The Finish: Rowing technique, drills and fixes

The finish is the end of the drive: legs extended, body leaning back slightly, and the handle drawn in lightly just below your ribs. A controlled finish ends the stroke in a strong, comfortable position and sets up a clean recovery. The common mistake is leaning back too far, which Concept2 calls a weak position that adds no useful length.

Legs extended, slight layback

Finish the leg push so your legs are extended. Your back has already started opening while the legs were about halfway down, so it keeps swinging back as the legs finish.

legs long, body still moving back.

Stop the body swing at a slight backward lean, about 25 degrees past vertical. It should feel comfortable, not stressed, and you should feel your abdominal muscles doing some work to hold it.

a small lean back, held by your abs.

Keep your low back long and supported by your core rather than slumping or arching into the lean. In a 2021 review, rowers without back pain sat with a flatter low back at the finish than rowers with back pain.

tall and braced, not hanging off the handle.

Handle just below the ribs, flat wrists

Let your arms finish the stroke last: bend them and draw the handle in a straight line until it is held lightly just below your ribs, against the upper abdomen.

the handle arrives last and lands softly.

Keep your wrists flat and your grip loose, fingers wrapped around the handle with thumbs underneath. Don't curl the wrists to pull the handle in.

flat wrists, soft hands.

Low shoulders, relaxed arms

Keep your shoulders low and relaxed, not shrugged up toward your ears. The arms work mainly at the finish at low force, so let them complete the stroke rather than yanking the handle in hard.

shoulders down, arms just finishing the job.

Leave the finish in order

Leave the finish in reverse order: arms straighten toward the flywheel first, then the body leans forward from the hips, and only once your hands have cleared your knees do the knees bend and the seat slides forward.

hands away, body over, then slide.

Take your time coming back. The recovery should take longer than the drive; a simple count is drive on 1, recover on 2, 3, 4. Use it to relax before the next stroke.

quick drive, unhurried return.

Feel it

A good finish feels comfortable and settled: legs long, a small lean back that your abs are holding, the handle resting lightly just below your ribs, shoulders low, wrists flat and grip relaxed. If you feel strain in your low back or you are hanging off the handle, you have leaned too far. Back pain while rowing is a reason to stop and get advice, not to push through. The app reads your layback angle, handle height, and wrist and elbow position from the side.

Fix-its

You lean back too far Stop the swing at about 25 degrees past vertical, where your abs are working and it feels comfortable. An extreme layback is a weak position and adds no useful length.
You yank the handle in with your arms Let the legs and body do most of the work; the arms just finish the stroke at low force. Draw the handle in a straight line to just below your ribs.
Your wrists curl or your grip is tight Hold the handle loosely with thumbs underneath and keep your wrists flat and relaxed through the whole stroke. A tense grip can hurt your wrists and forearms.
Your shoulders hunch up Drop your shoulders and keep them low and relaxed as the handle arrives.
Your knees come up before your hands clear them Straighten your arms and lean the body forward first. Bend your knees only after the hands have passed over them.

Drill

Warm up with several minutes of easy rowing before any harder work.
Arms-and-body rowing: legs stay straight while you row with only the arms and body. Groove the slight lean back, the handle arriving lightly below the ribs, then arms away and body forward.
Pause drill: pause at the finish to check legs extended, a small lean back with abs working, flat wrists and low shoulders, then link the pauses back into one smooth stroke.
Rhythm count: finish the drive on count 1 and recover on counts 2 to 4 so you leave the finish calmly.
Film from the side at 24 to 30 strokes per minute and check the lean back is slight, the handle stops just below the ribs, and the arms clear the knees before the knees bend. If you are new, row no more than five minutes on day one and build up over two weeks.

Sources

Last checked 2026-10-26.