Functional training: How to get a full-body workout

The functional training room is an area of the gym that is often neglected, yet those kettlebells and resistance bands may just hold the key to unlocking your full-body fitness potential.

A total-body workout is something that most gym members would agree that they want to achieve every time they visit the gym. Yet, the vast majority of people still limit themselves to exercising a single area of their body by sticking to a familiar cardio machine or weight exercise every time they work out.

While machines do provide us with great benefits, they cannot always provide a full-body workout. Unfortunately this often means that minimal muscle groups are utilized during the workout, which can be counter productive as the muscle adapts to the exercise performed and eventually shows signs of plateauing.

It’s true that in order to burn fat and lose weight you do need to perform a certain amount of cardio, however this doesn’t mean spending hours on one single piece of equipment or jumping on multiple machines every time that you workout. You need to mix things up.

There is a simpler way to exercise different muscle groups simultaneously and build up your cardio fitness - through functional training.

FUNCTIONAL TRAINING

To put it simply, functional training involves performing dynamic movements with weights and resistance equipment. The functional part comes in because the movements that you perform are designed to imitate movement that you would use during your everyday life, for example squatting, pulling, pushing, lifting and twisting.

Athletes and bodybuilders have been performing this type of training for many years as they have realised the tremendous benefits that these sessions provide. The strength side of the training helps to build up muscle mass and endurance, while the rapid movements boost your cardio fitness.

By choosing a varied selection of equipment and motions, you can achieve a diverse range of fitness goals including strength, flexibility, improved posture, boosted cardio fitness, as well as many other benefits. As you are utilising different muscle groups at the same time, you will also be able to reduce your training session times significantly.

GT30

If you are looking for a real challenge, then the GT30 workout really pushes functional training to the next level.

While traditional forms of functional training operate with your feet placed firmly on the ground, GT30 requires you to switch up your movements in high-intensity bursts, creating an intense full-body workout. Using your full body weight as the main piece of equipment, GT30 combines these quick bursts of cardio exercises with demanding strength and endurance moves. Each 30-minute session delivers a fantastic workout that is guaranteed to burn more calories and fat than performing steady cardio for the same amount of time.

It’s not for the faint hearted, but it certainly does deliver some amazing results!

Here are Fitness First Clubs, we are advocates for combining strength training and cardio exercise together, because we really believe that it is the most beneficial way to get results. It saves time, allows you to overcome challenges and creates an exciting and motivational atmosphere to train in.

Why not sign up for a membership today and get 2 months free? Experience the fitness revolution now!