Movement

Centr Team

What is functional exercise & why do you need it?

Discover the movement your life is missing with the Functional Movement Challenge.

On Centr, functional movement encompasses a range of training styles and intensities – from strength to cardio and mobility – and combines compound exercises and movement patterns that improve conditioning and performance.

What are the benefits of functional training?

Performing functional exercises can help you move and feel better in everyday life, from taking care of kids to the demands of your job.

For instance, a strong core and back can help parents lift and carry a toddler without pain, while a landscaper must be able to squat down to tend to garden beds, and people who are moving house need strength and agility to maneuver heavy furniture.

Regular functional movement can also:

• Increase mobility by training in natural movement patterns.
• Prevent injury by building a strong, mobile body.
• Help you to get stronger by performing compound exercises that recruit multiple muscle groups to build strength efficiently.
• Improve your stability, balance and flexibility. Unilateral work (exercising one side at a time) will help you to identify and work on imbalances, while increasing the range of motion you’re able to comfortably move through will naturally improve flexibility.
• Get a workout in with minimal equipment required. Many forms of functional training, including the Functional Movement Challenge on Centr, require no or limited equipment.

Functional exercise can future-proof your body by teaching you how to master natural movement patterns.

What are functional exercises?

Functional exercises are based on foundational or primal movements that, in the days before desk jobs, were once essential for our survival. While our lifestyles may be a lot more sedentary than they used to be, these natural motions that serve us for everyday activities.

Exercises are considered functional if they:

• increase muscle stability, joint mobility and full-body strength

• prevent injuries during everyday tasks

• improve speed, agility and coordination

• boost cardiovascular health

Some examples of key functional exercises are:

Squat

Bringing the torso closer to the ground by bending at the knees and sitting the butt back and down.

Examples: Bodyweight squat, sumo squat, pistol squat
Everyday use: Sitting down and getting up, picking up heavy objects safely, two-legged jumps

Hinge

Hinging at the hips to move the torso forward and backward.

Examples: Deadlift, snatches
Everyday use: Bending over to pick up items or children, reaching for items while seated on the floor

Lunge

One leg is positioned forward with a bent knee, while the other leg is extended behind. Bending at both knees lowers the torso toward the ground.

Examples: Forward lunge, lateral lunge
Everyday use: Walking up and down stairs, stepping over obstacles

Push

Using the chest, shoulders and arms to exert force on an object to push it away.

Examples: Push-ups, bench press, shoulder press
Everyday use: Pushing a trolley or stroller, passing a ball, opening a door, crawling

Pull

Reaching out then drawing in using the back, shoulders and arms to bring an object closer.

Examples: Bent-over rows, lat pull-down, pull-ups, chin-ups
Everyday use: Picking up children or items, dragging things, putting on a backpack or seatbelt

Core activation

Engaging the abdominal muscles to stabilize the spinal column. Also takes in twisting and rotating.

Examples: Planks, sit-ups, Russian twists
Everyday use: Maintaining balance while standing in a moving train, moving objects while cooking, golfing, throwing a frisbee

Gait or locomotion

A combination of movements to propel the body in any direction.

Examples: Running, lateral sprints
Everyday use: Walking, running for the bus, dancing, many sports including soccer

Balance

Ability to remain upright and steady, generally during motion.

Examples: Single-leg Romanian deadlift, alternating lunges, bird dog
Everyday use: Walking on uneven or narrow surfaces, traveling on trains and planes, jumping and landing

Rotation

The twisting motion generated by the torso.

Examples: Russian twist, boxing combinations
Everyday use: Turning your body while sitting on a chair, scratching an area on the rear of your body, reaching for things in awkward positions, serving and hitting in tennis

Functional strength training vs traditional strength training: what’s the difference?

While traditional strength training is primarily performed with the goal of increasing muscle mass, the focus of functional strength training is on strengthening movement patterns you perform every day.

We’ve taken a deep dive to help you explore the differences and decide which style is right for your goals.

Where can I try a functional training workout?

The new 6-week Functional Movement Challenge on Centr makes it easy to get started with this style of training. Experts Luke Zocchi, Ingrid Clay and Maricris Lapaix will lead you through fun and dynamic workouts to build strength, stability and stamina, and improve the way you move.

Try a free workout from the Functional Movement Challenge now.

What about other styles of functional training?

You may have heard about Da Rulk’s legendarily challenging workouts on Centr. Raw Functional Training (RFT®) is a registered curriculum that Rulk originally designed to train first responders and military, then made available to everyone for the first time right here.

Rulk’s intense training utilizes bodyweight movements such as forward-to-reverse crawls, side gorillas, hostages and sit thrus – drawing on foundational movement patterns to build up mobility and overall functional strength and conditioning.