Erg Workouts You Can’t Finish

Why All-Out Erg Training Pushes You Further Than Traditional Workouts

 

All-out erg workouts are designed with one simple idea in mind: you are not meant to finish them.

Instead of completing a fixed distance or time, these workouts increase in difficulty until you are forced to stop. That moment of failure is not a weakness — it is the entire point. On machines like the RowErg, BikeErg, and SkiErg, this format creates a unique combination of physical stress, mental challenge, and measurable progression.

These workouts are widely used in CrossFit, competitive group training, and by athletes who want a brutally honest way to test and improve performance.

 

What Makes All-Out Erg Workouts Different?

Traditional erg workouts usually have a predefined endpoint:

“Row 5,000 meters” or “Bike for 30 minutes.”

All-out workouts flip that logic.

Instead, they use:

• Increasing distance, pace, watts, calories, or time
• Fixed intervals with rising demands
• A clear definition of failure (when you can no longer meet the target)

 

This structure offers several key benefits:

 

Key Benefits

• Objective performance testing – you either hit the target or you don’t
• Built-in progression – improvement is measured by how long you last
• Mental resilience – you train your ability to stay composed under extreme fatigue
• Competitive clarity – perfect for leaderboards, challenges, and group workouts

At the same time, these workouts demand respect. They are intense, uncomfortable, and expose weaknesses quickly — which is exactly why they work.

 

RowErg: The Ultimate All-Out Endurance Test

 

The RowErg is uniquely suited for all-out workouts because it involves the entire body. Legs, core, arms, and lungs are all taxed simultaneously, making failure unavoidable when intensity rises.

Why All-Out RowErg Workouts Work So Well

 

• Full-body fatigue builds rapidly
• Technique must be maintained under stress
• Small pacing errors are punished immediately

Common all-out rowing formats include:

• “Death by meters”
• Increasing pace intervals
• Fixed time intervals with rising distance targets

These workouts are especially popular in CrossFit rowing workouts, where they are used to:

• Test engine capacity
• Separate pacing discipline from raw power
• Create simple but brutal competitive benchmarks

RowErg all-out workouts work equally well as solo tests (can you beat your previous attempt?) and group challenges (who survives the longest?).

 

BikeErg: Pure Output and Relentless Pressure

The BikeErg removes much of the technical complexity found in rowing and replaces it with one thing: output.

That simplicity makes it ideal for all-out formats.

 

Benefits of All-Out BikeErg Workouts

• Extremely repeatable and measurable
• Minimal skill barrier — effort is the limiting factor
• Ideal for calorie, watt, or pace-based challenges

 

In CrossFit environments, BikeErg all-out workouts are often used to:

• Push athletes into deep metabolic fatigue
• Create fair competition across mixed skill levels
• Accumulate massive workload in short time frames

Because you are never coasting on the BikeErg, these workouts expose both aerobic limits and mental breaking points very quickly.

SkiErg: Upper-Body Power Meets Mental Fatigue

 

The SkiErg adds a different challenge to all-out workouts: upper-body dominance combined with core fatigue.

This makes SkiErg all-out sessions deceptively difficult.

What Makes SkiErg All-Out Workouts Unique

 

• Heavy reliance on lats, shoulders, and core
• Rapid breathing fatigue
• High mental stress due to uncomfortable movement patterns

All-out SkiErg workouts are commonly used in CrossFit to:

• Balance lower-body dominant training
• Test work capacity under awkward fatigue
• Challenge athletes who rely heavily on leg strength

Because pacing mistakes are harder to correct on the SkiErg, these workouts demand control as much as aggression.

Individual Competition vs. Competition Against Others

 

One of the strongest advantages of all-out erg workouts is their flexibility as competition tools.

Competing Against Yourself

 

• Track how many rounds, intervals, or minutes you last
• Retest the same workout after weeks or months
• Progress is simple, visible, and motivating

 

Competing Against Others

• Perfect for group workouts and CrossFit classes
• Easy to explain and start simultaneously
• Natural leaderboard structure

Because everyone eventually fails, the focus shifts from “who finished” to “who lasted the longest”, creating a fair and engaging competitive environment.

 

Why All-Out Erg Workouts Fit Perfectly Into CrossFit

CrossFit values:

• Measurable performance

• Intensity

• Simple rules with hard execution

All-out erg workouts check every box.

They require no complicated setups, scale naturally across fitness levels, and deliver immediate feedback. Whether used as a standalone test, part of a metcon, or a benchmark workout, they fit seamlessly into CrossFit programming.

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Ready to Test Your Limits?

If you’re looking for workouts that:

• Push you beyond comfort

• Create real, trackable progress

• Work for RowErg, BikeErg, and SkiErg

• Function equally well solo or in group competition

Then all-out erg workouts are exactly what you need.

“Erg Workouts You Can’t Finish” is built around this philosophy — a collection of workouts designed to challenge your engine, your mindset, and your willingness to stay in the fight just a little longer each time.

You don’t finish these workouts.

You survive them longer.

 

In our shop you’ll find the book “25 workouts you can’t finish” Rowerg, Bikeerg and Skierg versions.

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