If we think about the word ‘functional’ outside the context of exercise, it refers to something that works. Something that has a purpose. Something that is useful. Therefore, when we apply it to exercise, we can think of Functional Training as a style of exercise that works, has a purpose, and is useful. It is a way of training the body that is aligned with what we need for everyday life.
There are 7 main movement patterns that we can use as the basis of our functional exercise programming. These are sometimes called Primal Movement Patterns in a concept coined by Paul Chek from the C.H.E.K Institute. Primal because they represent the way that human beings have always needed (and will always need) to move. We want to make sure that we can be strong in all of the following movements:
The Squat: To add variation to our squat we can alternate our stance (wide/narrow). We can add load using a resistance band or plyometric movement (jumps). We can also play with tempo and add static holds when programming squats.
The Lunge: We can lunge in all three planes of movement – forwards, sideways and horizontally (e.g. to a diagonal). We can also vary the width of our lunge, add jumps, weight, and upper body drills. Our favourite thing about the Band-ITS Lower Limb Kit is that we can wear it whilst lunging to add external load without the bands scrunching up or rolling down!
The Twist: Twisting involves any movement that causes rotation in the body, working the body in the transverse (horizontal) plane of movement. If we think about the movements that we do in everyday life, there are very few that don’t use some sort of rotation, therefore this is a very useful movement pattern to train.
The Bend: Bending is another movement that it’s hard to avoid in everyday life. Each time we pick something up, we bend. Generally, bending involves folding- or hinging- at the hip joint. The deadlift is the most common example of a functional bending exercise, which we can vary by adding load, changing the tempo, or using single leg work to challenge our balance.
The Push: A push can involve pushing an external object away from the body, or pushing your own centre of mass away from the ground (such as in a press-up). We can push vertically or horizontally. A good example of a push movement using a resistance band is a chest press using the Band-ITS Upper Limb Kit.
The Pull: Involves pulling weight towards the body – or pulling your body towards something else (e.g. a pull up). There are multiple different variations of pull exercises that can be done vertically or horizontally. There are lots of ways to use a resistance band to train the pull pattern – including lots of row variations. Make sure you have a fixed anchor point or use the door jam that is included with your Band-ITS Upper Limb Kit.
Gait: This is just a fancy word for walking. Training gait could involve single-leg balances or single-leg squats. Remember that all walking/gait is full of 3-dimensional movement variations – not just straight ‘forward and back’. Incorporating all of these movement patterns into our exercise programming is a great way to start building functional strength.