The gym has always been a dreaded place for me.

I’m the least athletic person I know and I used to get made fun of in gym class all the time. I remember day-dreaming on the soccer field about what it would be like when school was over forever and I’d never have to go to gym class ever again as the ball would roll by me before my sad attempt to stop it and kick it back.

Now I find myself PAYING to go to the gym which would make absolutely no sense to grade-school me. I never imagined in my entire life that I would see the day that I actually enjoyed athletic activity. But here I am, fully admitting that it’s actually pretty fun!

As I’ve made the commitment of losing weight, I’ve been trying out new machines and different exercises with my trainer. Don’t get me wrong, some I still dread (Bear walks… wtf is up with those?!), but I mostly enjoy the exercises we do. They kick my butt and make my knees throb at times, but it’s much more satisfying than running on the treadmill for an hour a day like what I would be doing sans the trainer.

One thing I ventured to try on my own was the rowing machine. I sat down and went through the motions and quickly realized I had no idea what I was doing. I used it for 10 minutes and hopped off just to get a feel for it. I asked one of my friends who was on a crew team in college about tips and tricks and he sent me a YouTube that takes you through proper form; I thought I’d share it here:

I’ve used it a couple times again since I learned the technique and it really does provide a rewarding full-body workout. Next time you find a free rowing machine at the gym and want to try it out, might I suggest a little Jay-Z to go with it?