FUNCTIONAL TRAINING Scientific manual
SPECIFICATIONS Format: 19.3 x 25.4 cm Pages: 384 Binding: Paperback Full colour insides
THE AUTHOR Guido Bruscia is one of the most requested Master Trainers in Italy and abroad, a specialist in Functional, Fitvibe and Kettlebell training. Apart from his role as technical manager at the Functional Training School, he also teaches in several training centers for fitness and body building and works as a personal and sports trainer. Author of several successful books, he currently lives in Rimini, Italy, where he founded Personal Care, an innovative method for personal training that revolutionized the idea of training for his students and future personal trainers.
SALES POINTS
This book represents the first and most complete guide to Functional Training, the new frontier for those who want to improve their health and physical conditioning getting the most out of their training. A physical training implies, on the one hand, to possess basis of physiology, anatomy, biomechanics, nutrition and supplements which all together demonstrated to have an influence on the athletic performance; but knowledge alone is an imperfect path made of attempts and mistakes, that is always in constant evolution. On the other hand, training obviously implies the workout practice, an empirical science which should never be taken for granted; but contrary to what is commonly believed, practice doesn't make people perfect, since only a perfect practice can do it. The structure of this scientific manual has the specific purpose to distribute the adequate dose of theory and practice in order to train the body effectively, improve performance and get fit. In the first part of this book, the author clearly explains what is Functional Training, a combination of action + function aimed at re-discovering the fundamental functions and primordial movements of the human body. Despite the great number of state-of-the-art fitness centers equipped with the most impressive machines, the current need for a mere functional training that only involves the use of muscles is the index that the concept of physical activity has completely changed. Worn out by the stress of city life, the human being now feels the need to work his muscles differently, as the instinct tells him that he was born to run, jump, climb and move. After providing the fundamental notions of anatomy and physiology, the author then offers the reader to plunge in approximately 300 pages of practical sessions to train core, chest, upper and lower limbs. This second part of the manual, focused on a detailed explanation of how to perform each workout with the support of pictures, represents the major selling point of this complete personal Functional Training course. The book ends with a section dedicated to training schedules, a series of proper programs specifically devised to fight hypertrophy, gain strength and lose weight. Given the fact that 'medspeak' doesn't help concepts assimilation, this book is written for a fast and easy learning, leaving out contents that are not closely related to the subject and a merely technical definition in favor of a more direct and immediate language code.
STRUCTURE AND CONTENTS
Framed between a purpose introduction and ethic conclusions, the body of this text is divided into three fundamental parts that respectively illustrate theory, practice and training schedules for an in-depth immersion in the Functional Training system.
1. FIRST PART: THEORY It develops a theoretical approach, explaining the 'why' questions that lay the foundations of Functional Training. With the aid of pictures and graphic supports, it provides scientific notions and a training method, introducing the reader to the fundamental basis of physiology and anatomy necessary for an overall understanding of how our body, muscles and joints work.
CONTENTS OF THE FIRST PART: Chapter 1 - Musculosketal system
5.4 Pebbles in the pond
1.1 Introduction 1.2 Muscle actions
5.5 Aims 5.6 Motivations
1.3 Role of each muscle 1.4 Monoarticular and biarticular muscles
5.7 Functional Training and Feneral Physical Preparation (GPP)
1.5 Characteristics of muscle tissue 1.6 Fundamentals of biomechanics: levers
5.8 Functional Training: further aspects to develop
Chapter 2 – Energy systems 2.1 Introduction
Chapter 6 – Hip extension 6.1 Introduction
2.2 Anaerobic alactic system 2.3 Anaerobic lactic system
6.2 Action and function of lower limbs 6.3 Short and long limbed people
2.4 Aerobic system 2.5 Interaction of energy systems
6.4 Back pain, ileopsoas and evolution
2.6 VO₂max and anaerobic threshold 2.7 Oxygen debt and EPOC
Chapter 7 – Abdominal muscles 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Core
3.1 Introduction 3.2 Muscle contraction
7.3 Pelvic floor 7.4 Actions of the abdominal muscles 7.5 Functions of the abdominal muscles
3.3 Types of muscle fibers
7.6 Centrifugal Principle
Chapter 3 – Muscle contraction
3.4 Types of muscle contraction Chapter 4 – Theory of training 4.1 Systems of the body 4.2 Training: introduction 4.3 Training schedules 4.4 Principles of training 4.5 Parameters of training 4.6 Exercises Chapter 5 – Functional Training 5.1 Kinetic and kinematic chains 5.2 The meaning of 'Functional' 5.3 The action - function principle
Chapter 8 – Glenohumeral joint 8.1 Introduction 8.2 Actions of the glenohumeral joint muscles 8.3 Functions of the glenohumeral joint 8.4 Grips Chapter 9 - Tibiotarsal joint and foot 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Walking 9.3 Running 9.4 Foot movements
2. SECOND PART: PRACTICE It is a practical section containing more than 190 workouts for bodyweight training or to be performed with the aid of the main functional training tools:
sandbags
medicine balls
kettlebells
It is laid out in a structure that mimics the progression of a typical workout in order to perform it correctly, with a clear and detailed technical explanation. The selection of exercises is focused on the training of abdominals and core, upper and lower body. It also provides an in-depth analysis of the exercise, with fallacies to dispel and introducing possible variations that can be made for each training level.
CONTENTS OF THE SECOND PART: Chapter 10 – Bodyweight
Chapter 12 – Medicine Ball
10.1 Origins
12.1 Introduction
10.2 Introduction 10.3 Training rules 10.4 Lower body training
12.2 Lower body training 12.3 Abdominal training 12.4 Upper body training
10.5 Core training 10.6 Upper body training
Chapter 13 – Kettlebell
Chapter 11 – Sandbag
13.1 Introduction 13.2 Lower body training
11.1 Introduction 11.2 Total body training
13.3 Abdominal training 13.4 Upper body training
11.3 Lower body training 11.4 Abdominal training 11.5 Upper body training
3. THIRD PART: PURPOSES, METHODS AND TRAINING SCHEDULES The last section of the manual offers several training schedules specific to enhance strength, fight against hypertrophy and lose weight.
CONTENTS OF THE THIRD PART: Chapter 14 – Strength
Chapter 16 – Weight loss
14.1 The functional choice 14.2 Strength training 14.3 Strength training schedules
16.1 Weight loss training 16.2 Fat distribution 16.3 Types of circuit training
Chapter 15 – Hypertrophy
16.3.1 Circuit training 16.3.2 Cardio fit training
15.1 Hypertrophy training 15.2 Cosmetic and functional hypertrophy
16.3.3 Peripherial Heart Action (PHA) training
15.3 Functional hypertrophy training schedules
16.3.4 Blitz circuit 16.3.5 Timing circuit 16.3.6 Boot camp