Functional Training For Fitness And Sports Preparation

Preparation for sport has come virtually full circle in the past 100 years. At the turn of the 20th century, people exercised using primarily their body weight and medicine balls. Free weight barbells or dumbbells came next. Weight lifting machines (such as nautilus and cybex) that control the range of motion and isolate certain muscle groups followed after, and are typically found in most fitness centers today. These machines made lifting weights easier but we now understand that limited motion exercises do not effectively translate into functional training. Functional training involves coordinated whole body exercises that emphasize appropriate body motions. Exercise machines and free weights can improve muscular strength but they do not train muscles how to work together properly in a functional manner.

With the push to specialize in one sport and the increased volume of competitions year round many young athletes are not properly preparing to compete at the level they desire. By competing in and practicing only one sport, young athletes often develop the sport-specific skills they need but do not develop the required functional strength and fitness. Participation in one sport often does not allow for the proper development of the supporting muscles necessary to allow individuals to excel.

Individuals who run fast, jump high, or have great balance, often look like they are doing so effortlessly. These athletes are fortunate to have internal programming that notifies their bodies how to perform in ways that achieve maximum results. However, most athletes are not taught how to run, jump, or balance properly. If an athlete could increase his or her running speed, jumping ability, and balance would they not be a better athlete?

Functional training is excellent for sports preparation because it emphasizes multi-planar movement activities involving strength, power, and stability. It can help athletes improve their running, jumping, balance, and strength. It focuses on movement actions, not individual muscles or muscle groups. Proper functional training focuses on quality body mechanics and the development of core strength. Core muscles consist of the deep abdominal, pelvic floor, lower back, shoulder girdle, and hip muscles. They act to stabilize the body during peripheral movement and are crucial to generating power. The overall goal of functional training is to help athletes educate their muscles to perform in a more efficient way, thereby decreasing the risk of injuries and improving performance.

I liken functional training to my learning how to swim as an adult. Initially what felt correct to me in the pool was not efficient and certainly wasn’t pretty swimming. Trying to make corrections and develop proper technique felt very awkward. However, after practicing proper technique thousands of times the more appropriate muscle firing patterns felt more comfortable and made me a better swimmer.

"My Ithaca High School varsity girls basketball team started the 2005/2006 season 5 weeks prior to try-outs with a pre-season Peak Performance Program. We benefited greatly from the twice-weekly workouts, which focused on agility, balance and core strength... I felt that we were quicker and saw that the players who participated in this program were well-prepared to handle the try-outs and the early weeks of conditioning. We were ready to play!" "A reduction in injuries was an additional benefit from the Peak Performance program. ...I am convinced that Peak Performance played a key role in our ability to keep our players on the court and in the game." Faye Young Miller Ithaca HS Girls Basketball

In functional training weight bars and machines have been replaced with stretch cords, medicine balls, and body weight exercises. Balance is done on squishing discs called dynadiscs and on large stability balls. Plyometrics, where the body coils and uses its stored energy to recoil, builds power. Exercises in functional training follow a progression. Once an exercise is done properly it can be modified to further challenge the individual. It can progress from two-legged activities to one-legged, from work on stable surfaces to unstable surfaces, from simple activities to complex movement patterns.

Why do some athletes get injured more frequently or severely when others do not? Studies on the mechanisms of injuries demonstrate a consistent pattern and body position that increases the risk of these injuries. In addition, athletes with proper biomechanics tend to dissipate ground reactive forces better thereby decreasing injury.

In particular, young female athletes are more prone to knee and ankle injuries than their male counterparts. In fact, the risk of tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) of the knee (an injury that almost always requires surgery and 6 months of rehabilitation before returning to sports) is 5-6 times higher in girls than boys. There are many factors that contribute to this risk including hormonal levels, anatomical differences, and training. However, researchers and clinicians now feel that the main reason girls experience a greater number of non-contact knee and ankle injuries is due to different biomechanics. Studies have found that girls tend to buckle their knees inwards on landing from jumps. Evidence shows that participation in functional training programs can decrease the risk of ACL and other knee and ankle injuries up to 75%.

Injury from improper mechanics is not limited to knees. After a series of non-healing lower leg stress fractures in Ithaca College (IC) gymnasts, the athletic training staff and I looked at different variables that could have contribute to these injuries. We found that many of our gymnasts had improper biomechanics that did not allow them to dissipate forces properly. We used this information to develop functional training with the team emphasizing flexing at the hip on landing and controlling the knees from buckling inward. The women on the team have been able to make the biomechanical changes and our injury rate has gone down.

Functional training programs have existed around the country for 10 – 15 years. They have been shown to be effective with young athletes, older people, and even professional athletes. College football players often connect with trainers who help prepare them for the NFL combine, where pro scouts evaluate potential players on their physical and mental skills. Many major leagues baseball players prepare for their seasons by strengthening their core, performing plyometrics, and challenging their balance. Several of our IC football and soccer athletes have developed their skills doing functional training in different parts of the country before coming to college. Please Contact Us with any questions.

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