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Real Functional Fitness

Real Functional Fitness

Many people have a hard time finding motivation to workout. I personally enjoy it but at times I will admit that I don't want to go to the gym or come up with excuses not to workout.  Usually what keeps me going is finding a reason why I train. I can come up with many reasons but today was one of those eye opening days that I will always remember. Today was a day that all the hard work in the gym paid off. Today made all those long hours worth it. Today will keep me focused for months. 

You're probably wondering what happened today. Well............................................ today I helped my cousin and his family  Move out of their house. 

To the normal person this is the worst day ever. Who likes to move out of a house?  Nobody enjoys it and I must say it is not really all that fun. However it is probably the most FUNctional thing you will ever do. I must have done over 100 deadlifts, squats, rotational exercises, isometric holds, shoulder presses, and every other movement you can think of.  Imagine balancing on one leg on the steps while pushing a mattress with one hand and holding the railing with the other hand.  If you did that in a gym you will be looked at like a crazy person.  I am not saying you should bring a mattress with you to the gym next time your there or become a professional mover. The point is there is so much debate on "functional training" and how people should train. Meanwhile the reality is we are all different and will be placing different demands on our bodies all the time.  We should always change up our training routines. Challenge yourself. 

The reason I am writing this blog is because I was able to be a huge help to my family today because of my level of fitness. If  i did not train on a normal basis I would have not been able to move so many boxes or be the go to guy for all the heavy crap nobody else wanted to move.  This may seem like a stupid thing to most people. To me this was great motivation. To be able to contribute to my family. To help them achieve  a goal in their life.

 To often we focus on training for a marathon, sporting event,  competition or something else. What about just training for Life? Life comes with enough physical demands. All you have to do it pay attention. My mother would never want to deadlift in a gym but i bet you she will deadlift a 32 pack of Poland Spring off the floor in Sam's Club or shoulder press a box of summer clothes on to the top shelf in the closet. That is "functional fitness", that is what our clients need from us (Depends on the population of people you train).  If we are here to improve lives, lets start out by Improving Everyday Lives. 

-FLO

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