What Is Functional Training?

In today’s world, fitness is often reduced to routines that only take place in gyms or through repetitive (and let’s be honest, typically boring) exercises. These routines can be good, but they don’t always make you better and more capable for your everyday life - they make you really good at moving a weight in a particular direction, in a specific environment.

While the term ‘Functional Fitness’ has been thrown around a lot these days (it can be more than just tire flipping and sledge-hammer swinging at your local CrossFit), when done correctly, adopting a functional fitness approach to your routine will benefit your everyday life. It’s more holistic in nature, and it will help you develop better strength, endurance, and skills that transfer well into your daily routine.

Rather than training for the sake of aesthetics—functional fitness is about training movements that mimic what you do in daily life, making you stronger, more coordinated, and more capable overall.

Functional Training Examples

At its core, functional fitness is rooted in natural movement and purpose-driven training. It emphasizes exercises that mimic the ways we move naturally, such as:

• Balance and coordination

• Lifting and carrying objects of weight

• Jumping and landing

• Walking, hiking, running, swimming, cycling

• Climbing, hanging, brachiation

  • And more!

Functional fitness is the foundation of how I train my clients. It’s about preparing your body to handle everyday activities—whether it’s lifting and carrying your child, having the strength to participate in sports, and more! When you train functionally, you develop skills that make everyday tasks feel easy and prepare you for the everyday challenges of life.

Get Started Today!

If you enjoyed this post and want to learn more about how to improve your fitness routine, I’d be happy to help! Whether you’re looking to improve strength, mobility, or just have fun with outdoor fitness, I offer personalized training sessions to help you reach your goals. Let’s work together to create a plan that fits your needs and lifestyle. Click here to schedule a free consultation and take the first step toward a more confident, capable you!