Post by Enigma on Jan 28, 2010 6:35:15 GMT -5
This isn't so much an article for training advice, but more of a rant - I do love a good rant every now and again!
I work in a gym, I sadly don't have much involvement, but it does give me time to sit back and watch people. And there's one thing I've noticed which I just can't seem to make any sense of... PT's idea of 'functional training'.
It seems their idea of functional training is to get clients to stand on a bosu ball doing cable rows! Now, the question I ask is; what's bloody functional about that?!?
I don't like bosu balls for a start - anything that makes you stand with bowed legs and dodgy ankles is crazy in my opinion; but to suggest doing so is functional is beyond me.
Functional, is what it is, it's training related to tasks which you'd come across in every day life:
Lifting stuff off the floor - deadlifts.
Putting stuff above head level - overhead presses.
Picking something up - heavy curls.
Pushing someone away - bench press.
Pulling yourself up - pull ups...
To me, these movements have much more carry-over to the real world than twitting about on a stability ball.
Obviously there are other thing which you could do which would be more functional; such as carrying a sack or barrel [strongman type stuff], but being in a gym environment, this usually isn't an option.
I don't understand why training has become so complicated. It seems, as humans, we like to complicate simple matters - maybe we think it makes it more effective? I don't know.
Anyway, rant over!
I work in a gym, I sadly don't have much involvement, but it does give me time to sit back and watch people. And there's one thing I've noticed which I just can't seem to make any sense of... PT's idea of 'functional training'.
It seems their idea of functional training is to get clients to stand on a bosu ball doing cable rows! Now, the question I ask is; what's bloody functional about that?!?
I don't like bosu balls for a start - anything that makes you stand with bowed legs and dodgy ankles is crazy in my opinion; but to suggest doing so is functional is beyond me.
Functional, is what it is, it's training related to tasks which you'd come across in every day life:
Lifting stuff off the floor - deadlifts.
Putting stuff above head level - overhead presses.
Picking something up - heavy curls.
Pushing someone away - bench press.
Pulling yourself up - pull ups...
To me, these movements have much more carry-over to the real world than twitting about on a stability ball.
Obviously there are other thing which you could do which would be more functional; such as carrying a sack or barrel [strongman type stuff], but being in a gym environment, this usually isn't an option.
I don't understand why training has become so complicated. It seems, as humans, we like to complicate simple matters - maybe we think it makes it more effective? I don't know.
Anyway, rant over!