Examples of Functional Exercise

Functional fitness exercises are movements based on tasks we traditionally perform daily. These movements include activities like bending to pick something up, sitting or rising from a chair, standing on your toes and reaching overhead, gardening, vacuuming, and walking up or down stairs. Functional fitness exercises use these movements and incorporate resistance, weights, or an unstable environment to help strengthen and stabilise your body’s natural movements.

Functional exercises can be tailored to your individual needs by our experienced fitness trainers, including anything from free weight exercises that can be performed at home, to exercises using our top-of-the-range MedX machines.

Functional Exercises with MedX Machines

MedX equipment are expensive, specialised machines used by professional athletes and medical professionals for rehabilitation and performance optimisation. They lend themselves perfectly to functional exercised as they allow for a full range of motion, whilst effectively isolating and activating the areas you are targeting.

MedX machines are engineered to adapt resistance to your range of motion, eliminating the need to push through that hard ‘sticking point’. They provide a safer way to exercise, whilst also allowing for a more efficient, demanding and productive workout.

At OMC we have an extensive range of MedX machines ideal for individuals overcoming injuries, the elderly, or anyone wanting to genuinely improve strength, mobility and functionality without needing to ‘smash out’ a gym session.

Common Questions About Functional Fitness

How Does Functional Fitness Differ From A Traditional Gym?

Both burn calories, increase fitness and build muscle, but one is much more efficient than the other.

A lot of exercises performed at the gym target single muscle groups. You might be focussed on arms, abdominals, chest or legs. Exercises are then performed isolating muscle groups, such as bicep curls to exhaustion, to work the targeted area. This can be very time-consuming. Functional fitness exercises incorporate the whole body instead, mimicking everyday movements to increase performance, strength, agility, stability, movement and power. Exercises that utilise the whole body - upper, lower and the core - are much more efficient, and require less time for faster results.

In addition to being more efficient, functional fitness exercises can also keep you more motivated.

It may be hard to stay motivated and to keep going to the gym unless you have a specific goal, such as to lose weight or build muscle. Your goal for the gym may be to look good for summer, or an event such as a wedding or party. The problem with this approach is that once your goal is achieved, you often lose interest.

Functional fitness shifts our focus from training for an event, to training for function and performance. This shift in focus enhances your lifestyle, your motivation, and keeps you fit all year round.

This style of exercises also helps our bodies move at their optimum level. Gym equipment only allows us to move through a single plane, designed for safety. However our body does not function in a single plane. We are multi-directional beings. We move forwards, backwards, side-to-side, up and down. By tailoring our exercises to resemble these movements, we create a more functional body.

Incorporating functional fitness into your exercise routine will increase your stamina, range of motion, power and strength, whilst enhancing your everyday life. Strength training can be done safely and effectively with functional exercises to increase fitness, whilst reducing the risk of future or further injury. This is a critical part of injury rehabilitation and prevention.

Does Functional Fitness Help Injury Recovery and Prevention?

Absolutely yes! In fact, functional fitness exercises were originally created for injury rehabilitation. These exercises were designed to follow your body’s natural movements and rhythm, and to restore your body back to its original function.

Rehabilitation exercises repair the injured area and restore function by mimicking the body’s movements. Active rehabilitation speeds up the recovery process, however rehabilitation is all about breaking it down and starting slow. Getting your body moving is so important.

We have all heard the term ‘move it or lose it’. Functional fitness gets us moving again, at first with slow, gentle rhythmic motions and stretching with tissue resistance. After that comes endurance; more repetitions to get your body comfortable with loaded movements. When you have recovered, strength training can then be incorporated. This process may appear slow, however it is the ideal process to get your body moving and back to optimal condition after injury.

It is important to have guidance and assistance from an experienced trainer during this process to ensure you are performing the exercises correctly and to prevent further injury.

One of the biggest points of focus to prevent injury is to get your technique right. Do not be tempted to sacrifice technique for the sake of heavier weights or to pull off a more complex move. Once you are comfortable performing the exercises, then more resistance, weights and unstable environments may all be added to increase your body function. Functional fitness exercises are designed to get your body performing in peak condition, whilst reducing the risk of future injury.