Functional Fitness
That’s me on a hike in Hawaii with my best friend. The best part about this hike was the fact that we didn’t even know it existed. We just happened to see a trailhead when we were exploring one of the beaches, and we followed it up. The fact that I was able to do that on the fly was a great feeling – more on that below.
Sometimes, I get a lot of questions about why I work out. In general, we spend time in a very urban city where we drive to work, drive home, drive to the grocery store, etc. For those of us who aren’t firefighters, mountain rescuers, lumberjacks, or have other occupations that require physical strength, we rarely use our strength or cardio unless we have a hobby that demands it.
Take me for example. I walk to work. I walk back. I drive to the grocery store, I drive back. My hobbies typically involve kicking back in a chair in front of a computer, or sitting up straight and trying to play the guitar. My work requires me to spend the majority of my time at a computer or going from meeting to meeting, but by and large, I don’t need to necessarily be physically fit to do any of the above. It’s not a necessity. So, why work out at all? I’m not going to sit here and keep belaboring the point that working out benefits your health, your wellbeing, etc; however, what this post is about is that working out makes your day-to-day easier even if you have an otherwise sedentary lifestyle, like me. It makes you more functional as a human-being. Let’s dive deeper into that.
I grew up being a big hiker, and I enjoy the mountains just as much as everyone else. With that said, I typically make it only a few times a year these days. Now, your average person who doesn’t work out but only hikes a few times a year would get incredibly winded during each hike. Period. If you want to know what it’s like to feel like absolute death, then try hiking when you’re out of shape – it’s THE worst feeling ever! Now, IF you lift and if you do even some cardio, hiking becomes much more tolerable – almost to the point where you can go on a whim depending on your workout routine. I can’t tell you how much of a fantastic feeling this is. Think about it – a friend invites you on a Friday to go hiking on a Saturday, you don’t have to worry AT ALL about being in shape to actually do the hike and keep up with your friend. You can wear a backpack and brave the trails just like anyone else who makes it a point to hike every weekend. If you’ve ever been out-of-shape or have anxiety about tolerating a hike, then you know what a relief it is just to be “hiking shape” year-round. You can substitute hiking for anything else that requires physical strength as well. I’ve gone rock climbing, dancing, and to MMA classes, and not once do I have to be fearful of having the strength or the cardio to participate. That is one of the key benefits of going to the gym – becoming more functional.
I’ll give you one more example here. One hobby that I’m trying to get more into is dirt biking. Dirt bikes aren’t huge mechanical beasts like some road bikes are, trying to hold up a 250 pound dirt bike with one leg when stationary and when it starts to lean can be difficult. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to brace myself on the bike and use my leg strength to keep the bike upright – I can think the four sets of squats I do every week for that. Take literally any activity in life and think about how much easier things become just because you are physically fit. Lifting your luggage into the overhead bins on an airplane, taking the stairs at work, carrying a backpack from meeting to meeting – all of this becomes infinitely easier. The majority of people who go the gym or are involved in some sort of physical activity forget that these things are challenging and can sometimes be embarrassing for folks who can’t perform them. I’m here to tell you not to be embarrassed, and to take control of your body, and enjoy the functional benefit to exercising.
As always, reach out if you have any questions.
