1. Strength Training to Improve Your Upper Body Strength & Stability The first way to is build a solid base of strength and stability in your upper body. The key here is to keep your body and muscles in balance by targeting all of the major muscle groups, not just the ones you use the most when paddling. If you target certain muscles or movements more than others you increase the likelihood of creating a muscular imbalance which can lead to movement inefficiencies or musculoskeletal injuries. So try and do a mixture of exercises using each of the following 4 movement patterns: Vertical Pushing (eg. Single Arm Dumbbell Press, Swiss Ball Inverted Shoulder Press) Vertical Pulling (eg. Pull-ups, Chin-ups, Overhead Band Pulls) Horizontal Pushing (eg. Swiss Ball Chest Press, BOSU Push-ups) Horizontal Pulling (eg. Dumbbell Plank Row, TRX Inverted Row) You also need to keep your joints stable and for paddling this means stable shoulders. Exercises like YTW Raises are really good for helping to keep your shoulder joints stable and preventing shoulder issues. 2 - Swimming to Improve Your Shoulder Endurance If you have access to a swimming pool or the ocean then this can be a great choice for when you can't get in the surf. Freestyle swimming uses similar muscles to paddling and is a great way to improve the endurance in your arms and shoulders. Try doing intervals, or even add duck diving into your laps. The Cardio Manual which comes with the Total Surfing Fitness package has some surf specific swimming workouts which you can get started with. 3. Practice Paddling at Home Using a Resistance Band Paddling against resistance using a resistance band is another great way to improve your upper body endurance. Try and use a fairly light resistance and if you have a swiss ball that will make a great surfboard alternative to lie on. The great thing about band paddling is that you can do it at home without getting wet, so there are no excuses! The Cardio Manual in the Total Surfing Fitness package also has some interval workouts with band paddling to help build your paddle fitness. 4. Do Some High Intensity Interval Training Cardio training using intervals is a great way to improve both your anaerobic and aerobic energy systems (both are important for surfing). Running, riding, boxing, rowing, skipping and bodyweight exercises like mountain climbers are all great for interval training. Try and include this type of training in your weekly schedule to help you out in the surf. I know I have some work to do, so will you join me getting back in surf shape? If you need a step-by-step plan of exactly what to do including workout frequency, exercises, sets, reps, cardio, stretching, plus more then Total Surfing Fitness is your action plan.

For more Surfing Fitness info click the link-  

TOTAL SURFING FITNESS

Build Your Surfing Fitness.

Hi.

It's the start of another new month and that means it's time for your June workout calendar.

If you are doing one of the Total Surf or Snow Fitness training programs, simply print out the calendar attached to this email and write in your weekly workouts to keep on track.

  

Try this interval training cardio workout...

Here is one of the interval training cardio workouts you can try from the June High Performance Club workouts. You can perform this with any cardio exercise such as running, riding, skipping, etc, to help build your aerobic and anaerobic fitness levels.

Workout time = 25 mins 

In this workout the interval start longer than the recovery period, the equal, and then finally shorter than the recovery period.

Warm-up - 5 mins	Moderate intensity
Intervals - 5 mins	40 seconds - high intensity 20 seconds - recovery
Intervals - 5 mins	30 seconds - high intensity 30 seconds - recovery
Intervals - 5 mins	20 seconds - high intensity 40 seconds - recovery
Cool down - 5 mins	Low intensity
Stretches	Perform the Stretch Sequence

Make sure you include some interval training cardio workouts in your training schedule this month!

Enjoy. Keep fit. Stay ahead of the pack. Ride more waves.

For more Surfing Fitness info click the link-  

TOTAL SURFING FITNESS

Surf and Snow Superfoods List

It's the start of another month and that means time for your monthly training calendar.

If you are doing one of our training programs write in your weekly workouts to keep on track.

 Surf and Snow Superfoods List

Superfoods is a word that gets thrown around a lot these days and depending on who you speak to will depend on what foods this refers to.

Below I am going to give you a superfoods list which comprises of nutrient dense foods that can help you achieve you fitness and performance goals. This is not a comprehensive list, however you should try and get in a variety from each of these categories on a regular basis...

Proteins

• Lean red meats
• Salmon & other fresh fish
• Organic Free Range Eggs
• Low fat plain yogurt
• Protein supplements

Vegetables and Fruits

• Spinach
• Tomatoes
• Cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage)
• Mixed Berries
• Oranges

Other Carbohydrates

• Mixed beans
• Quinoa
• Whole Oats

Good Fats

• Mixed nuts
• Avocados
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Fish oil
• Flax Seeds (Ground or Meal)
• An additional food that is great for good healthy fats is coconut oil

Drinks/Other

• Green Tea

Supplements

• Multivitamin/mineral
• Fish oil
• Protein powder/shakes

If you combine these sorts of healthy foods with an athletic strength & conditioning program, you can redefine your body and perform better in the surf or on the snow.

Are you going to train smart, eat well and play hard this month?

Go on, I challenge you :)

A supplement to assist you is Velvet Deer Antler. Processed form New Zealand Deer it works for all age groups. Check it out here.

Deer Antler Velvet from NewZealand is Ultimate Health Formula

Eat the superfoods above, do a training program below...

• Total Surfing Fitness
• Total Snowboarding Fitness
• Total Skiing Fitness
• Total Windsurfing Fitness
• SSF High Performance Club

I hope you are having a great week :)

 

It's been a few weeks since the last installment of our "Habits Of Fit Surfers" so it's time for a quick refresher...

 

Habit #1 - Fit surfers do functional strength training workouts 2-3 times per week

 

Habit #2 - Fit surfers keep their muscles loose by doing foam rolling on a regular basis

 

 

How have you been going with the first 2 habits so far?

 

Are you ready to add in a third habit?

 

 

Ready or not, here it comes...

 

Habits Of Fit Surfers #3

 

Fit surfers incorporate exercises to improve their overall stability

 

When I talk about stability, I'm not just talking about core stability (although it does include that) and I'm not just talking about balance (although it does include that as well).

 

What I mean is stability throughout your whole body at every joint.

 

Surfing involves being on an unstable surface at all times (water) and so that makes it even more important to have a stable body so you can control your movements more effectively.

 

 

So how do you train for stability?

 

Here are a few suggestions...

• Do more single leg or single arm exercises
  (Single Leg Deadlifts, Single Arm Swiss Ball Chest Press)
• Perform exercises using a swiss ball, BOSU, balance board or suspension trainer
  (Swiss Ball Side Plank, Balance Board Squats,Single Arm TRX Rows)
• Do more complex variations of exercises
  (Split Squat Jumps, Band Power Chops, Side to Side Pull-ups)

 

Does every exercise need to train stability?

 

No, you should still have a balance of strength based exercises and stability based exercises. However most exercises will train a combination of both anyway.

 

 

Are you training for stability? If not, it's time to get incorporate some stability exercises into yoursurf fitness workouts.

 

 

Fitness should be a lifestyle, so keep building those habits. Imagine the difference 12 months from now if you can incorporate even just a few of these habits into your routine.

 

Stay tuned to your inbox for Habit #4 :)

 

 

If you want to fast track your surfing fitness, here are your options...

 

Option 1 - Download the step-by-step workouts to become a fit surfer...

www.totalsurfingfitness.com

 

Option 2 - Join our exclusive members area for more advanced workouts

www.surfnsnowfitness.com/high-performance-club 

 

Train smart, surf hard!

 

How To Catch More Waves Using Surf Specific Fitness Training

How To Catch More Waves Using Surf Specific Fitness Training

By Clayton Beatty BSc (Human Movement) Exercise Scientist

Are you tired of watching those surfers who just cruise by continuously, catching wave after wave, getting barrel after barrel… and basically making you look bad?

And are you sick of having arms like jelly after only a few minutes of paddling and then struggling to stand up because you don’t have enough strength left in your arms to push yourself up?

Or maybe you are just fed up with not being as good a surfer as you want to be, but you don’t know what to do next to improve?

If any of this describes you, then don’t stress… you aren’t the only one.

I am going to reveal a 5 step blueprint which will show you how you can triple your wave count in 30 days or less, improve your surfing style, get more barrels and get in the best shape of your life.

a

Step 1 – Increase your paddle fitness through energy system development

Surfing uses a combination of both your aerobic energy system (with oxygen) and your anaerobic energy system (without oxygen). In order to improve your cardiovascular fitness for surfing, you need to improve both of these energy systems simultaneously.

Doing hours of running along the beach is just not going to cut it. What you need to be doing is interval training using surf specific interval periods, and certain types of exercises which will boost both your paddle fitness and improve your overall surf conditioning.

a

Step 2 – Improve your core stability, strength and rotary power

If you think that cranking out 100 crunches every morning is going to give you the core strength you need for optimum surfing, you couldn’t be further from the truth.

First of all you need to be working on your core stability, which is using your core muscles to stabilise your torso when there are other forces acting against you. The basics of this are bridge or plank type exercises, but there are many more advanced exercises you need to master before you have excellent core stability.

You will also need to develop your core strength and rotary power. Rotary power can betrained using very specific functional exercises and is an important factor in mastering powerful turns.

a

Step 3 – Increase your upper body endurance, strength and power

If you are not doing functional training to improve all of the above (endurance, strength and power), you are missing part of the equation.

You need muscle endurance in your arms, back and shoulders so you can keep up the paddling intensity throughout your entire surf session.

You need strength and power in your chest and arms so that you can pop-up fast (even when you are getting tired).

In addition you need to have the strength and power in your shoulders and back for the short bursts of paddle power you need to paddle into each wave.

a

Step 4 – Improve your mobility and flexibility

Most surfers are aware of the need for good flexibility, but what most don’t understand is the missing piece of the equation – mobility.

Flexibility refers to the passive range of motion as achieved through static stretching. This is important for overly active muscles, but it does not mean the surrounding joints are stable and prepared for dynamic movements.

Often an increase in passive flexibility is an injury waiting to happen. What surfers need more than passive flexibility, is mobility. Mobility refers to the ability to move your joints into flexible positions, but also have the joint stable whilst in those positions. Mobility can be increased through specific mobility drills which are generally incorporated into your dynamic warm-up.

a

Step 5 – Improve your balance and lower body strength & power

Balance is obviously important for surfers to help stop you from wiping out. Most surfers however, do not do any balance training. It is actually very easy to improve your balance using some simple training methods that use very little equipment.

Surfing also requires a lot of lower body strength and power.

Strong and healthy legs will mean that you can perform powerful manoeuvres and not have an increased risk of injury. This doesn’t mean hitting the gym to do more leg curls and leg extensions. What you need to be doing is lower body functional training exercises – both hip and knee dominant, both single leg and double leg, and both stable and unstable exercises.

a

Conclusion

In order to increase your wave count fast, and become a better surfer, you need to have a well rounded, surf specific, functional training program. You cannot rely on traditional body building workout routines and long boring cardio to improve your surfing.

What you need is a surf fitness program that has been proven to work with hundreds of surfers from all over the globe. If you are interested in finding out more about our surfing exercises, surfing workouts and surf training programs,

To find out more just click on the Banner above this page.

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Habits of Fit Surfers - Habit #1

It's the start of the new year and that means new years fitness resolutions are in full swing.

 

So how come most people start with good intentions but normally fall off the wagon after only a few weeks or months?

 

It's generally because they try and change too much at once and then it all becomes to hard to maintain.

 

If this is you, then try the follow approach instead as it will set you up for long term success...

 

 

Fitness Success Strategy - Change just one thing in your fitness routine until it becomes a habit and then move onto the next thing. That way you are making things more attainable and only progressing once it becomes a normal part of your routine.

 

For some people it might only take a few days to become a habit, for others it might take a few weeks. Either way, stick it out and build those habits!

 

 

So having said that, I will be sending out some emails over the coming weeks outlining the habits you should be building in order to become a fit surfer. Your job is to choose one habit at a time and focus on making it part of your routine. That way over the course of a year you should have build some great habits and significantly improve your fitness for surfing.

 

So let's get started with the first habit...

 

 

Habits of Fit Surfers - Habit #1

 

Fit surfers do functional strength training workouts 2-3 times per week. 

 

 

Doing 2 full body workouts per week is the minimum you should be doing to get noticeable progress in strength and muscular endurance. 3 workouts per week would be even better. You can even do four, however I would advise breaking it down into an upper body / lower body split so your muscles still get adequate recovery time.

 

With regards to exercise selection you should be doing as many multi-joint, functional exercises as possible using your bodyweight, dumbbells, a swiss ball and for further challenges you can use extra equipment like bands, a suspension trainer, medicine balls, kettlebells, etc.

 

Try and stay clear of machine based exercises that limit you to a specific range of motion unless you are doing specific rehabilitation exercises, as you will get better results from free weights which will help improve your movements patterns in addition to helping improve strength.

 

 

Are you doing 2-3 strength training workouts each week?

 

If so, great work, keep it up.

 

If not, start by planning and completing 2 workouts in the next week, then progress from there.

 

All it takes is to build a few habits now and then several months down the track, you will be fitter, stronger and surfing better.

 

Stay tuned to your inbox for Habit #2 :)

 

 

Hip Mobility Exercises For Surf & Snow Sports

by Clayton Beatty

How To Increase Your Hip Mobility And Surf, Snowboard or Ski Better

In this article I want to show you how increasing your hip mobility can enhance your surf or snow riding performance.

Personally this has always been an area of weakness for me, as I have a family history of hip replacements, so my hips like to stay tight unless I am doing my mobility exercises to help keep them loose.

Having increased hip mobility has two major benefits to help you perform better…

.

1. Enhanced Movement & Performance - Improved hip mobility means more efficient movement patterns, so your ability to jump, land and turn effectively will all improve. If you look at good surf or snow athletes you will see that they get their hips into some positions that wouldn’t be possible if you had stiff hip joints.

2. Reduced Injury Risk - Better hip mobility leads to decreased injury risk for lower back. When you improve how a joint functions, this will often take unnecessary pressure off the joints above and below. Many people have tight hips and this means they compensate by moving from their lumbar spine more than they should, which can cause lower back fatigue and injury.

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To enhance your hip mobility you will need to incorporate some mobility exercises into your workouts.

Check out the video below to see some hip mobility exercises you can get started with…

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Hopefully you can see (and now feel) how an improvement in hip mobility can improve your surf or snow fitness and performance.

If you want to start improving in this area, make sure you have a go at incorporating these exercises into your next workout.

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If you like these exercises and want a complete functional training plan to help prevent injury and enhance your surf or snow riding performance, make sure you download one of our step-by-step functional training programs below…

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Total Surfing Fitness

12 week surf fitness training program guaranteed to help you catch more waves and surf at your best.

Learn more at www.totalsurfingfitness.com

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Total Snowboarding Fitness

Our fitness training plan for snowboarders which will help you shred harder all over the mountain this season!

Learn more at www.totalsnowboardingfitness.com

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Total Skiing Fitness 2.0

Functional fitness training for skiiers which will help you build a strong skiers body so you can ski hard through the fresh powder this winter.

Learn more at www.totalskiingfitness.com

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Total Windsurfing Fitness

Our program for windsurfers program designed to build total body strength, stabililty, balance and endurance so you can take your sailing to the next level.

Learn more at www.totalwindsurfingfitness.com

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