And this was partially thanks to the Netflix series “House of Cards” when the character Frank Underwood (played by Kevin Spacey) goes to his basement, and starts using an indoor rowing machine his wife bought for him.
Somehow, the scene struck a chord with Munirah, an avid golfer. Before she knew it, she had bought a Concept 2 Model D indoor rowerg machine for her home.
“I am simply amazed at how I have come to love the sport. And how much I have improved. Starting from scratch, not knowing anything whatsoever about rowing, to training in the hope of maintaining an internationally competitive level now. It feels wonderful,” she said.
Erging is the use of an indoor rowing machine, known as an ergometer. The practice, first developed as a method for water rowers to train during the winter, is now rapidly growing in popularity.
Munirah started erging through step-by-step beginners’ videos on YouTube. Many were highly useful, with world-class rowers explaining rowing concepts through easy-to-follow instructions.
“I needed to learn the basic technique of rowing, as well as the names of parts of the machine. I quickly learnt rowing terms such as drag factor, catch, stroke rate, split, damper settings, and recover.
“It was very overwhelming in the beginning, but I believe for anyone who is just starting out, you’ll learn all of this within two to three days,” she said.
Soon Munirah was posting results of her rudimentary workouts online. In 2022, she received a message from Rod Chinn, an indoor rowing world record holder based in England, who invited her to join his online group, The Diamonds (Over Sixties Erging Group).
Munirah took him up on his offer, and discovered a warm and supporting community there. She found herself in the same boat, so to speak, as 2,357 others from 44 countries: Munirah believes she is the only Malaysian!
She and her group members communicate regularly through Facebook, posting daily workouts, discussing problems, or simply sharing training highs and lows.
The Diamonds recently achieved a new world record for a team in the 2023-2024 season, for rowing the most metres — 2.617 billion metres.
In May 2023, Munirah participated in her first half-marathon. It was no easy task, but the intrepid athlete managed to complete it. She has completed eight half marathons since then.
In the Female 60-64 age group worldwide, Munirah is currently ranked first place in the full marathon category, second place in the 60-minute row, third in the 30-minute row, and fourth in the 10,000 metres category. These rankings are for the May 1, 2024 to April 30, 2025 season.
She will also be participating in her first on-site indoor rowing competition in Negeri Sembilan on July 6.
Munirah hopes more Malaysians will take up indoor rowing, especially since the machines are affordable and easy to find here.
She has been trying to get in touch with other rowers in Malaysia, but has not been successful. While she believes the Penang Rowing club is quite active, it is inconvenient for her to participate in its activities as she is based in Kuala Lumpur.
“I am also hoping to meet more rowing enthusiasts of my age group —seniors in their 60s and above, retired men and women who prefer a sport that is kind on the knees, and yet an excellent form of full-bodied cardio and muscle-toning exercise,” said Munirah.
“I hope they will come forward and join me because I am determined to keep competing globally. It would be great to have fellow Malaysians joining me at world level!”
Interested in taking up erging? Contact Munirah at [email protected].