I didn’t get a chance to talk about this earlier, but it definitely deserves a little extra attention, so I’m gonna just go ahead and share it with you guys now, mmkay?
This morning, I pretty much got my boo-tay handed to me on a silver platter.
Yes, yes I did. Today was Day 5 of Tina’s Bootcamp and ohh boy was it a doozy! On the agenda for today:
- 20 minutes of HIIT (I alternated 1 minute each of 7.5mph & 4.5mph on the treadmill)
- “Workout C” – a functional and core workout.
Today’s workout was, by far, the most challenging of them yet. While I can’t get into the specifics of the actual circuit moves that were in the workout, I will say that there was a whole lotta movement, and a whole lotta sweat happening. I sorta felt like I should have had a drill sergeant standing above me with a whistle and stopwatch.
Okay, maybe that’s a little drastic. But even still, after three rounds of that circuit, I was spent. Whew!
So far, Tina has done a fantastic job of putting together this bootcamp program (not that I’m surprised). For phase one, the focus has been on stabilization and functional training, both of which are extremely important components to beginning a fitness routine.
Functional Training – Why It’s Important
Functional training is something that, in my opinion, everyone should be incorporating into their fitness routine. In essence, it is a very effective type of exercise that involves training the body to be capable of doing real-life activities in real-life positions. You train several muscle groups at once, which can improve balance, core stabilization, strength, and flexibility.
Functional training is different from using most machines at the gym; these are typically isolating specific muscle groups (think seated row machine, etc.), but they’re not teaching the muscle groups being isolating to work together.
One thing that was highly stressed in my NASM training is the goal of getting the entire kinetic chain (nervous, skeletal, and muscular systems) in alignment. When you can teach everything to work together properly, the body is much better able to perform.
What Are Some Examples of Functional Exercises?
Functional training can incorporate both bodyweight exercises and those with weights; however, for someone just starting off, sticking with bodyweight exercises is your best bet. Functional training is a great way to incorporate compound exercises, because you’re incorporating several muscle groups at once.
There really are a TON of exercises, but here are some basics:
Do you incorporate functional training into your workout routine??
*****
And, of course, I can’t go for this afternoon without announcing the lucky winner of the Elaine’s Toffee Company Giveaway: Lucky Entry #28
Congratulations, Anna! Please email me at sweettoothcourtney[@]gmail[.]com so we can get you set up with your goodies!
Comments