Darren Freeman
Darren is co-owner of TRAIN Manchester. He's a well known face on the UK competition scene and, in his own words, his new goal is to "make an impact on the European scene in 2016 as a masters athlete... Stay tuned!!".
Find out what he had to say when we caught up with him....
How did you get into the sport?
It started back in 2008, when I was working as a PT out of a commercial gym. Our fitness manager had set up a "beat the PT" challenge - that challenge just happened to be a scaled version of FRAN. 3:08min later and I was sold. I then proceeded to follow mainsite on and off, before finally joining a box in 2010.
What are your proudest achievements to date?
I have so many things to be proud of...
- Meeting so many fantastic people who I am proud to call my friends.
- Co owning my own affiliate.
- Watching and helping members achieve things they never thought they could.
What are your goals for 2016?
My goal for 2016 was to finish Top 20 in my age category (40-44) in the Open.
Unfortunately, 16.3 put an end to that with a pretty poor performance and to top it off, a shoulder injury that ruined the next two workouts. This will not stop me aiming for top 5 next year!
What's your favourite WOD/movement?
Most workouts that involve just a barbell. Grace... Isabel... But the winner has to be DT (5 rounds: 12 Deadlift, 9 Hang Power Cleans, 6 Push Jerk @ 70kg)
Also I have found out that I am pretty good at rowing.
What's your least favourite WOD/movement?
This one is easy... I'm not a fan of Burpees (I know, who is?!). Also me and box jumps don't get on very well.
Give me Burpee Box Jumps and I'm done!
What's the best piece of advice you have to give others?
My advice would be to listen to your coach. They have spent hour after hour learning their craft. They want your experience to be a positive one, and will do everything they can to provide that.
Set goals. Setting goals is a great way to monitor your progress and will help you progress in this sport of fitness a lot faster.
Have you got any competitions planned this year?
I have quite a few competitions coming up this year...
- Just Row
- Battle of Britain (qualified in 2nd place)
- Raising the bar
- French throwdown
- Masters at War
After not doing as well as I wanted to do in the Open, I have decided to focus 100% on next year's Open. This means I will just do these competitions for fun, and not come off my program.
What are your gym kit essentials?
Skipping rope, I don't even demo with a different rope.
Lifting shoes are a game changer when it comes to Oly lifting.
And finally not to wear all your gear in one workout!
Get Darren's Essentials Here:
