Functional Fitness, And What Does It Even Mean?

Functional Fitness is a term that has grown in popularity, but rarely analyzed in any significant way.

“Functional for what?”

“Functional Fitness” is one of those buzz words (phrases?) that gets thrown around a lot.  People who advocate for functional fitness often like to divide exercises and even methodologies into functional and non-functional.  I’ve generally seen things divided somewhat like this:

Functional:

Pull-ups

Rows

Overhead Presses

Bench Press (sometimes)

Squats

Deadlifts

Carries

Non-Functional:

Isolation Exercises

Direct Arm Work

Any Machines

Bodybuilding

Now before I explain why I don’t like this, I want to get one thing out of the way:  I base the foundations of my workouts on the exercises (or variations of them) listed under “Functional”.  The problem is that the promoters of functional fitness assume everyone desires the same function.  However, “functional” just means that it accomplishes the task you want it to accomplish. They will say that a pull-up is “functional” while a bicep curl isn’t.  But how often have you had to carry something in your arms (an isometric bicep curl)?  How many times have you had to pull yourself up to chin level on a bar (a pullup)?  Which of these actually has more functional when we’re talking about basic things we do every day?  Even something like a triceps pressdown is functional if you want to increase your triceps strength directly, build a bigger triceps muscle (nothing wrong with that as a goal), or use it as an accessory for a larger “Functional” movement like an overhead press. There are bodybuilders who exclusively use machines. For them, those machines are exceptionally functional because they stimulate growth in the target muscle which is all they care about. Bodybuilders also, in general, are extremely strong even if they aren’t great at arm wrestling (which is always the videos that show how “weak bodybuilders are”).  

Don’t get me wrong, I love pull-ups.  In fact, they’re probably my favorite exercise and functional for a lot of different and, I would argue, critical things.  They are great back builders, increase vertical pulling strength, grip strength, and teach your arms and back to work together in that plane of motion.  I include some kind of vertical pulling in every workout plan I create.  But the so called “Non-Functional” lifts can be extremely helpful tools when utilized properly, and I never throw out a good tool.       

The question you should ask is “Is this exercise functional for what I want out of it?”  That’s where someone who understands your specific goals and the way you prefer to train can design a custom program to work steadily, and safely