The average person spends about a third of their life sitting down. And if you're like me, you work at a desk for the majority of that time. The problem is that this sedentary lifestyle can lead to a number of health problems—including lower back pain, heart disease, and even early death. But there's good news! Functional fitness offers an alternative way to exercise your body while still being able to move around with ease while doing so. In this article, I'll explain what functional fitness is and why it's important for your health (and sanity)
What is functional fitness?
Functional fitness is a way of exercising that is based on real-life movements. Functional fitness exercises are designed to mimic the movements you make in everyday life, like squatting, lifting, and pushing. Because these exercises use your body as it was meant to be used, they work for multiple muscle groups at once and require more than just one joint to perform.
This type of training has become increasingly popular due to its effectiveness in improving strength, endurance, balance, and flexibility--all components necessary for living an active lifestyle (or just getting through your day)
Why is functional training important?
Functional training is more than just working out. It's a way of life that improves your daily life, helps you achieve athletic performance goals, and encourages you to be healthy in both mind and body.
Setting fitness goals can seem intimidating at first, but with some planning and preparation, it can be easy! There are many ways to set up a functional fitness routine--you could even use an app on your phone or computer if you prefer not to write them down somewhere tangible (like on paper). If setting up an entire program seems like too much work right now, try just focusing on one thing at first: maybe it'll be strength training or cardio exercise; maybe it'll be something else entirely! As long as whatever type of goal works best for YOU - that's all that matters here :)
Once we've established our own personal reasons for wanting this kind of lifestyle change then we need only look around us at what other people have accomplished before us who did similar things."
How can you incorporate functional fitness into your workout routine?
When you think about functional fitness, what comes to mind? Maybe it's the image of a tough guy doing push-ups with a kettlebell in each hand. Or perhaps you see an athlete performing a squat while holding onto a medicine ball. These are both examples of functional training and they can be used as part of your workout routine to help improve overall strength, balance, and coordination.Here are some tips for incorporating these types of exercises into your routine:Try modifying traditional exercises by adding extra weight or changing the position of your body (for example, doing squats while holding onto dumbbells). This will challenge different muscle groups than traditional versions do--and make sure that no one sees what you're really up to!Use nontraditional equipment such as medicine balls or resistance bands when appropriate; these tools allow for greater freedom in movement so that muscles are worked harder during each repetition than if using traditional weights alone. Try incorporating mobility drills like foam rolling before working out instead of afterward because this will reduce soreness after exercising.Functional exercises work your body in all planes of motion, making them more functional than traditional exercises.
Traditional exercises are non-functional because they only work one plane of motion at a time. For example, if you're doing biceps curls at the gym, that's just flexing your elbow joint. That doesn't necessarily mimic real-life movements where we often have multiple joints moving at once (like when we lift our arms above our heads).This is why functional fitness has become so popular--it helps to improve strength and endurance while also improving balance and coordination skills through multi-planar movements that closely mimic daily activities like walking or lifting groceries from the floor (which requires not only arm strength but also leg strength).To get started incorporating this type of training into your routine, try out these examples: squats with weights held overhead; lunges using dumbbells in each hand; pushups against a wall instead of on the floor; curtsey lunges (with one leg bent behind us), etc..Conclusion
Functional fitness is a great way to get in shape and stay healthy. It's also fun! The exercises are challenging, but they don't require any equipment or special skills. You can do them anywhere--in the park, at home, or even at work if you have some space available. If you're looking for a new way to get fit this year, try incorporating some functional exercises into your routine!
