If you've spent any time in the fitness space, you have probably come across the term "functional training". But what exactly is functional training? Some might describe it as monkeying around on an upside-down Bosu Ball or some other ridiculous exercise that doesn't serve a purpose. What makes an exercise functional?
To fully explain this, I first want to explore a few things that happen to the human body throughout the aging process. Around age thirty, muscle and bone mass reaches its peak. For every year after, muscle and bone mass begin to deteriorate slowly. At first, this happens gradually. Then more rapidly as age increases. I believe that functional training is any training that will aid in slowing and reversing this process. 
So, what exactly reverses the process of muscle and bone loss?
The answer.... Strength Training. 
What is strength training? Over the years, the concept of strength training has been misconstrewed. Some of you may have even attended a group class where the heaviest weight in sight was less than twenty pounds, but the session was still labeled as "strength training". The truth is that isn't strength training at all. Strength training can be defined as any training that progressively challenges the body through increased load or exercise difficulty. 
What makes strength training so functional?
Simple... It challenges the body to a level that everyday life doesn't. 
Humans as a race are facing new challenges that our ancestors did not have to grapple with. We live in a developed society, have access to better medical care (in most cases), and don't have the same physical demands that we used to. Most Americans take less than 5,000 steps per day. This creates a problem. Our healthcare systems have created treatments that can keep us alive longer. But, without activity, our physical body has a hard time keeping up. 
It is vital to focus on building strength to retain our independence as we age. Every year after thirty, our bodies' clocks are slowly ticking. To slow the breakdown process, we need to build strong muscles and bones that can support us for the extra years we live compared to our ancestors. 
So how can you truly functionally train?
Get really strong. Spend time lifting your bodyweight, dumbbells, barbells, machines or any other modality you can think of. Then, over time, progress those movements and get better at them. Being strong is the most functional thing you can do for your body. If you take the time to build strength your current and older self will thank you. 

Are you interested in "functional training" done right? We offer a free No Sweat Intro Session that allows you to meet with one of our qualified coaches to discuss your goals and how we can help. We can provide a program completely tailored to your goals that helps you get the most out of your time in the gym. Click the link below to schedule your free session with one of our coaches today.
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Have you ever noticed that some workouts just feel better than others? Obviously, there are a lot of factors that determine how good you feel on a given day (stress, recovery, etc). But, sometimes, against all odds some workouts just seem to feel better than others. That could be, in part, tied to what is known as time to peak. 
What exactly is time to peak?
Time to peak is the number of exposures that it takes to have "peak performance". In order to explain this, allow me to first explain what an exposure is. An exposure is defined as exposure to the main movement of the program. So, say you are working towards a chin up goal, the main movement would be considered chin ups while all others exercises in the program are accessories that build the main movement. Time to peak can be looked at simple as the amount of weeks it takes to perform your best on a given movement or set of movements. 
Why is time to peak important?
Time to peak can be the difference between moderate and rapid progress. Typically, peaking looks different on everyone. But, for the most part a "peak" week of training is usually where the majority of improvement is made. If a program is carried out to peak condition it can lead to a lot more progress over the long term as opposed to cutting the program short. 
How do we determine time to peak?
One of the ways that we determine time to peak is collecting data on all of the people that we work with. Typically we can determine trends in each training block based off of how each lift responds. Using this data we can determine how long someone should run a program to get their best results. Another way that time to peak can be determined is by getting feedback. Typically there are certain weeks of a program that simply feel better and move better than others. Over a long period of time we can determine these trends and use them to figure out the best approach for each person. 
How can you use this in your training?
If you keep a log of your workouts pay attention to the trends in your workouts from week to week. Typically a peak week will be followed with a down trend in performance. Once you determine your peak week time then simply run your training blocks for that length of time before changing your program. 
Are you looking to get stronger?
Did you know that we have a highly trained coaching staff that can help you get the most out of your workouts? If you're looking to get the most out of your workouts click the link below to schedule your free No Sweat Intro Session with one of our staff members today!
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In health, 

​Patriel Dunford
Infinite Fitness

​I'm sure you've heard that changing up your workouts is the best way to make progress. This statement has some truth to it. But, there are benefits to performing the same movements for an extended period, especially for beginners. 
To fully explain the benefits of long-term practice I first want to explain the difference between main lifts and accessory movements. A main lift is the main movement that one is trying to progress on. For example, if someone wanted to squat more weight the squat would be the main exercise of the program. Accessory lifts are any lift that is designed to supplement the main lift. Accessory lifts for the squat can range from very similar lifts like pause squats to very dissimilar lifts like leg extensions or leg presses. 
This is an important concept because generally speaking the main lift will stay the same for an extended period of time whereas the accessory movements will change more often. I don't want to spend too much time on why changing your routine is important because that is not the goal of this message. Insted I want to explore why performing the same core lifts for an extended period of time is important to make your best progress. 
The main reason performing lifts for an extended period of time is important lies in what is called movement proficiency. Movement proficiency is how well someone can perform a given exercise. In order to reach the full potential of any exercise it needs to be performed for a long enough period to learn the movement fully. 
It's common for beginners to experience a rapid increase in weight in their first few weeks of performing a new movement. During the first few weeks of a new exercise most people aren't building much overall strength. This is due to the inability to express their strength because the movement is new, and they haven't learned it yet. As the weeks and months go on, the rapid increases in performance usually drop off. At this point, many people feel like they aren't benefitting from performing the movement and typically change their program. This is usually not the best option, as the first few weeks of a new movement don't build much strength. 
So, how often should you change up your exercises?
This is where the concept of main lifts vs accessory lifts comes in to play. The main movement that one is trying to progress on shouldn't change very often, at least for an extended period of time. Accessory lifts are a different story. Accessory lifts can and should change roughly every four to six weeks depending on the complexity of the movement. For more complex exercises (split squats, split stance RDL's, etc) keeping them in the program for a longer period is beneficial. 
So, why is performing movements for an extended period of time  good thing?
To make it simple... Movement proficiency. The more that you perform a movement the better you get at performing it. The better you get at performing a movement the more return it will give you. 
Here is a simple way that you can determine how often you should change your exercises: 

Main Lifts- Not often, if ever for an extended period of time until the goal is reached
Simple Accessory Lifts- Every 4-6 weeks
Complex Accessory Lifts- Every 8-12 weeks 
One caveat to this concept is your overall enjoyment of the program. Some people really like switching things up every week. For those that do I recommend swapping your less important movements out as often as you would like. Examples of this are movements for non- priority muscle groups, smaller movements, or machine work. 
I hope you found these tips helpful! 
If you're looking to simplify the process of improving your health and wellness click the link below to schedule your Free No Sweat Intro Session with one of our qualified coaches today. 
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In Health, 
Patriel Dunford
Infinite Fitness

This graphic borrowed from RP Strength shows the varying levels of volume needed to achieve desired outcomes. MEV stands for minimum effective volume- or amount of hard sets needed to make some progress. MAV- stands for max adaptable volume- or ideal amount of hard sets needed to make steady progress. MRV- stands for max recoverable volume- or the amount of hard sets the body can handle before excess fatigue occurs. MV- stands for maintenance volume- or the amount of volume needed to maintain progress. These matter due to the fact that there is only so much time in a given week to train. Also, the body can only recover from so much. When we build programs for our clients we take into account their goals and put their primary movements at higher volumes and their lower priority movements at lower volumes. This allows for exponentially faster progress than simply following a cookie cutter program. 

Stress index is the concept that every body can handle a certain amount of stress over a given time period. For the sake of this post I will use the example of a training week. When programs are individualized the chance of negative outcomes from training (lack of progress, fatigue, or even injury) are reduced. Finding the appropriate dose of stress that each individual can handle allows us to build programs that get people to where they want to be in the easiest way possible. 

This graphic taken from Tim Gabbett explains the concept of what is known as Acute Chronic Workload Ratio.  What this concept explains is that the body has a sweet spot for stress. This sweet spot is different for each person and when found can lead to ideal progress while reducing risk of injury from training. We build our programs progressively to allow each person we work with to slowly build a tolerance to stress keeping them progressing at a rate they are happy with without creating excessive fatigue. In our next article I will cover why this matters for busy periods of life as training too little can also lead to increased risk of fatigue and injury when returning to training.

SRA cycles are a concept that explains each individual will have a natural Stress, Recovery, and Adaptation cycle to training. Another way that I like to frame this concept is known as time to peak. Time to peak explains the concept that every individual will have a "peak" training week after a certain amount of time. When this cycle is maximized and used repeatedly it can exponentiate the amount of progress an individual is able to make by taking advantage of peak weeks of training. 

This graphic borrowed from Brett Contreras illustrates this concept. The body needs a period of time to adapt to the stressors placed on it. Staggering certain movements throughout a training week and taking advantage of each individuals SRA cycle can allow us to take full advantage of what is known as supercompensation. This occurs when the body has adapted to the first bout of stress (workout). Utilizing this model allows our clients to make exponentially greater progress and train to their bodies individual rhythm. 

This is just a glimpse into why we choose to tailor our programs to the needs of each individual person. Stay tuned for part two next week where I will explore the concept of individual goals and training through stages of life.

Patriel Dunford - CPT, PN-1

This story is very personal to me. This topic is even more personal to me. Over four years ago my father passed away. When that happened my beliefs around health, exercise, and life in general changed. My father, like most of the clients I work with, was a busy guy. He was busy selling all of his time and energy for The American Dream. He spent his weeks working long hours as a truck driver. He spent his weekends either working on his house or working on his side business. His goal was always to work really hard and then peacefully enjoy retirement. Except, that never happened. 

My father, like most people, struggled to stay on track with his health and fitness goals. He would exercise for a period of time. Then he would fall off. The cycle would repeat itself a couple times every year or so. Most of the time his stress levels were through the roof. Most of that stress could have been avoided. He also carried a lot of extra weight that effected his health. Growing up watching my fathers example I too made many of these mistakes. I sold my soul to work, lost copious amounts of sleep, and lived a high stress life for a long time. But, when my dad got sick, and later passed it really made me take a look at my own priorities. I think the lesson will resonate with some of you.

I got into my career in the fitness industry at a relatively young age. I was twenty- two when I began coaching.  I remember having conversations with my father about taking his health more seriously. Partaking in exercise more often, making different choices with his eating, etc. I remember he would always have a reason why he couldn't do it; I have too much going on, I like eating the way I do now, etc. I really wish he had taken a look at the big picture. 

I have been coaching now for over eight years. In my time coaching I've had thousands of these conversations. I see the same patterns in a lot of the people I work with. They sell their souls to work. They invest big money into their homes and cars. Most of them are silently ignoring their gradually rising waistline and blood pressure. If this strikes a chord with you I want to pose a question; what is the fucking point? When your clock expires your job will have your position filled within a months time, maybe less. The nest egg you've been shelling away for retirement will get passed on to the next generation. Now, don't get me wrong, I see nothing wrong with hard work and having nice things. But, not if it comes at the price of your health. 

This is where the point of this post comes in, look at the big picture. In the big picture you can replace your career, you can replace your car, you can replace your home, but you cannot replace yourself. Shouldn't investing in yourself be your top priority? You're right there aren't any guarantees, but investing into yourself gives you a greater chance at beating the odds of life.  Investing in your health might make other things take a bit longer. Maybe you can't redo your kitchen for another year or so. Perhaps that promotion at work takes a bit longer than you expected. But, if at when it does happen at least you will be healthy enough to enjoy it. 

To hit this point home I want to share one last piece of the story. I remember right before my father got sick he built this beautiful deck on the back of the house. He had grand schemes of having all of his friends over and enjoying the summer nights with my mom in front of a nice roaring fire. My parents used that deck a handful of times before my father got too sick to enjoy it. It broke my heart and still does to think about this. So, what's the point? Focus on your health. I'm not just talking about getting active and eating well. Keep your stress levels in check. Take some time for yourself. Don't work yourself to death. If my father had made his health a higher priority it may not have saved his life. But, unfortunately we will never know. I am willing to bet it would have made a difference. Next time you think you're too busy, look at the big picture.