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"Functional Training"

By Arthur Zanelli

One of the most significant changes in fitness trends is the rising popularity in functional training. Functional training is a classification of exercise which involves training the body for the activities performed in daily life. Why does the way we train have such a major impact on our overall health and fitness?

Popular opinion on training has historically been that ?as long as you look good, you must be doing yourself some good.? It is clear now, however, that health and fitness are not one and the same. In fact, inappropriate training is potentially more damaging than relative inactivity. Obviously, at VERT your workout is designed and supervised by a trainer, but think of how many people you?ve seen in the past at conventional gyms, just one rep away from the emergency room?

So what are we supposed to do; sit on the couch to avoid injuring ourselves at the gym? As fun as it sounds, couch-sitting is not recognized by the AMA as beneficial to your health. The answer, of course, is to train functionally.

Our bodies are designed to operate as a unit, sharing stresses across multiple joints. ?Movement-based exercise? is a phrase used to describe training that is specifically designed to improve performance in everyday life. According to Paul Chek, founder of the C.H.E.K. institute for personal trainers (a very smart guy in the health and fitness field), the six primary movement patterns are:

1. One-leg stance (think Daniel-san from The Karate Kid)

2. Squat (think of your favorite exercise at VERT)

3. Push (think of moving things away from your body)

4. Pull (think of moving things toward your body)

5. Bend-to-extend (think about anytime you've picked something up)

6. Rotation (think trunk and hip rotation)

At VERT we strive to incorporate all of these movements into your workout (I'm sure you?re all more-than-familiar with the idea of push and pull!). The VERT equipment is entirely based on multi-joint movements which allow you to improve your practical strength as well as aesthetics.

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