Rationale for Functional Training

Drawing a line in the sand-------------------------
   After reading this I hope you ask yourself “What am I expecting to get out of my training?”  When the topic of Functional vs. Traditional training comes up, opinions galore come out of the woodwork.  Here’s the scoop: Functional training involves using the knowledge of functional anatomy to select exercises that improve strength in muscles prone to weakness in attempt to reduce injury and improve performance. Functional exercises would include multi-joint movements, in fact the more joints the better, and might incorporate devices like Stability balls or BOSU trainers.
    Traditional training however is what sells on magazine covers, it’s all about training the large muscle groups… what bodybuilders are extremely good at…choosing exercises to isolate muscles in attempt to improve appearance while standing still.  Traditional exercises include single-joint exercises, machine exercises, etc.  So we must ask ourselves….”Am I training for function, or am I training to look good standing still?”  There is no right or wrong answer, but we must make sure our workouts match our intentions.
    I am among the group of people who wish to improve function and reduce injuries.  As renowned physical therapist and strength coach Gray Cook has said: "We cannot expect to train every muscle individually, and go to sleep at night expecting our body to mold it all together and wake up with coordinated movements.  If we tossed a bunch of letters on the wall, would we expect a sentence to appear?"  Our muscles do not work in isolation in everyday life, rather they synergistically work to create, stabilize, and control movement patterns ingrained in us from the time we first learned to walk, and our training should support this kind of function. 
   Check out the video above to learn more about functional training and share your thoughts about the 'functional training continuum'
   

Basic Concepts of Functional Training

Stand Up to Train!

     In a 2009 article published in Medicine & Science in Sport and Exercise, an interesting finding was discovered in regards to the amount of time spent sitting.  By now most of us realize the more sedentary (inactive) a person is, statistically the shorter the lifespan they have.  In this particular article, they found that “high amounts of sitting cannot be compensated for with occasional leisure time physical-activity…. even if the amount exceeds the current minimum physical activity recommendations.”  (Katzmarzyk, Church, & Craig, 2009).  This might sound shocking to some, but what this is telling us is even if we get our 1 hour/day of exercise in, we will still die sooner if we then sit all day long.  We were made to move.  Since many jobs require 8 or more hours of sitting at a computer, it is paramount that we are as active as possible the rest of the day.  This includes our workouts!  We spend enough time sitting at work, in our car, eating meals, etc….we do not need to be sitting while exercising…. and that includes senior citizens!  Unless someone has an injury, or is physically unable to stand, we need to take full advantage of our training time and use each minute to the max.  Standing not only burns more calories, but forces our bodies to use all of our postural and stabilizing muscles.

Choose Multi-Joint Exercises
Multi-joint exercises enhance our nervous system’s ability to coordinate movement at higher levels and builds stronger motor patterns, versus isolated exercises that target individual muscle groups.  Isolated exercises contradict the pure nature of how our body was designed to move.  This is great for strengthening one muscle at a time, but when in real life do we only use one muscle at a time?  Choosing exercises that target as many joints and muscles as possible also helps to proportionally increase muscle mass and prevent muscle imbalances, reducing the risk of injuries and improving overall performance.

Train in 3D                       
   Life and sports demand much more out of our body than standing still  flexing on a pedestal.  Life demands us to move freely through space, not within the confines dictated by a machine.  Therefore it is paramount to choose exercises that occur in all 3 Planes of Motion (sagittal, frontal, & transverse).  The next time you are in the gym, take a look at the  the variety of machines available, probably 90% of them are Sagittal Plane exercises…meaning they occur in a forward or backward manner.  Most injures occur however in the Transverse Plane…or any movement that incorporates rotation.  This is why isolated training fails at decreasing musculoskeletal injuries, and this is why physical therapists consistently see similar injuries to the same muscles.  What are some of your favorite exercises?  Let's talk about how to turn them into 3D exercies!

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Reference:    Katzmarzyk, P. T., Church, T. S., , & Craig, C. L. (2009). Sitting Time and Mortality from All Causes, Cardiovascular Disease, and Cancer. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 41(5), 998-1005.