News Taffy

People exercise because they want to look better, loose weight or relieve stress. Since most of us aren’t going to be professional athletes, it makes sense that the type of exercises we do should be aimed at making our every day lives easier as well. In other words, we should be fit enough to do the things we want to do without risk of injury. Functional training is a method of training that provides you with the strength, stability and mobility you need for the activities of your daily life. Functional training is becoming increasingly popular as it can work for every age and fitness level.

Functional training consists of mostly weight bearing exercises that strengthen the body appropriately for movements like pushing, pulling, lifting, squatting and carrying. Emphasis is placed on muscle groups working in unison. (Think of the calisthenics you did in your P.E. class back in junior high school and you’ll understand functional exercises.) For example, you want to be strong enough to lift your toddler into the car, start the lawn mower or carry the vacuum cleaner up the stairs. Functional training got its start with physical therapists trying to help people recover from an injury or illness but it soon transitioned into other areas of health and fitness. Even athletes can use functional training to improve repetitive motions like a golfer’s swing while seniors can age at home better using functional training to improve strength and balance.

Most gym equipment targets specific muscles which means that the exercises do not bear much relationship to the movements people make in their regular life. While there is nothing wrong with this, functional training seeks to coordinate the workings groups of muscles for better whole body movement. One big benefit to functional training is that you will work more muscles groups in a shorter time, giving you a total body workout. Traditional strength training and functional training compliment each other and should be done together for optimal results.

While you will use mostly body weight alone, you will also incorporate resistance bands, medicine balls, dumbbells, kettlebells and more in a functional workout. Some examples of functional exercises include squats with an overhead lift, stair climbing combined with bicep curls, torso rotations while holding a medicine ball, burpees, planks, lunges, V sit ups and pull ups. Since you don’t need much equipment, functional training can easily be done at home. If you are interested in functional training as a way to strengthen your body, talk with a trainer for an exercise plan. A trainer can design a plan for any level of fitness and help you avoid injury.

As with any type of exercise, you will notice many benefits. Functional training, or calisthenics if you prefer, results in better balance, better posture, more coordination, increased strength, ease in every day activities and decreased chance of injuries in daily life. After all, the point of exercise is to keep you healthier, help you feel better and live the life you want.