Why Functional Fitness Matters More Than You May Think
/This post is less of a “how-to” and more of a “why-to.”
Many years ago, when I got my start as a trainer at Equinox Pine Street in downtown San Francisco, I had a client named Aaron. He was a nice tech guy who wanted to get shredded. One of my signature exercises at the time was taking a heavy ball, squatting, and throwing it up against a wall. It’s functional, builds total body strength, and gets your heart rate up. Mainly, it was hard, it was safe, and he seemed to like it. Good enough reason to do it!
Fast forward a while, and he did get shredded. His abs popped. He felt awesome about himself. We were both happy.
Then one day he told me, “JJ, because of that wall ball exercise, I was the cool dad this weekend at the pool. I could throw the kids in the pool when none of the other dads could. It felt really awesome being the cool dad.”
He said it more beautifully than that. And yeah, when he left and I told my friends about it behind closed doors, I cried a little. That was the first time I truly understood functional training—that changing how a body works can often make a client happier and healthier than just changing how a body looks.
Fast forward to last week. I was on a text thread with a couple of clients/friends who were having a debate and, because my husband is in the airline business, needed us to settle it. Her mom was flying somewhere and was worried about getting her roller bag into the overhead bin.
(Side note: because the world—despite how it may seem sometimes lately—is generally good, someone always helps.)
But aside from that, it got me thinking about freedom—and what kind of functional exercise in the gym would best support this movement in life: storing a heavy bag overhead.
I thought of my client Matt from around the same time as Aaron. Matt loved ball slams. Same idea as the wall ball exercise that leads to the ability later in life to throw kids in the air. Picking up a medicine ball, raising it overhead, and slamming it down is pretty awesome for building the strength and coordination to lift and stow a heavy bag.
So, a few quick lessons here:
It’s okay to include exercises in your routine just because you like them.
You may never know how one exercise you do a thousand times now will translate into happiness and freedom later.
If there’s something you want to be able to do with your body later, start thinking about it now—and brainstorm exercises you can do to support those goals! If you get stuck, reach out to friends, the Internet, or of course, a trainer (you can always ask me!).