The End (of the year) Is Nigh!

Hi all!

First of all an apology for the lack of new content over the last month. Things have been busy here with all the perfect climbing weather we have had here in Yangshuo, also I have been starting on a new partnership with some folks that will be very exciting for all of us and will be providing all of you with much more great training material.

So with the end of the year looming upon us I want to say thanks to you all for following us here and I hope that your training hasn't slacked off too much over the holiday season. Remember the new year is a good opportunity to assess your fitness goals for the upcoming year and get psyched for getting in better and better shape no matter what your goals are.

Look out for news in here really soon regarding our new ventures and some great new training content.
Happy holidays all!!!

Duncan.

TOTAL CIRUIT 008

Welcome back guys!

We have been having a great week here training and getting ready for the annual Yangshuo Climbing Festival that I will be chief rout setter for the bouldering competition at.

Here is this weeks, and our 8th in all, Total Circuit workout. Remember to do each exercise for 1 minute each and repeat the sequence twice for a total 20 minute workout.

Here we go!


TOTAL CIRCUIT 008 - 20 minutes total time


Warrior Burpees
Boat Pose Roman Twists
Sumo Squat with opposite Knee to Elbow touch
V Snaps
Breakdance Push Ups
Leg Raise Crunches
Squat Jumps
Boat Pose Scissors
Jumping Lunges
Wide Side to Side Push Ups


There you have it, your 10 exercises for the week. Be sure to watch the video to ensure you are doing the exercises correctly.



Now go get it and enjoy your training folks!!!!

Duncan

Keeping your shoulders healthy

Hi all!

Here's a quick video showing a handful of basic shoulder / rotator cuff exercises that I do (and you should too) to keep yourself from a nasty shoulder injury that those of us that are climbers are very prone to.

A few years ago I over worked a hard gaston move on a route and after many strenuous repetitions I did minor damage to my rotator cuff and needed some time off. Doing these exercises every day or two as well as doing a fully balanced exercise program (like our Total Circuits) will hopefully keep you further from injury than I was.

So here's the video. Check out the 5 exercises I show in there and try doing each one twice for 10 reps on the minute with your stopwatch for a 10 minute shoulder workout.



Please don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions!

Duncan.

TOTAL CIRCUIT 007

Hi one and all!

So first I must apologize for it being nearly a month since our last workout went online, we have been up at the Petzl Roc Trip, a massive climbing festival in a rural region of Guizhuo Provence here in China. It was an amazing trip with lot's of great people and we had a blast!

But now we are home in Yangshuo again and ready with your next total circuit workout!

So here it goes...

As usual you have 10 exercises, you will do each continuously for 1 minute and do all 10 exercises twice through for a total of 20 minutes of a whole body workout. Remember; push yourself as hard as you can for each exercise to get the most out of the workout.

Here are your exercises:


TOTAL CIRCUIT 007 - 20 minutes total time

Skipping
V-Sits
Diamond Push Ups
Star Jumps
Twisting Leg Raises
Downward Dog to Upward Dog
Rasied Leg Crunches
Skipping
Leg Raise Ball Pass
Scissor Crunches

To make sure you do all of the exercises correctly just watch the video below:






Ok, so now it's time to get back into it! Remember to feel free to ask any questions you may have about the workouts in the comments section here... enjoy!!!

Duncan

Holidays!

Hi there one and all!

Just a quick one guys and girls, I am off to the amazing Getu Valley in Guizhuo, China for 3 weeks of rock climbing and the Petzl Roc Trip (a climbing festival for those non climbers out here) so I will be out of touch for about 3 weeks.

But rest assured that when I return I will have some killer new workouts for you all!

Train hard, have fun and I'll see you all in a few weeks!!!

Duncan.

TOTAL CIRCUIT 006

Good morning one and all!

Hope your week has been amazing and full of plenty of training, I know mine has!

Ok, so here is this weeks Total Circuit workout. Again there are some exercises that you are familiar with and some that are new so watch the video and then set your stopwatch and get into it!
There are 10 exercises and you will do each one for 1 minute and run through it twice for a 20 minute work out. This weeks work out has a big of an emphasis on chest and core with a lot of push up variations :)

Here we go...


TOTAL CIRCUIT 006 - 20 minutes total time

Squat & Star Jump
Push Up to Side Plank
Boat Pose & Roman Twist
Tiger Push Ups
Elbow Prop Scissors
Mountain Climbers
One Foot Elevated Push Ups
Raised Leg Crunches
Spiderman Push Ups
Raised Leg Hip Ups


And here is the video so you can see how to do all of this weeks exercises properly:




Ok, so there you have it, another killer work out. Remember you can email in or post any questions you have and I will answer them as soon as I can.

Now go get it!

Duncan

TOTAL CIRCUIT 005

Another week and another Total Circuit for you!

This week has been great with a nice change in the weather bringing much milder temperatures here as we head into the autumn. So nice!

Here is this weeks Total Circuit workout. As always there are 10 exercises that you will do for 1 minute each and run through the whole lot twice for a total of 20 minutes of a whole body workout.

Here are the exercises; some you have done already and some are new so remember to watch the video to see exactly how to do each one properly.


TOTAL CIRCUIT 005 - 20 minutes total time

Squat + Star Jump
Leg Raise Ball Pass
Tiger Push Ups (Diamond Hand Push Ups + Downward Dog)
Moving One Leg Squats - Left Side (you will need a chair for this one)
Moving One Leg Squats - Right Side
Boat Pose
Uneven Sideways Push Ups
Elastic (or light weight) Shoulder Combo (you need your elastic or a light weight for this one)
Lunge Jumps
Skipping


And here is this weeks video:




So there you go. Feel free to ask any questions you might have and I will get to answering them straight away. So now watch the video, set your timer and GO!!!

Happy training guys!
Duncan

TOTAL CIRCUIT 004

Hi again all!

First of all let me apologize for the delay in bringing you this workout. I have been away a little longer than expected at a climbing festival in northern China but now I am back home in Yangshuo and training hard :)

I have the next Total Circuit workout for you today which is one with a little focus on cardio so it is one that you really can push hard with.

As usual it is 10 exercises in a row that you will do for a minute each and rotate through twice for a total of 20 minutes. Remember to push yourself as hard as you can and feel free to vary the exercises if that are too difficult (such and doing push ups from your knees if need be, etc).

Ok, here we go!


TOTAL CIRCUIT 004 - 20 minutes total time

Skipping (use a skipping rope or any piece of rope you can find)
Chair Step Up Burpees
V Sits
Mountain Climbers
Breakdance Pushups
Squat Jumps
Elbow Prop Scissors
Chair Step Up Burpees (They are so good we're doing them twice!)
Wide Side To Side Push Ups
Starjumps


So best thing to do is watch the video and see how all the exercises are done then set your stopwatch and go for it! Here's the video for this workout...




Enjoy!

Duncan

A quick update...

Just a quick one guys and gals,

Today I am off to compete in a rock climbing competition in northern China and will be back on Monday so on Tuesday I should have another new Total Circuit up for you that I have prepared already.

Have a great weekend all, see you back here really soon!

Duncan

FITNESS TEST 001 & 002

Good morning fitness fans and freaks!

Today I have something a little bit different for you. Today we are going to do 2 different fitness tests instead of our usual work outs. These tests are a great way to measure your fitness and guage your improvement as you go along on your fitness journey.

The 2 tests I have for you are very different from each other; one is an all round Fitness Test and one is a core abdominal Fitness Test. I highly recommend keeping a training diary and you can write down your times for each test and then in a week or two you can go back and repeat the tests to see if you can beat your own times.

Ok, so let's get into it!!!


FITNESS TEST 001 - General Focus

All of the exercises are ones that you have already done in previous Total Circuit Workouts so you will be familiar with them all and you will be performing 40 reps each of the following exercises in this order... just watch the video if you need reminding about how to do any of the exercises correctly.

Star Jumps (Jumping Jacks)
V Sit
Push Up
Push Up Burpees
Leg Raise Ball Pass
Shoulder Press
Sumo Squat with Side Leg Raises


So, press start on your stopwatch using it just as a timer and perform 40 reps of each of the 7 exercises in that order and then record your time to try and beat next time. Remember to perform the exercises properly, don't get sloppy and lazy!

My time for this Fitness Test was 12:57 - Can you beat that?


And now for the next one...


FITNESS TEST 002 - Core Focus

So this Fitness Test is based entirely around your core abdominal muscles and is a great workout in it's own right for any time and is a great one for all you climbers and other sports people out there to do regularly. It is a killer 300 rep core workout or test, go get it!

Start your stopwatch as a timer and then perform the following exercises... you perform timed planks and boat pose first for a total of 3 minutes then perform 30 reps of the remaining 7 exercises. For the static poses I count each 2 seconds and 1 rep.
Again you will have seen almost all of these exercises in previous Total Circuit workouts but watch the video first to make sure you get each exercise right.


1 minute Plank
1 minute Boat Pose
1 minute Side Plank (30 seconds each side)

Then do 30 reps each of the following...

Leg Raise Ball Pass
Raised Leg Hip Ups
Twisting Leg Raise
Elbow Prop Scissors
V Sit
Leg Raise
Crunches

And there you have it. My time for this Core Fitness Test was 12:00 - Can you beat that too?


Here is the video showing the exercises in both of these Fitness Tests:





Ok, so now go out and give them a try and don't forget to record your times in you diary and then come back to them in a week or two and see if you can beat your time as you get fitter!

Enjoy and I will be back with our next Total Circuit workout that I have ready for you in the next few days... Go get it!

Duncan.

HANGBOARD WORKUTS 001 and 002

Hi again guys :)

So along with my Total Circuit strength and conditioning workouts and some upcoming Fitness Tests I will also be putting up some specific Climbing training material.

First up are 2 hangboard workouts that I am using at the moment. One is a pull up workout and one is an endurance workout. For both workouts it is best to keep a diary so you can see your progress as you go so you can can make adjustments to your workouts.
So with no more delay, here we go!



HANGBOARD WORKOUT 001 - The 60 Pull Up Workout


This one is aiming towards the eventual (hypothetical) goal of being able to do 60 consecutive pull ups and is really simple to do.

Lets assume you can do 3 pull ups easily enough for the case of this example BUT you can start doing this workout with 1 pull up per set to make it to 20 pull ups, or 2 to make it 40, or 5 if you are way strong... whatever... I am doing it with 3 for now.

Get your stop watch and set it for 30 second sets and at the start of each 30 seconds do your 3 pull ups then rest for the remainder of the set. Repeat this 20 times for 60 pull ups in 10 mins.

When this routine gets easy change your timer to 25 second sets, then when that is easy go to 20 seconds, then 15, then 10, etc until theoretically you will reach a point of doing 60 pull ups consecutively.

This will take time of course but it is a fantastic workout for building up your big pulling muscles stamina.





HANGBOARD WORKOUT 002 - Endurance workout


This workout, as the title suggests, works at building up your forearm endurance and again is a simple, measurable workout.

You need a hangboard (obviously) and a chair. Place the chair far out under the hangboard so that you can hang on the board with your body extended out with your feet on the chair simulating a very steep wall in a way.

For this I am currently using a large flat edge on my hangboard but you can use any hold you like but try to continue using the same hold for a while to be able to measure improvement.

Start by setting your stop watch to run 1 minute set followed by a 30 second set over and over 10 times.

Hang on the hold you have chosen with your feet out on the chair for the 1 minute then rest for 30 seconds, hang with feet on the chair for 1 minute again, rest for 30 seconds again... repeat this for 10 sets. you should be feeling a deep forearm pump early in the workout and have to maintain through it till the end. If not, use a smaller / worse / slopeyer hold or put the chair further away or whichever so that you re getting properly pumped in the workout.

This in a way simulates a very long and pumpy climb and you can even do this workout several times with a good rest in between overall sets.

When the 1 minute sets are being acheived easily enough increase the hang time out, for example to 75 second hang, 30 second rest, or 90 second hang, 30 second rest, etc... jsut increase it slightly and progressively over time until you are doing long hangs (perhaps up to 3 minutes) then move to a smaller hold and go back to the 1 minute / 30 second routine and increase again from there. This is an easily measurable routine that can be increased gradually over time, improving your route enurance endlessly :)


So there you have it, 2 great and simple hangboard workouts that you can perform and monitor your improvement on easily.
If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask here in the comments section!

Duncan.

--------------------

EDIT: As asked by our friend Richard I will add a couple of pics to show eactly what I mean by using the chair in the workouts. As you can see in the pics I put the chair out as far as I can comfortably reach. You can adjust how far out you put it, bring it closer, use a hight chair, whatever works for you to make the workout the correct resistance for you personally.
I hope that help Richard, let me know if you have any other questions :)

TOTAL CIRCUIT 003

Good afternoon all!

I'm back again with a third Total Circuit workout for you for this week. This one is a bit different in that it has a fair few static poses, meaning poses or positions that you will hold statically (or try to at least!) for the whole minute.

Again the workout contains 10 exercises that you will do for 1 minute each and run through the 10 exercises twice for a total of a 20 minute work out. Easy. Remember it will be easier for you if you have a timer that beeps at you every minute to save you having to watch the clock when you are fighting the burn!

Ok so here it goes...




TOTAL CIRCUIT 003 - 20 minutes total time


Starjump Burpees
Star Plank
Boat Pose
Warrior Burpees
Extended Plank
Reverse Star
Star Jumps
Alternating Superman
Lunge & Leg Raise
V Sits


Again there are a few exercises in there that you already know and some new ones as well so just watch the video to see how to do each of the exercises then set your stopwatch and go!






Hope you enjoy the workout, see you all again really soon!

Duncan

TOTAL CIRCUIT 002

Hi again!

While I wont be posting every few days all the time I do have a few things up my sleeve ready to go to get us all started so here is the second of my Total Circuits to get you working.

You may have noticed the first one was a bit focused on chest, shoulders and core, well this one is a bit more of an all rounder but maybe a little tougher in some ways. I have changed my timings a little to make it easier for those with no interval stop watches so everything is done on the minute. But, also no rests, just go, go, go for 20 full minutes so it's a killer if you keep up your pace throughout the workout.
Also there are a few exercises in this that carry on from the first Total Circuit as well as new ones, this should give you some continuity and flow from the exercises you have already learned while you also learn new ones. I find that the overlaps as you go helps you develop and expand your repetoire more organically.

So, here is the layout...


TOTAL CIRCUIT 002 - 20 minutes total time


Spiderman Push Ups
Core Ball Pass
Burpees
V Sits
Lunges & Leg Raises
Burpees
Twisting Leg Raises
Sumo Squats & Side Leg Raises
Alternating Superman
Star Jumps

You perfom each exercise for a full mintue then swap to the next immediately, using a timer with an alarm makes this easier than watching a clock of course. Complete 2 full rounds of this for your full 20 minute workout.

Here is a video of how to perform each exercise...

Athlete By Choice - Total Circuit 002 from Duncan Brown on Vimeo.

I have another Total Circuit coming in a few days as well as a Time Trial too (Time Trials will be a good way of measuring your improvement as you go so watch out for that coming up).

Enjoy and have fun!

Duncan

TOTAL CIRCUIT 001

So here we go with our first 'Total Circuit'. Total Circuits are the name I am giving to my full body workouts and I will try to keep things fresh with a different one of these each week or so.

The Total Circuits are full body strength conditioning ciruits that almost exclusively use body weight only exercises, minimal equipment (for this one you need a ball like a fit ball or something similar, I use a beach ball here, and a theraband style elastic, that's all). They are aimed at getting all of your big muscle groups working and working on whole body strength at the same time as raising your heart rate and burning calories.

I use a free aplication on my IPod touch called 'Interval Trainer' to plan out thr timings of my sessions. You can use something similar or a purpose bought interval training stopwatch. Or just watch a clock, it's up to you, although an interval timer with an alarm sound is easier to work with of course. Also my times are not set in stone, you can lengthen or shorten them if you like of course.

The main aim of these circuits is to try to do all the exercises smoothly, consistently and with good form for the alloted time. Practice doing each exercises shown in the video first before doing the actual circuit so you can ensure you are doing them with good form. Try to push yourself to do as many reps as possible in the time for each exercise. the more reps you fit in the harder you're working. Push yourself hard, sweat it out, make yourself work for it. Most of the exercises are back to back with no rest so just keep on moving to the next, no quiting!

So here you go, the exercises and the interval times for each...




Total Circuit 001 - 20 minutes total time


60 seconds Starjump
45 seconds Push Up to Side Plank
45 seconds Leg Raise Ball Pass
45 seconds Downward Dog Push Ups
45 seconds Twisting Leg Raise
60 seconds Sumo Squats with Side Leg Raises
45 seconds Side to Side Wide Push Ups
45 seconds Elbow Prop Scissors
45 seconds Shoulder Press and Raises
45 seconds Toe Touch to Plough
40 seconds Breakdance Push Ups
40 seconds Alternating Superman
40 seconds Rest


Then run through this one more time replacing the final rest at the end with Starjumps again to finish for a total of 20 minutes.

Athlete By Choice - Total Circuit 001 from Duncan Brown on Vimeo.

So all of the exercises are fairly self explanatory and in the video I go through each of the exercises so you can see how to do them all easily. The only ones to pay careful attention to are the Downward Dog Push ups in which you go into the donward dog yoga position and push up from there so as it is using your deltoid muscles and your upper pectorals similar to doing an incline bench press.

The other tricky one is the Breakdance push up which I learned from bodyrock.tv (check them out). It is hard to explain in words so just watch the video and you'll see what it is.


So at the moment I am doing at least one of my Total Circuits every day that I train, so about 5 or 6 days a week, and sometimes doing two of them. Try this one out for a while and I will be back with my next Total Circuit for you soon!


Happy training!!!

Duncan

Welcome to 'Athlete By Choice'

So hi, bonjour, ni hao and hello!

Welcome to Athlete By Choice. This blog is dedicated to those folk who are out there pushing their limits in their sports for no other reason than because they want to - the love it - they live and breathe it. Those people are my inspiration. They are athletes by choice...

What is choice? It is an act of selecting or making a decision when faced with two or more possibilities. Those of us who love our sport and want to improve have that kind of decision to make. Do we want to strive to improve and progress or are we ok with watching time and opportunity pass us by? It's our own choice.

A little bit about what this is all about. For those of you who don't know me I am Duncan Brown. I am a rock climber, outdoor enthusiast and avid traveller among many other things and right now I live in the amazing town of Yangshuo in Guanxi Province in Southern China. Aside from the amazing food, scenery and culture I live here for the rock climbing. Climbing is the passion of my life and while I am not perhaps what you would call an amazingly talented climber I love pushing myself and trying to improve.

I have a bit of history in sports coaching in Swimming, Gymnastics, Trampoline and of course Rock Climbing and now I am trying to pull together the things I have learned over the years to create effective training plans for myself and my friends using both climbing an cross training techniques to help us improve at the sports we love.

The reason for starting this site is because I get a lot of friends asking me to help them out with strength training plans, etc and I thought instead I would put my thoughts and plans up here for all to see.

The main focus of my plans on here will be strength conditioning and core strength training which will be both useful and applicable to the majority of sports as well as great for simply getting and staying in shape.

As always, if you are unsure about beginning a training program or are new to exercise please consult your doctor first.

Please feel free to contact me through this blog if you have any questions or comments.

Thanks for visiting and welcome to Athlete By Choice!

Duncan.