Why Functional?
While all exercise will generally improve your way of life, functional exercises are compound movements that mimic the basis of everyday movements.
By including these exercises, you will not only improve your functionality through life, but also have a grounded foundation for all other activities such as sports or manual labor (also known as General Physical Preparedness) or GPP.
Let's dive in.
Squat
Find me an abled body who doesn't get up from a chair (or toilet) every day. For this reason alone, the squat is THE most functional movement someone can master.
Learning to properly engage your center of gravity from your hips to stand up concentrically and stabilize eccentrically (sitting down) will improve overall balance, lower body strength, core stability, and a better butt! What's not to love?
Start small if you have never squatted before. Simply sitting and standing (correctly) is good enough. Adding weight and increasing range of motion would be great first steps to make any of the following exercises more and more challenging.
Deadlift
How many times have you heard, "Lift with your legs, not your back." ?
Congratulations! You've been given deadlift advice. The only correction I'd give is to lift with your hips.
Proper deadlift form will teach you to engage your hips (glutes and hamstrings) more when lifting something from the ground. Whether that something is a barbell or a toddler, we need to make sure you can pick up your great grandkids still without throwing out your back.
Out of all 7 functional lifts, I believe the deadlift is the hardest to learn (and teach) due to the fact that the exercise engages the entire posterior chain of the body. I don't know about you, but I have a hard time seeing if the back half of my body is in good position. So, learning how to feel good form can be a challenge. This is why I would suggest finding a coach of some kind to correct bad habits early on to prevent injury.
Horizontal Row
If you've looked into my Anterior / Posterior Workout, you'll know that I've learned most people are weaker on the back half of the body. We go through our day slouching more often than not, and the amount of objects we pull rather than push is surprising when you think about it.
If we can use exercises that rely on our arms to pull something in a horizontal fashion by retracting our scapula, we'll improve posture, shoulder mobility, and upper back strength.
These exercises can vary based on available equipment. From a seated row machine to a bent over row, to pull starting a lawn mower, your back and biceps will thank you.
Overhead Press
Did you know that one of the top 3 joint injuries is a torn rotator cuff? While pulling exercises will improve those rotator cuff muscles, so will pressing movements; especially vertical.
This is because (much like how often we pull objects throughout our day) we also raise our arms overhead more often than we realize. Whether it's putting dishes away, moving furniture, or even waving to a friend, your shoulder will be much more resilient to injury or chronic pain if we include a vertical press in your workouts.
These overhead presses are typically accomplished with dumbbells or barbells, but the options are endless. For more stability you can find a shoulder press machine, or for less stability find a kettlebell.
The result will be a well-rounded (pun intended) shoulder capsule right down to the bone density.
Vertical Pull
A close second to our overhead press (only because we've already prioritized a horizontal row) is a vertical pull. Which can be any movement requiring us to pull something overhead down towards us. We aren't pulling overhead as much as we are pressing in the real world but none-the-less, a pull up or lat pull down variation will still improve our shoulder health, as well as strengthen our lats, biceps, lower traps, and even some forearms!
I've always joked that doing a pull up can be a great party trick ; )
Single Leg Exercises
Now that our entire body is working bilaterally (although all above exercises can be done unilaterally as well) let's consider the amount of times our feet are perfectly set up at shoulder width and glued to the ground... Almost never amiright?
Everyone from athletes to retirees, we humans have a hard time staying in one spot. What does that mean for our balance and individual leg strength? It means we have to continue challenging the stability and strength in our hips, knees, and ankles so we become less likely to fall on the field, the curb, or even (have a fighting chance) on ice!
The options are endless. I would typically suggest a step-up variation on to a box and/or a lunge in any and all directions.
With or without weight or an unstable surface, these exercises will make you feel so much more agile and efficient on your feet.
Horizontal Press
Sorry Gym-Bro, but a bench press is the least functional movement compared to the other 6; BUT it still makes the cake.
A horizontal press can be noticed when getting off the floor from your stomach, pushing a door open, or in combat sports that require physically pushing an opponent (or punching).
The main reason I believe it should be last is due to the fact that (most) chronic shoulder pain and shoulder injuries occur within the anterior part of the shoulder joint. This is because the connective tissues and the muscles that make up the rotator cuff aren't strong enough to stabilize the joint in the best posture. The upper body lifts above would make for better anecdotes to this common issue.
If you were to wrap your program around bench press and pushups every week while neglecting the pull movements listed above, you would be tightening up the front half of your shoulder and, more than likely, experience discomfort in one or both shoulders.
So, horizontal presses should be included in a program but make sure it is counter-balanced by twice as much horizontal pulls.
There we have it! The order of this list may vary by opinion, but the culmination of these exercises in any exercise program will make for a treasure trove of benefits.
Try them out!