Functional fitness. You hear about it a lot—on television, on social media, and pretty much anywhere you go. You may not recognize the term, but if you see someone carrying in groceries or squatting down to pick something up, that’s functional fitness in action.
Functional fitness exercises train your muscles to work together and prepare them for daily tasks by simulating common movements you might do at home, at work, or in sports. While using various muscles in the upper and lower body at the same time, functional fitness exercises also emphasize core stability.
Working out using functional movement training is one of the best ways to achieve overall fitness for everyday life. Learning how to move properly with or without a load (think carrying those groceries up a flight of stairs, or picking up a case of bottled water and putting it up on a shelf) and increasing your strength and aerobic capacity (useful for helping someone push a car out of a snowdrift or shovelling your driveway without throwing your back out) will help improve your quality of life.
Most people equate the functional fitness movement with the sport of CrossFit. While CrossFit is one of the original proponents of the functional fitness lifestyle, CrossFit is quite different. It’s important to differentiate the two. Most people watch the CrossFit Games on TSN and think to themselves, “That’s crazy! I could never do that!” Well, you’re probably right. Games athletes are professionals. They train multiple times a day, every day. They are paid to train, much like athletes in the NFL and NHL.
Does that mean that functional fitness isn’t for everyone? No. Everyone can benefit from moving well. Couple that with strength training to increase bone density and muscle mass and you’re setting yourself up for a healthy long life. Functional fitness gyms offer group classes that are fun and incorporate strength training exercises with high intensity interval training. CrossFit gyms generally follow a programming template, but there are numerous other gyms or fitness centres that offer classes to give you a great workout. The key is finding one that makes you feel comfortable and offers responsible, well-trained coaches or instructors. Most gyms offer a free class, so it costs you nothing to try before you buy. It just may be what you need to kickstart your fitness journey.
