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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 31, 2016)
Wednesday, August 31, 2016 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon Fit For Sisters Andrew Luscutoff Columnist What is functional training? Exercise in the 21st cen- tury at times can be confus- ing, with over-complicated programs, expert gurus, and charts and graphs showing that the layman shouldn’t even begin a program on her own. These notions poison the water for beginners, giving the illusion that productive exercise is an unattainable moonshot. Part of the job of a good exercise and health pro- fessional is to distill the textbooks, data, and jour- nals down into actionable, easy-to-understand con- cepts. Poor professionals make it all seem harder than it should be, and closely guard their information as the “only solution.” This article seeks to prove a technique that peo- ple often make harder than it should be is actually quite the opposite. That tech- nique is functional training. Functional training is a form of exercise where the goal is to obtain skills, strength, and ability which one can transfer from the gym into everyday life. Chandra Hess, a sea- soned trainer with Sisters Athletic Club, explained functional training: “Functional fitness is about training movement patterns and strengthening our mus- cles through a full range of motion. It helps us prepare our bodies for everyday sce- narios like kneeling down to pick something up or walk- ing up a set of stairs.” Functional strength train- ing should be composed of a set of movements that mimic how the muscles are actually used. Free weights, body weight, cables, medi- cine balls, and kettlebells are all employed to achieve this. Balancing the muscle groups used is essential, as over-building one group will negatively affect one’s functionality. Stretching the hips, the middle back, and the shoul- ders is important to good function. Mobility is a very individual undertaking, so advice from a professional will help someone get an understanding of where to start. As with any dimension of endeavor, people will take an idea and run away with the concept with the “more is better” mentality. A com- mon mistake people make, according to Hess, is “using weights that are too heavy for them and sacrificing form or range-of-motion in the process.“ Another com- mon flaw is using balance B L ACKS BLACKSMITHING SM IT THIN The Garden Angel 541-549-2882 Fireplace screens, andirons, and grates, Handforged hardware, hinges, lighting, gift items, more! CCB# 87640 and instability improperly. A person might grab a set of weights, stand on a bal- ance board, and twirl the weights haphazardly about in order to “work on bal- ance.” Using too heavy a weight, and using improper balance or instability tech- niques are dangerous, and will not promote the desired outcome. Functional training should be worked into a pro- gram of sound weight train- ing with a synergistic effect. The stabilizer muscles and core work with functional training will positively affect other exercises. A basic start to func- tional training anyone can do: Kneel to stand — take a kneeling position, with a tall posture, and stable core, push through the front leg and lift the body up. Getting up off the ground is a tech- nique that many people neglect, until there’s a scary realization that they can’t. Functional training isn’t exclusive to veteran gym- users. In fact, it’ll give the best benefit to the begin- ner. This is because they’ll be learning coordination, full muscle contraction, and skills. Hess said, “Including functional training can be as simple as walking or hiking more, or adding stair steps to your weight routine.” A great book to check out is “Core Performance,” by Mark Verstegen. It high- lights the concepts men- tioned in this article and goes deeper into putting it into practice. WELDING Structural l Steel S l • W Welding l di d i R Repair i CNC Cutting • Machining • Fabrication PonderosaForge.com P nd d F • Sisters Industrial Park 541-549-9280 • Bed Care • Irrigation • Natural Lawncare LCB#9352 SCHEDuLE: Different schools on different schedules Continued from page 3 more continuity of courses. “When we had a five- period day on the trimester schedule it was hard for stu- dents to take band all year,” he said. “Now there is a higher probability of taking band all year.” Before school opened, Hosang addressed the change in a written memo to commu- nity members. He noted that a seventh period has caused confusion. “We fully anticipate we will utilize the seventh period to provide additional opportu- nities for our students such as helping them create a résumé, S AT / A C T p r e p a r a t i o n , ASPIRE time, internships or helping students with college applications are just some of the ideas we are working on,” he wrote. “I am confident that by the second week of school we will have our rhythm.” Sisters Middle School, which has fifth-graders through eighth-graders, is keeping its trimester schedule because that works better for students of that age, Scholl said. For one thing, younger children have shorter atten- tion spans, which is accom- modated in the trimester 19 setup, he said. The differ- ence in schedule reflects what Scholl said are different aca- demic needs. “It’s all part of a puzzle,” he said, meaning such things as lesson-preparation time for teachers and other non-class factors must be accounted for. Sisters Middle School Principal Marshall Jackson said the semester system was considered for that school. “We looked at various options,” he said, “but the trimester schedule meets the needs of our kids.” One issue at the high school under the trimester setup was that some students finished their state-required courses by the end of their junior year, and didn’t enroll for their senior year. That pre- sented a financial problem, because school districts are funded by the state based on enrollment. The same issue isn’t present at middle school because those students’ pro- motion to a higher grade isn’t based on required credits. Trimester also offers the middle school students a chance to experiment with classes that sound interesting. “Middle-schoolers are try- ing to find out who they are,” Jackson said. “They want to sample different things.” Classes began this week throughout the dis- trict. Schools will be closed Monday, September 5, in observance of Labor Day.