Functional
exercises focus on building a body capable of doing real-life activities in
real-life positions, not just lifting a certain amount of weight in an
idealised posture created by a gym machine. In many respects, functional
strength training should be thought of in terms of a movement continuum. As
humans, we perform a wide range of movement activities, such as walking,
jogging, running, sprinting, jumping, lifting, pushing, pulling, bending, twisting,
turning, standing, starting, stopping, climbing and lunging. All of these
activities involve smooth, rhythmic motions in the three cardinal planes of
movement-sagital, frontal and transverse.
Functional strength
training involves performing work against resistance in such a manner that the
improvements in strength directly enhance the performance of movements so that activities
of daily living are easier to perform.
For example at
the gym yesterday you bench-pressed more then you ever have done before. Today
you go to lift your suitcase for your holiday and put your back out. Why? The
likelihood is that you are not paying enough attention to functional fitness.
You may be toned, tight and ready for the beach, but are you ready to lift your
baby out of their car seat or put a heavy box onto a shelf?
Muscles need to
work together; normal weight training isolates muscle groups, meaning that
these isolated muscle groups don’t learn how to work with each other. The key
to functional exercise is integration. It’s all about teaching all the muscles
to work together rather than isolating them.
Unlike
conventional weight training with functional training you don’t train to
failure as you will be training to fail, you train till your form/technique is
no longer perfect.
What are the
benefits of functional training?
Functional training may lead to better muscular
balance and joint stability. This could also lead to possibly decreasing the
number of injuries sustained during exercise or sport. The benefits may arise
from the use of training that emphasis’s the body's natural ability to move in
six degrees of freedom. This in turns compares to fixed resistance machines. Although
fixed resistance machines appears to be safer to use, they restrict movements
to a single plane of motion, which is an unnatural form of movement for the
body and may potentially lead to faulty movement patterns or injury.
What type of equipment is functional?
Functional
training may lead to better muscular balance and joint stability. This could
also lead to possibly decreasing the number of injuries sustained during
exercise or sport. The benefits may arise from the use of training that
emphasis’s the body's natural ability to move in six degrees of freedom. This
in turns compares to fixed resistance machines. Although fixed resistance
machines appears to be safer to use, they restrict movements to a single plane
of motion, which is an unnatural form of movement for the body and may
potentially lead to faulty movement patterns or injury.
Standard
resistance training machines are of limited use for functional training – their
fixed patterns rarely mimic natural movements, and they focus the effort on a
single muscle group, rather than engaging the stabilising and peripheral
muscles.
Some of the equipment that we use at PB Fitness include:
- Medicine balls
- Kettlebells
- Dumbells
- Cable Machines
- Resistance Bands
- TRX Suspension Training
- Core balls
- Bosu balls
- Stability discs
This equipment means that your workout will be fun, exciting and full of variety. Why not come and try a class for yourself.
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