What Exercises Are Best for Functional Strength?

Functional strength training is the buzzword these days, and we hear it a lot. While it is gaining a lot of popularity and acceptance in the fitness world, many people confuse functional strength training with traditional strength training. Remember, however, that they are not the same.

So, what’s the difference? Well, strength training exercise programs aimed at building functional strength simultaneously engage several muscle groups to replicate the patterns of basic human movements. On the contrary, in conventional strength training, we isolate a particular muscle group – like the biceps, back, or quads – and train it to strengthen that particular region.

What Makes an Effective Functional Training Program?

For a functional strength training program to be effective, it should focus on building and improving coordination between the nervous system and various muscle groups. The end goal should be to improve your performance in everyday tasks.

The effects of functional strength training are usually visible in your real-life activities if your training program focuses on the following factors:

• Coordination
• Range of Motion
• Movement Speed
• Various Muscle Contraction Types (Eccentric, Concentric, and Isometric)

With that in mind, let’s move on to exploring the best exercises to build functional strength.

Best Exercises To Build Functional Strength

Here we have shortlisted some of the best and the easiest exercises to include in your functional strength training routine. Let’s explore what muscles work and how you should perform them.

1. Bodyweight Squat

Primarily, squats work your quadriceps, straightening the gluteus maximus and the legs. The lower you get, the better it targets the glutes. If the intention is to build strength in your butt, squatting below 90 degrees is recommended. It’s an easy exercise that you can do anytime in the day.

Steps to do a Bodyweight Squat

1. Stand straight and keep the feet shoulder-width apart, pointing in the forward direction or slightly angling outward. Keep your hands to your side.
2. Squat down slowly, and keep going down until your thighs become horizontal. Bring the hands up and in front of the chest while doing so.
3. Get back up slowly and reverse step 2.

2. Prisoner Get-Up

It’s a simple mobility exercise that works your lower body and improves your ability to get down to the floor and then back up only with the help of your lower body and without using the arms. This exercise mainly works your quadriceps, spinal erectors, and glutes.

Steps to do a Prisoner Get-Up

1. Stand straight and keep the hands on the back of your head, with feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Kneel down, first on the left knee and then on the right knee.
3. With both knees down, get off of the left knee while you’re still kneeling on the right knee.
4. Finally, get off of the right knee, moving back up.

As you perform this functional strength workout, ensure that your hands are always behind your head and the torso is perfectly erected right throughout.

3. Jump Lunge

Jump lunges work your glutes and quadriceps, and you build great power by jumping explosively. It also heavily engages your nervous system without causing much fatigue to your muscles. You get all these benefits with jump squats, but in the case of jump lunges, there’s an element of asymmetry as well. They work your gluteus medius and the sides of your thighs. Your balance is also tested more here.

Steps to do a Jump Lunge

1. Do a right lunge by taking your right foot forward and keeping the left foot back and the knee close to the ground. Take the right arm forward and up and the left one back, like you do while jogging.
2. Perform an explosive jump and push off the right heel along with the ball of your left foot, landing into a left lunge while swinging the arms.
3. Again, jump explosively and push off the left help along with the ball of your right foot, landing into a right lunge.
4. Repeat.

4. Jump Squat

Just like jump lunges, jump squats work your glutes and quadriceps. Explosive jumping also builds power and heavily engages your nervous system without much muscular fatigue. Jump squats also make an ideal choice for warming up.

Steps to do a Jump Squat

1. Start in the standing position while keeping your feet shoulder-width apart and hands at the sides.
2. Squat down and stop when your thighs become horizontal while you bring the arms in front of the chest.
3. Explode back upward and jump as you swing the arms down to generate extra power.

5. Palm Plank

A palm plank is a variant of the regular plank where you plank on your palms – the way you do when performing push-ups – instead of forearms. It makes the plank easier on the quads and the abs, and the hard work is done by your arms.

Steps to do a Palm Plank

1. Get into the position of a push-up while keeping your palms shoulder-width apart.
2. Hold it right there for as long as you can.

6. Mountain Climbers

A perfect full-body combined bodyweight and cardio resistance exercise, mountain climbers, are a great choice for functional strength training. The exercise works your arms, back, legs, and core simultaneously.

Steps to do a Mountain Climber

1. Get into the position of a push-up while keeping your palms shoulder-width apart.
2. Move the right knee upwards and between the arms, and then take the right leg back to where it started.
3. Move the left knee upwards and between the arms, then take the left leg back to where it started.

Make sure that you do steps 2-3 quickly so as to mimic fast-paced climbing or running.

7. Inchworm

It’s a combination of mobility and resistance exercise that tests the strength and endurance of your upper and lower body. It also tests how flexible your back and hamstrings are.

Steps to do an Inchworm

1. Start in the standing position with your feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Bend down and walk your hands in the forward direction to get into the position of a push-up.
3. Walk your hands back and stand up again.

Making these functional exercises a part of your strength training routine will help you build your functional strength quicker and easier. These are some of the simplest moves, and yet they create a big impact.