The catch is the front of the stroke on the rowing machine (erg): the position you start each drive from. Concept2 describes it as arms straight, upper body leaning forward from the hips with your shoulders in front of your hips, and shins vertical or as close to vertical as is comfortable, never past it. A good catch sets up a strong leg drive, and keeping your lower back from slumping here matters for back health, because rowers who get low-back pain tend to tip the pelvis backward at the catch.
Arrive and set the shins
Arrive in order: arms straight first, then lean forward from the hips, and only once your hands have cleared your knees, bend the knees and slide forward. Setting the body angle early stops you lunging at the last moment.
body angle already set before the seat starts moving.
Slide forward until your shins are vertical, or as close to vertical as is comfortable for you. Stop there; don't let them go past vertical. Your heels may lift as needed.
knees stacked over the ankles, not pushed out past them.
Lean from the hips
Lean your upper body forward from the hips so your shoulders are in front of your hips. Concept2's guide puts the forward lean at no more than about 30 degrees from vertical; it should feel like a comfortable amount of reach.
a comfortable reach, not a stretch.
Let your pelvis rock forward with your trunk so the lean comes from the hips, not from slumping your lower back. A little natural curve in the upper back is normal; what you're avoiding is the lower back curling and the pelvis tipping backward.
tall through the lower back, sitting on the front of your sit bones.
Arms, shoulders, grip
Keep your arms straight and relaxed, shoulders level and not hunched, head neutral.
long, loose arms hanging off the handle.
Hold the handle loosely: fingers wrapped around it, thumbs underneath, wrists flat. A tight grip can hurt your wrists and forearms.
hooks, not a clenched fist.
Start the next drive by pressing with your legs, with your shoulders and legs moving together. Your arms stay straight until the legs and back have done their work.
the handle and seat move away together.
Feel it
Compressed but comfortable: shins about vertical, shoulders ahead of your hips, arms long and loose, grip light. If you have to dive your shoulders forward or push your knees past your ankles to get there, you've gone too far; both are weak positions to drive from. Back health: low-back pain is a well-studied problem in rowers. Fatigue increases lumbar flexion at the catch, more on the erg than on the water, so the catch is the position to watch late in a hard piece. Build up gradually (Concept2 suggests no more than five minutes on your first day and a few easy minutes to warm up every session), and stop and get it checked if a row gives you back pain. The app reads your shin angle, body lean and arm reach from the side.
Fix-its
- You lunge at the catch (diving the shoulders forward) Set your body angle early in the recovery (arms, then body, then slide) so you arrive already leaning; keep the reach comfortable, no more than about 30 degrees forward.
- You overcompress (shins past vertical) Stop the slide when your shins reach vertical, or wherever is comfortable short of it. Overcompressing puts your legs and knees in a weak position.
- Your lower back slumps and the pelvis tips back Rock forward from the hips with the pelvis, not by curling the lower back. If you can't reach without slumping, shorten the reach. Watch this most when you're tired.
- Your knees come up before your hands pass them Arms out, body over, then knees. Let your hands clear your knees before you bend them.
- You grip hard and hunch your shoulders Fingers hooked, thumbs under, wrists flat, shoulders low and relaxed.
Drill
- Static check: sit at the catch and have someone watch, or film from the side. Shins vertical or just short of it, shoulders in front of hips, arms straight, shoulders level.
- Arms-and-body rowing (warm-up): legs stay straight while you row with arms and body only, so you groove the forward lean before adding the slide. Then add the legs only after the arms are out and the body has swung forward.
- Pause drill: on the recovery, pause with arms out and body leaning forward, check the lean comes from the hips, then slide to vertical shins. Then join the pauses into one smooth stroke.
- Easy full strokes at a steady, low effort, filmed from the side, checking the same three things on each catch. Recheck them late in the session, when fatigue makes the lower back more likely to slump.
Sources
- Concept2 — Indoor Rowing Technique
- Concept2 — Improve Your Rowing Technique
- Concept2 — Rowing Drills (warm-ups)
- Concept2 — Using the Indoor Rower (user manual, PM3 era; copy hosted by Pembroke College Cambridge)
- Nugent FJ et al. — The relationship between rowing-related low back pain and rowing biomechanics: a systematic review, Br J Sports Med (2021)
- Wilson F et al. — 2021 consensus statement for preventing and managing low back pain in elite and subelite adult rowers, Br J Sports Med (2021)
- Nolte V — Introduction to the Biomechanics of Rowing, World Rowing (FISA) coaching manual, Section 3
Last checked 2026-10-26.