and drops power output.

About This Exercise

The ski erg reproduces the double-pole action of cross-country skiing. You start tall with the handles above eye level and elbows bent, then initiate by engaging the core and dropping the head, chest and shoulders so the arms follow rather than lead. The drive is a hip hinge and not a squat, and the core and lats generate the power. Double poling runs a proximal to distal chain: trunk flexion first, then shoulder extension via latissimus dorsi and pectoralis major, then elbow extension via triceps, with rectus femoris and gluteus maximus contributing more as speed rises. For a catalog the ski erg fills a real gap: it is one of very few cardio machines that is upper-body led, so it belongs in machine collections and hybrid conditioning programs.

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