Continuing in the immense world of fitness, we now find ourselves talking about functional training, i.e. a motor activity that is performed both inside gyms and in outdoor environments, the purpose of which is to improve the movement of athletes who practice it. A second improvement it aims for is that of the explication of daily motor functions.
It is a training mode that can be approached according to different approaches, based on the level, skills, and intensity sought. Depending on the way you go to work with this type of training, you have different special equipment to carry out different exercises.
In particular, the tools used are intended to move the three planes of the body, the sagittal, the frontal and the transverse. But, generally, the starting point in this discipline is that of the use of one’s own body, which is considered as overload, and only later are tools with various types of weight added.
Unlike other more targeted training methods, functional training aims at the global development of all the main motor skills, such as conditional skills (e.g. strength, endurance, …), coordination (such as balance, postural control, …) and joint mobility.
However, in order to be considered functional gymnastics, it must comply with some essential principles; To list a few: transmission of forces through body segments, ability to use reaction forces (i.e. soil, water, …), the execution of each movement in the kinetic chain and maximum muscle synergy, and others.
What equipment to use during functional training ?
As we have already said, this type of discipline can also be carried out without the use of equipment, but usually only as a starting point: they, in fact, play a very important role within training. To achieve good results, these tools have been designed to be used consistently throughout the training and in every session.
It is important to know which equipment is best suited to the type of training you want to do and especially to the type of result you want to aim for. This will especially help those who want to train at home so that they don’t have to buy useless or inefficient equipment for their interests.
For example, speaking of the area that most attracts the athlete, muscle strengthening, it must be said that it usually starts with bodyweight workouts (as in the case of squats, lunges, …); slowly, and as needed, essential tools are started to be added to improve the activity and the achievable results.
Must-know equipment for functional training
Among the most classic equipment we have the jump rope: it is a much more functional tool than you might imagine, it is essential to improve your fitness skills, such as cardiovascular skills and coordination.
A second widely used tool is that of elastic bands: they are perfect for improving the flexibility of the joints, very useful in the warm-up phase but also excellent for the progression of pull-ups.
Another popular tool, simple but very useful, is the pull-up bar: on it, in fact, you will experiment with pull-ups, very useful exercises to develop muscles quickly and easily, improving the control of your body especially by focusing on the upper part of it.
Continuing on the list of essential equipment we find dumbbells: it is inevitable to find them in any training program, especially when you feel the need to add weight to your exercise session. They are a good solution to start training with the addition of weight: focus on controlled movements, limited number of repetitions and with the right weight for your needs.
Functional equipment: different tools for different workouts
Moving away from more classic and well-known tools, we move towards that part of less known but widely used tools, especially in certain types of exercises.
The plyometric box, for example, is apparently just a real wooden box; But despite its simplicity, it is really useful during functional training sessions. Its most interesting feature is that it will take on 3 different heights depending on the side on which you decide to place it, so that you can use it in different situations and at different levels of difficulty. It aims to improve stability, balance, muscle strength, and more.
Another tool with which sooner or later you come into contact is the medicine ball: its characteristic is that it has the normal shape of a ball, with the particularity of having significant weights. They come in different weights and are used as extra weights during exercises such as lunges, squats, or used as a “throwing” weight, usually in the wall-ball exercise.
No less important than the previous ones, the kettlebell is a very popular piece of equipment, useful for adding weight to functional training, thus helping to improve physical fitness more quickly. Its use will help diversify the exercises during workouts, as many can be done using this tool.
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