Dr. Slava Shut

Strength comes through adversity. Although this works in many aspects, training your body to overcome something more difficult than it has to can result in the body becoming stronger than it needs to be for simple, daily tasks.

Welcome to Topic Tuesdays, where we discuss a specific topic about finance, business, or just life in general. I’m passionate about helping people improve their lives in all aspects.

As a physical therapist, I’m always trying to share ways to keep healthy and fit. Today, we’re going to discuss how the functional trainer can help you become stronger and healthier.

Getting Stronger

Progressive overload is the process of adding more difficulty to a task to get stronger. Whether you’re recovering from an injury or just trying to get in better shape, adding specific resistances in a systematic way can help you get stronger. The way it works is simple:

Imagine walking up a flight of stairs. When you’re in great shape, climbing stairs is as easy as walking upwards. Your hamstrings, glutes, quads, calves, lumbar and cardio vascular system are well-equipped for the strain, you make it to the top and keep moving without much of a second thought.

Now, imagine walking up that same flight of stairs carrying something. It becomes more difficult depending on how heavy the item is. It takes a certain level of coordinated strength to carry multiple items and walk up the stairs. This is why it can be such a Herculean feat to carry all the groceries up the stairs at once.

But as you become stronger, even carrying those same heavy loads becomes easier. To you, they’ll feel lighter. Strengthening the different components of the body is important for improving your health and aiding in recovery.

Here are 3 functional trainer exercises you can use to get stronger:

Standing lateral raise

The standing lateral raise is a great shoulder exercise. It works the posterior deltoid, lateral deltoid, and the trapezius muscles. When you’re doing this exercise, make sure to keep your core engaged and don’t move your hips. Keep the weight high enough to challenge you, but not so high that your form breaks down.

Seated/lying Cable press

The press is good for engaging your pectorals, triceps, and front deltoids. This is the same muscle group you use for bench press or pushups. Pressing using the functional trainer adds the additional challenge of coordinating your strength symmetrically. When performing the press on a cable machine, concentrate on moving only your arms. Avoid using momentum and use an appropriate weight for your strength and size.

Standing cable biceps curls

Performing a curl primarily works the biceps and forearms. When performing the standing cable biceps curl, as with most movements in the gym, do your best to eliminate momentum. Full extension and contraction under load is more important than how much weight you’re using.

There are plenty of other exercises you can do using the functional trainer. Do you need physical rehabilitation from an injury, illness, or accident? Contact my team to schedule a 1-on-1 consultation today!