New exercise
movement trains the muscles for tasks they do every day.
At a Kinesis
class at Boulder's RallySport health club, Tina Wigert uses a machine with
pulleys that allow for movement in all planes and force users to stand
while lifting.
So you can bench-press
200 pounds, run a 10K in 45 minutes flat and turn heads when you slip on
your Speedo.
But can you
hoist your suitcase into the overhead compartment without throwing your
back out, or squat to tie a toddler's shoes without grimacing?
In an age when
functional training is the reigning buzz phrase in gyms across America,
trainers say these are the questions and answers that really matter.
"Functional
training is about doing exercises that assist you in performing your activities
of daily living more efficiently," says Fabio Comana, an exercise physiologist
with the American Council on Exercise, which recently published a study
lauding the benefits of functional training, or mimicking everyday movements,
for aging baby boomers.
The notion of
practicing movements during a workout, rather than just bulking up with
weights or slogging away on the cardio machines, is nothing new. Professional
golfers and skiers have long mimicked swings or turns in the gym, and physical
therapists often ask rehab patients to practice the motions they do most
at work (such as loading a box into the back of a truck) before returning
to the job.
But only in
the past decade - as fitness experts have realized the limitations of bulk-building
weight machines that allow only for unrealistic single-plane motions -
has the idea of "functional" training trickled down to Everyman.
In that time,
the philosophy has transformed everything from the way some weight machines
are made (with more freedom of movement) to the equipment used in group
classes (things like lightweight medicine balls, resistance bands and unstable
platforms) to the more lifelike, everyday moves trainers are asking their
clients to do.
On a recent
weekday morning at One Boulder Fitness, a group of newcomers made their
way through a surprisingly strenuous functional training class, Metabolic
100, simply made up of repeat squats, overhead reaches, forward presses
and rowing motions, all done from a standing position with a 2- to 4-pound
medicine ball or a resistance band.
Meanwhile, at
RallySport Health and Fitness Club across town, trainer Erin Carson led
five moms in their 40s and 50s through an hourlong class using specially
made circuit machines to hone oft-neglected stabilizer muscles and refine
coordination.
When you train
in a stable environment, like doing a bench press or a seated chest press
on a conventional machine, you are training your muscle like a bodybuilder,
making one muscle perform the same range of motion over and over again,"
explains Carson. "That's really good for building muscle and strength,
but it is not how we move in real life."
Instead, each
woman in her class took a place at one of four "Kinesis" machines, which
use pulleys to allow for movement in all planes and force the user to stand
while lifting.
Then they made
their way through a series of exercises that resemble common movements
in a busy parent's life: A "single-leg dead lift with a reach" looked a
lot like leaning over to pick up a kid's toy; a "lateral lunge with an
overhead press" seemed to mimic reaching up to the top shelf of a cupboard;
and a "lateral lunge with a decline press" resembled pushing a mop or a
vacuum cleaner.
Experts say
functional-fitness programs can be particularly helpful to aging baby boomers,
who may already be finding themselves getting injured doing everyday things.
A recent study
sponsored by the American Council on Exercise found that adults ages 58
to 78 who engaged in functional training three times a week showed greater
improvements in upper- and lower-body strength, cardio-respiratory endurance,
agility and shoulder flexibility than those who stuck to lifting weights
and cardiovascular training only.
You don't have
to convince Cindy Cruz- Mazzei, 52. After years of functional training
with Carson and, more recently, a weekly visit to Kinesis class, she's
seen the benefits transcend to real life time and again.
"We were in
the grocery store once when my daughters were little and both of them jumped
on the cart on one side. It was about to tilt over on them and I literally
grabbed the cart and flipped it back," she says.
"My body just
instinctively did all the right things it was supposed to do, and I didn't
hurt myself. It just kicks in."
How to create
a functional fitness program
• Seek out a well-trained
personal trainer for help. Because functional training requires balance,
stability and coordination, it can be more challenging than traditional
strength training with machines that support your body weight for you.
A personal trainer can start you off right.
• Don't abandon those weight-training
machines. Conventional, single-plane machines are still important for building
strength in specific, larger muscles. They just don't do much for the smaller
stabilizer muscles.
• Start by using your own
body for resistance. Simply squatting, standing on one leg or standing
on one leg and reaching for an object on the floor, like a cone, with one
hand or foot can promote better balance. Once you've got the balance down,
you can start adding resistance.
• Add a little resistance
at a time. Lightweight medicine balls, dumbbells or kettle balls can add
resistance while still allowing for freedom of movement. Resistance bands,
anchored to a stable surface like the pole on a stationary bike, can lend
a little resistance for stationary running or upper body exercises.
• Use an unstable surface.
Once you've gotten the moves down, your trainer may ask you to step onto
an unstable surface, like a balance pad or a wobble-board, to do that one-legged
squat.Sources: One Boulder Fitness; Rallysport; American Council On Exercise;
Juan Carlos Santana
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