How do you avoid functional training myths?

1 What is functional training?

Functional training is a type of exercise that focuses on training your body to perform specific movements and tasks that are relevant to your daily life, sports, or hobbies. Functional training can help you improve your strength, stability, coordination, balance, flexibility, and endurance. Functional training can also reduce your risk of injury, pain, and dysfunction by enhancing your posture, alignment, and joint health.

2 Myth 1: Functional training is the same as core training

One of the most common functional training myths is that functional training is the same as core training. While core training is an important component of functional training, it is not the only one. Functional training involves training your whole body as a unit, not just isolated muscles or regions. Your core muscles are the ones that stabilize and support your spine, pelvis, and rib cage. They include your abdominal, back, pelvic floor, diaphragm, and hip muscles. Core training can help you improve your core stability, which is essential for functional movement. However, functional training also requires you to train your other muscles and joints that are involved in different movements and activities, such as your legs, arms, shoulders, neck, and feet.

3 Myth 2: Functional training requires fancy equipment

Another functional training myth is that you need fancy or expensive equipment to do functional training. While some equipment can enhance your functional training experience, such as kettlebells, resistance bands, medicine balls, or TRX straps, they are not mandatory. You can do functional training with minimal or no equipment, using your own body weight, gravity, and momentum as resistance. You can also use everyday objects, such as chairs, stairs, bottles, or books, as props or weights. The key is to choose exercises that challenge your body in different planes of motion, directions, speeds, and intensities, and that mimic or improve your functional tasks.

4 Myth 3: Functional training is easy

A third functional training myth is that functional training is easy or not challenging enough. This is far from the truth. Functional training can be as easy or as hard as you make it, depending on the exercises you choose, the number of repetitions and sets you do, the amount of resistance and load you use, the rest periods you take, and the tempo and speed you perform them. Functional training can also be progressive or regressive, meaning that you can increase or decrease the difficulty level of an exercise by changing one or more of these variables. For example, you can make a squat more challenging by adding weight, depth, or a jump, or you can make it easier by reducing weight, depth, or speed.

5 Myth 4: Functional training is for everyone

A fourth functional training myth is that functional training is suitable for everyone, regardless of their age, fitness level, health condition, or injury history. While functional training can benefit most people, it is not a one-size-fits-all approach. Functional training should be tailored to your individual needs, goals, abilities, and limitations. Functional training should also be based on a thorough assessment of your movement quality, mobility, stability, strength, and endurance. Functional training should also be supervised by a qualified and experienced trainer, coach, or therapist, who can guide you through the proper form, technique, and progression of each exercise.

6 Myth 5: Functional training is enough

A final functional training myth is that functional training is enough to achieve your fitness and health goals. While functional training can improve many aspects of your physical and mental well-being, it is not the only factor that influences your results. Functional training should be complemented by other types of exercise, such as cardio, stretching, or recovery, depending on your needs and preferences. Functional training should also be supported by a balanced and nutritious diet, adequate hydration, quality sleep, stress management, and lifestyle habits. Functional training is not a magic bullet, but a tool that can help you optimize your function and performance.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?