Objective. The purpose of the current study was to confirm the unexpected similarities among progressive oxygen uptake (VO 2 ), heart rate (HR), and lactate (L a ) responses between cycle and rowing ergometry.Design. Eight recreationally active adults performed two progressive submaximal testing protocols, separated by 2-7 days. Subjects completed 3-min stages at 50, 100, and 150W on both a cycle and rowing ergometer. VO 2 and HR were recorded every 30 s. At the conclusion of each 3-min stage, blood lactate was measured.Main outcome measures. For each variable, a repeated measures two-way (mode by intensity) factorial ANOVA was used to determine main effects for mode, intensity, and interaction.Results. There was no significant main effect (p>0.05) for mode on VO 2 (cycle M=25.88+/-2.96mlkg - 1 min - 1 , rowing M=25.94+/-2.74), HR (cycle M=136.75+/-10.27bmin - 1 , rowing M=135.30+/-9.08), or L a (cycle M=4.34+/-1.06mmoll - 1 , rowing M=3.78+/-98).Conclusions. Results of the current study provide evidence that cycling and rowing exercise may be used interchangeably during rehabilitation.