What is Functional Training and why is it so popular?
Functional Training has its origins in training programs developed by rehab and medical professionals to rebuild stability and strength in Athletes after injury.
Functional training in its modern form uses a variety of exercises that replicate everyday movements and activities. Unlike traditional gym workout routines it doesn’t use any machines, instead exercises are usually body-weight or with free weights and kettle-bells. These exercises usually involve the whole body as opposed to a particular body part, requiring you to use your core and multiple muscle groups at the same time.
What are the benefits of Functional Training?
Its fun and varied, you are not stuck on the same machines all the time there are literally hundreds of exercises to chose from. The full body aspect of functional training helps to build muscle, improve core strength and burn fat fast.
The increases in functional fitness will make everyday activities such as picking up your children, climbing stairs and carrying the shopping bags seem easy… and if your playing any kind of sport there is no better exercise program to improve performance and prevent injury.
- Focus on functional fitness in group training sessions.
- Feature HIIT (High intensity interval training) in their workouts.
- Have a coach, or instructor, to lead you through the class.
- Have a strong focus on building a supportive community.
- Are suitable for all abilities and levels of fitness.
Functional Training With Us
The Movement was created in 2017 in Maroochydore and is renowned for its high quality training programs and coaches. Each functional training class lasts for 60 mins and is broken into 3 key parts a warm up and mobility section, a functional strength section and a fitness section that includes interval and circuit style training.
The programming is designed to be adaptable and the coaches take great care to scale the training program to suit your ability. Each session is tracked by the weight that was lifted, calories burned or number of reps completed so members can see their progress over time.
Warm Up
The Movement has a 10-15 min warm up that focuses on improving your mobility and joint stability to help avoid injury and prepare you for the class ahead. This is great if like most people you forget or are too lazy to warm up and mobilise properly.
Class Size
The Movement caps its classes at 18 people per class – other functional training gyms go much higher (almost double) which really reduces the one-on-one time the trainer can give you to ensure proper technique and personalised guidance.
Strength Training
The Movement picks one or two strength exercises per class and focuses on these for 10-20 mins allowing you to master the movement correctly and give ample time for the coaches to correct and improve your technique. The Movement has circuit style training too but as part of the fitness section of the workout for the last 20-30 mins.
Other classes
The Movement offers 25 functional training classes a week but also offers a yoga and pilates class as part of the membership. Additionally every fortnight there is a dedicated mobility day, where classes are focused on improving mobility and joint function so when you attend your next training session you feel fresh and mobile.