Functional shifting workout

WHETHER you call it lifting weights or pumping iron, conventionally, strength ­training involved the ­muscular contraction at two joint ­movements at most.
Bicep curls, squats and ­shoulder press are ­examples of such ­movements. So are muscular contraction from the action of ­lifting, pushing or pulling.
Unfortunately, lifting ­programmes in the past were ­incomplete. And it’s because that’s just what it was – a ­lifting programme. ­
A bicep curl strengthens the biceps and a shoulder press strengthens the ­shoulder. ­Likewise, all other lifting ­exercises concentrate on micro-managing the particular muscles to be worked.
Here is a scenario. You need to pick up a box from the ground, walk 20m to the end of the office and place it on a high shelf with the aid of a chair in one ­integrated move.
In integration, all ­bodily muscles are synergistically ­functioning at work to produce that movement.
This is where a lifting programme fails functionally to address the need for strength in movement.
To individually train all these muscles at work for that movement into a ­workout, lifting programmes usually break down the workout into individual ­working ­muscles one by one.
Exercise is really just human ­movement performed at an intensity that is ­challenging, to enable adaptive changes in the body’s musculo-skeletal framework.
Most weightlifting exercises involve lifting, directly ­opposing gravity like squats, dead lifts, shoulder presses, and pull-ups.
But in life, we lift, shift body ­positions, and twist things we hold, and move to avoid ­objects and projectiles in our path. We move with the resistance of gravity and the velocity of momentum. Moving vertically against gravity is only one part of movement.
For example, in order to get a soccer ball into the back of the goal net, you’d have to move, dribble, avoid, jump and perform a whole lot of other intricate ­movements. ­
A weightlifting ­programme will not be able to train for the intricacies of the ­movement and vector changing needs of a soccer player.
Lifting programmes will always be the backbone of all strength-training ­workouts. It’s still relevant.
However, when lifting programmes are spiced with some shifting and twisting and movements, the “lifting” programme can now provide a more complete ­movement experience which is relevant to the needs of daily movement.
It now becomes a functional shifting workout.
While lifting has been long ­advocated by fitness professionals, resistance ­training with lifting is essential for fitness.
The emphasis lately has been to expand the definition of lifting to include shifting and twisting movements.
Here are some sample exercises that provide shifting or twisting along with lifting.
► Dumbell burpees
You might know what a burpee is. Burpees have recently been made popular from exercise bootcamps as a staple exercise movement.
From a standing ­position, squat to place palms just in front of the toes.
Once palms are planted on the ground, jump backwards into a plank ­position and do one push up.
Jump feet back into a crouch and instantly jump up airborne while lifting arms ­overhead as if you are reaching for the sky.
With the ­element of dumbbells on each hand, lifting would then be ­integrated with movement to make it functionally shifting.
► Sit up to plank
From a lying down position, hurl your body up to a sit-up and eventually move into a squatted position. Place palms on the ground and jump feet backwards into a plank. For added difficulty, hold dumbbells in each hand or a barbell.
► Medicine ball side lunge with halo
Stand with feet wide and hold a medicine ball or other handheld equipment such as dumbbells.
Perform a stationary side lunge and reach the medicine ball down to one foot. As you return to the upright position, lift the ­medicine ball up to the opposite side of your head and swing it around ­behind and to the other side.
As you bring the medicine ball around to the front, it will be already moving toward the ­opposite foot so you will now ­perform the same lunge and medicine ball reach to the other foot.
Remember, by deliberately including a mix of shifting and ­lifting, instead of just ­lifting with some shifting and lifting done by ­accident, you will provide a movement ­experience that is more complete.
Let’s be fit!
Jonathan Tan is the club manager of the Sports Toto Fitness Centre at Berjaya Times Square. He can be contacted at lifestyle.jonathan@thesundaily.com.