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Functional Fitness Training vs. Traditional Fitness Training

4/4/2012

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When it comes to the term "functional training", people can become curious about how it really function in our body and what is it?

In general, functional training is based on the adaptation of different action and activities. That are, your daily physical movements such as lifting your bag or climbing up the stairs in a successful and less stress to the body execution. 

Functional training is beneficial to the co-ordination of different muscles. It can improve the performance of your daily activities as well as the neuromuscular system. Some of the simple movements like sitting down on a chair, reaching something on top of the cupboard are activities that involve multi-joints and combined muscle action coordination. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen these highly functional muscles by implementing specific training strategies. 

By improving the core muscles and relevant neuromuscular systems, it is possible for us to give challenges to the body, especially enforcing the core to be involved in the action. Furthermore, the control or the mediation of the muscular actions, balance, body stabilization in between our brain and the muscle system could also be trained via functional training.

How to plan a good functional training programme? 
Basically, it should be planned from the easiest to the most challenging level. Your exercise progression should move from stabilized to destabilized positions, from machines to free weights and from supported to unsupported. This means that, you must move towards exercises that will require you less support. Here is a sample functionality exercise for a squats on different levels:

Notice that the execution of exercise is the same but what changing is the base of stability. The more you challenge your balance, the more muscles you can engage. This then will not only strengthen the primary muscle being worked but also your core group muscles which in effect will improve your daily physical activities.

Nothing can beat the right information you can get from the experts. So, if you are suffering from muscle imbalance (which could lead to a more severe injury by exercising incorrectly), or doesn't seem to get things right with your exercise routine no matter how regular you visit the club. It's about time to sit-down and consult with a highly certified personal trainer. At the end of the day, it's your body that counts.

ANDREW MOK 
Certified Personal Trainer 


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THE KEY TO EXERCISE IS TARGETING THE RIGHT MUSCLE FOR THE RIGHT FUNCTION

24/1/2012

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The term weight training or resistance training is quite common in most of the gyms, but what does it really mean by effective weight training? Before you get into the exercise, you need to understand what your goals are and how you can achieve it. 

A proper exercise action definitely affects the outcome of your efforts. There are 3As you need to focus on when exercising. A natomy (muscles used), A lignment and A ction. These must be applied from the first to the last repetition of your exercise. 

FORCE and MOVEMENT plays a crucial role in the 3As of your exercise. This determines the strength, size, balance, functionality and most importantly the safety of your exercise routine. FORCE stimulates body muscles. External force is considered to be the resistance coming from dumbbell, barbell, strength machines, etc., while internal force is the reaction of the muscle against the external resistance. MOVEMENT, execution or whatever you may want to call it, is an action coming from a joint to emphasize muscle function. All exercise requires a full range of movement. 

Some other factors that is going to affect the force during your training are the weight, distance from the axis (joint) and the speed of action. Let's see how it works in the example below. 

Most of the people would realize that if they could perform 40lbs of chest press, they could hardly perform the same weight in chest fly. If we consider the distance between the dumbbell and the body, the distance of chest fly is almost doubled (because you need to extend your arms a bit wider). According to the rotational inertia, double the distance equals to 4 times force at a joint, that is, if you could lift 40lbs in chest press, then you could probably lift 10lbs in chest fly. 

The speed of motion is also important. Once you perform it faster, you will realize that it is easier and vice versa because the movement is highly coming from momentum. If you wish to add challenges to your workout and maximize muscle utility, try doing it slower than usual and you will have a new training experience.

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10 TIPS to sticking to your workout routine

23/7/2011

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1 Exercise first thing in the morning – research shows that people who exercise in the morning are the most consistent with their routines.  Exercising first thing in the morning is the best prevention for lack-of-time and lack-of-energy problems.

2 Schedule your workouts – just like a doctor’s appointment, school class or business meeting, marking your calendar with an exercise time enhances the likelihood that you will work out consistently.  Don’t think that you will magically “find” time to exercise; write it down and honour it as you would any other appointment.

3 Set small, realistic goals to start – don’t set yourself up for failure by committing to exercise everyday for one hour if you’ve never participated in a regular workout routine before.  Setting small achievable goals, such as three 30-minute sessions each week, will make it easier to experience success quickly.

4 Vary your workouts – for most of us, doing the same workout daily can cause boredom.  Lift free weights one day, use a treadmill the next and take an exercise class the next.  The premium cardiovascular equipment in the Gym, offers a variety of innovative workouts that can help keep each exercise session interesting.

5 Partner with a workout buddy – people who exercise with a friend or group tend to be more consistent.  Make appointments to exercise with a spouse, neighbor or friend in the health club.

6 Find a diversion – if you really don’t enjoy exercising, try listening to music, watch the cardio theatre, or read a magazine to keep you moving.

7 Hire a personal trainer – a personal trainer can assess your fitness level, develop a programme to meet specific goals and measure your progress.  Personal trainers can also show you different exercises to help vary your routines.

8 Document your progress – seeing how far you have come or how much you have accomplished can be a powerful motivator.  Tracking your exercise routine, whether it be the number of minutes jogging on the treadmill or the amount of weight you are lifting, provides immediate visual feedback of your commitment.

9 Allow yourself a break if necessary – don’t give up if you miss a few days or even weeks, of your exercise routine.  What is important is getting started again as soon as you can.

10 Reward yourself for your success – remember how good you feel after exercising when you don’t want to workout.  Reward yourself with healthy options such as new exercise apparel, new music or a massage.


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    Andrew Mok, amazing story teller, IT guy, Fitness Coach, Social Worker... Love both indoor and outdoor activities....

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