Functional Fitness - Is The Latest Buzzword Just A Fitness Scam?
If you've spent any time lately in a gym or reading any articles related to exercise or fitness, you've probably seen two terms - functional fitness and core stability. These two terms have become buzzwords in the industry. Actually, core stability was the primary craze for a while, and now functional fitness has taken over. Core training is actually a part of functional fitness. We'll talk about it in a different article, but we wanted to address overall functional fitness here. So what is it? Simply stated, the term refers to exercise that helps you to perform in the real world. That may be confusing to some. After all, isn't all exercise supposed to help you perform better? True, so here's an example that might make it clearer. Let's take the most popular exercise (at least among males) in most gyms - the bench press. This movement will make you stronger and more muscular in the pecs, shoulders, and many other upper body areas. But consider the actual action of the bench press - pushing away from your chest while your back is supported. How often do you use that exact motion in the real world? Could be a lifesaver if your car falls on you while you're working on it, true, but functional exercises aim to train your body for the things that happen on a daily basis - not something that's unusual enough to get you on the evening news :-).
So if functional fitness identifies exercises that replicate movements that we might have to perform in our daily lives, what are some of these movements? One would be the barbell or dumbell deadlift. These exercises entail squatting down to pick the weight up off the floor. Who among us doesn't do this on a daily basis? Performing the deadlift can teach all the involved muscles to properly work together, plus it can help to ingrain the proper form into our brain, so we don't have to think 'back straight, lift with the legs", etc. when we're lifting one side of a couch, or a heavy package left in front of our door, or even a bag of groceries out of the trunk of the car. People new to functional exercise might want to eschew weights altogether for a while to let their bodies adapt, if they've been training mostly with machines or not at all. This is because many functional exercises require muscles to provide stability and be able to work together, which needs to be developed. I've heard of guys who could squat as much as 400 lbs. with a barbell for reps who couldn't do just one one-legged squat with no additional weight the first time they tried. They've got the strength, but not the muscle integration or balance. So it can be humbling. But if you train for overall health and fitness, and not just to look good in a swimsuit (although functional training will make you look very good), then you'll want to investigate the benefits of functional fitness. Want to learn the truth about personal trainers? Would you like to find the one that's perfect for you, and separate the real deal from the pretenders? Or maybe you'd like to know if being a personal trainer is right for you? Regardless, if you want to learn everything about personal trainers, you need this handy guide. Personal Trainer Contact Us/Legal Information Website Privacy Policy |
