FUNCTIONAL
BODYBUILDING
COMPANY ADDRESS
7826 E EVANS RD
SCOTTSDALE, AZ 85260
CONTACTS :
M : INFO@OPEXFIT.COM
W : WWW.OPEXFIT.COM
“Functional Bodybuilding is balance. The way in which it is
designed means lower overall demand on the physical systems.
The benefit is that you have more brain and physical energy to do
more inside and outside of the gym.”
- Director of Coaching Mike Lee
Bodybuilding has long been associated with muscle bulk and an inability to move.
Meanwhile, the term functional has been linked to its opposite: movement.
Specifically, movement that transfers positively into a sport, activity, or physical
goal. It’s easy to see then why Functional Bodybuilding may at first seem like an
oxymoron. Functional Bodybuilding, however, is really just the bringing together
of those two ideas. When bodybuilding meets function you get the discipline, the
science, the reps, sets, tempo, and more. It's a powerful tool to look good naked,
decrease pain, and improve energy and performance.
In the pages to come, this guide will introduce you further to Functional Bodybuilding,
outlining its benefits, how to introduce it into your training, and more specifically,
how we’ve successfully used it at OPEX Fitness to train competitive fitness athletes.
A sample 8-week workout program designed by Head Coach Mike Lee wraps up the
guide. Mike was responsible for introducing Functional Bodybuilding to his client,
Marcus Filly, following the 2016 CrossFit® Games and GRID season with good
results. As Marcus Filly himself wrote: “By switching up my training, my coach has
allowed my body to heal, build strength, and become energized and excited again.”
Marcus Filly (Six Time CrossFit® Games
Veteran) actually happens to be one of
the founders of this training style in
addition to OPEX HQ Coach Mike Lee.
Marcus has created an excellent brand
around Functional Bodybuilding, and
he has even crafted the motto driving
the entire movement: Look Good, Move
Well.
We hope The OPEX Fitness Guide
to Functional Bodybuilding for the
Sport of Fitness encourages you
to see the benefits of introducing,
where appropriate, structural-based
bodybuilding activities into your
training.
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FUNCTIONAL BODYBUILDING
DEFINED
Functional Bodybuilding is a training system
that prioritizes quality of movement over
intensity. Bodybuilding and controlled
methods of movement are used to help athletes
fulfill their ‘function.’ This methodology is
beneficial to athletes because it can enhance
performance. For non-athletes, it helps them
look good, move well and gain mental clarity.
There are significant differences between
Functional Bodybuilding and Bodybuilding.
Bodybuilding is about intensity in stable
environments, while Functional Bodybuilding
is the inverse of these two qualities. Functional
Bodybuilding may not be ‘intense’, but the
movements and exercises are conducted
in ‘unstable’ environments. The purpose of
Functional Bodybuilding is to teach people
quality movement, bring balance to people’s
training, and help athletes gain efficiency at
their ‘function’.
What an athlete’s ‘function’ is varies from
person to person. Functional Bodybuilding
provides the necessary foundation of strength
which allows any athlete, regardless of their
goals, to fulfill that ‘function.’ Areas like
speed, balance, mobility, gymnastics, agility,
and coordination are addressed in perfect
harmony within a Functional Bodybuilding
Program. Those areas keep people’s bodies in
balance and helps them reach their goals.
THERE ARE THREE STEPS TO SUCCESS
FOR FUNCTIONAL BODYBUILDING
1
Movement quality is more important than the amount of
load (weight) or intensity (work) applied.
2
Be present and aware. You must follow the tempo, adhere
to the full range of movement and repetitions and sets, and
observe the proper amount of rest. It all has purpose.
3
The lifestyle of anyone participating in Functional Bodybuilding
must be balanced. Everything that happens outside the gym is
vitally important to the success of the program.
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THE PRINCIPLES BEHIND
FUNCTIONAL BODYBUILDING
Functional Bodybuilding is characterized by its use of eight
key fitness principles and methodologies.
RESISTANCE TRAINING
Resistance Training is a type of exercise in which you use load or weight to increase
mass and grow strength.
BODYBUILDING
Bodybuilding is a significant focus on high-rep ranges with less intensity (lower rep,
higher effort per rep), and the focus of the training is on hypertrophy, physique and
recovery.
WEIGHTLIFTING
What’s commonly known as Olympic Weightlifting Movements, such as the Clean
& Jerk and Snatch, are usually performed in low sets and reps. These lifts are
supplementary, not primary, in a Functional Bodybuilding Program.
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MIXED FUNCTIONAL TRAINING
Mixed Functional Training involves various rep range and intensities, including both
bodybuilding and support mechanisms to fuel people’s training. The characteristics
of this training methodology include building:
Aerobic CapacityStrength
Bodyweight EnduranceBodyweight Skill
Mixed Modality Training
Power Development
MIND-MUSCLE CONNECTION
The Mind-Muscle Connection teaches athletes to send the correct messages, or
stimulus, to their brain in response to movements in order to heal the mind’s
connection to the muscle.
CHANGING THE STIMULUS
Changing the Stimulus refers to adjustments made to an athlete’s reps, sets, rest, or
time under tension.
MUSCLE ENDURANCE
Muscle Endurance the high number of muscle contractions increases the size and
number of capillaries to the specific muscles, and engrains patterns of motor control
and efficient movement.
WHERE TO BEGIN WITH
FUNCTIONAL BODYBUILDING
Before participating in Functional Bodybuilding or programming Functional Building
for a client, an assessment MUST take place.
For coaches, you must understand where your client sits on the continuum of fitness.
This will help dictate what movement progressions to follow, what to prioritize later,
and which exercises make the most sense.
The same can be said for fitness enthusiasts who wish to participate in this program.
Awareness of where you sit allows you to better follow a program and see results.
Fitness coaches are encouraged to develop their own assessment protocols, but for
the purpose of this document, we will be referencing the OPEX CCP Assessment
Protocol.
Movement quality is a top priority in Functional Bodybuilding. If the client can
not reasonably pass the initial assessment, they need to start from step one in the
strength continuum which is developing motor control, stability, and building muscle
endurance. These characteristics may be “steps back” but even an advanced athlete
needs to go back to simple principles to build quality patterns to handle intensity of
load, work, or capacity. Quality movement reduces loading of the joints, allows faster
adaptation, and ensures maximal recruitment of fibers when needed.
Here are some of the basic assessments to investigate with yourself, or a client before
they engage in Functional Bodybuilding. The key of any assessment is to discover
imbalances and address those in training. The outcome of any assessment should
dictate the direction of the training regiment.
The following movements are used a form of assessment by
LEVEL 1 OPEX CCP COACHES.
TOE - TOUCH
Have the client touch their toes. The client should be able to sit back
into their hips, show a good spinal curve, and be able to touch their
toes without pain or difficulty. Regression Option: Glute Activation,
hamstring flexibility through proper muscle activation.
SCRATCH TEST
Have the client reach back (low) with one arm and try and ‘scratch’
the center of their back. The middle finger of the arm reaching back
should touch the upper portion of the shoulder blade and the upper
arm pointed toward ceiling without the neck coming forward to ‘cheat’.
Regression Option: Side Plank Rotations, Scap Wall Slides.
STEP - UP
Have the client step up onto a small box with one foot. They should be
able to sustain tension without moving right to left to get up onto the box.
Regression Option: Elevated Step Down, Petersen Step-Up.
SQUAT
Have the client perform an air-squat. They should be able
to squat to a depth where the torso becomes parallel with
the shins. The left and right hip should be even as should the
knee and ankle when they are in the bottom of the squat.
Regresion Option: SL Activity, Unilateral Closed Chain Activities.
SPLIT - SQUAT
Another way to describe a ‘lunge.’ Have the client take a step
forward into a lunge. Their front shin should be vertical and they
should be able to balance on the way down and up unassisted.
Regression Option: Supine Lying Single Leg Activity.
SIDE BRIDGE
This is a plank performed on the side. The ears,
shoulder,
hip
and
ankle
all
should
be
in
line.
Regression Option: Plank on forearms, deadbug, supine lying stability
activities.
If you or your client is incapable of mastering the simple movements, consider working on
the basics of fitness before you try a Functional Bodybuilding Program.
Should the client, athlete or yourself fail to pass the above assessment through improper movement mechanics, try this movements instead. These are ‘regressions’. The mechanics required for the following movements are similar to their respective assessment
movement above, but they are less demanding in terms of movement mechanics.
Not sure how to regress or progress your clients? Check out the CCP Level 1 Course
where you’ll learn how to assess and design programs specifically for their current ability.
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TEMPO EXPLAINED
One thing you must understand in order to engage fully with the provided
training plan is tempo, how we write it, and how to understand it.
Tempo is the rate or pace that an activity is performed. Essentially, tempo
and the way it is prescribed represents how long the muscle or group
of muscles is under load or tension. Manipulating tempo can change
the complete intent of the the training program. Therefore, it is of the
utmost importance that you understand this concept. Tempo represents
the foundation of Functional Bodybuilding.
Seems complicated? Check out this Blog where we explain Tempo,
how to program it and how to understand its use in training and
progression.
Before we discuss how to write a tempo ‘prescription’ you need to understand the different
types of muscle contractions.
Isometric
Is an application of force to a muscle in which the joint angle and muscle length do not
change during contraction. EXAMPLE: The Bottom and Top of a Squat, as well as a Plank.
Eccentric
A contraction where the muscle elongates while under tension due to opposing force being
greater than the force generated by the muscle. EXAMPLE: The lowering portion of the
squat.
Concentric
A type of muscle contraction in which the muscle shortens while generating force greater
than the external load. EXAMPLE: The standing portion of the squat.
Now that we understand the definitions of the various contractions. Let’s take a look at an
example of how tempo appears in the provided training program. Tempo is always written
as a 4 digit prescription like the example below.
@4121
You may be scratching your head at what exactly that means. But let’s break it down.
Digit 1 Represents the Eccentric
Digit 2 Represents the Isometric Bottom
Digit 3 Represents the Concentric
Digit 4 Represents the Isometric Top
For visual examples of what this would look like, please refer back to this video.
BENEFITS OF FUNCTIONAL BODYBUILDING
There are three big reasons to introduce Functional Bodybuilding into your clients or
your own training program:
- To improve efficiency of movement
- As preparation for the dynamic contractions prevalent in the Sport of Fitness
- To illicit metabolic response
That said, it should be recognized that as with any fitness prescription, it can’t be broadly
and thoughtlessly introduced.
For you or your clients to reap the full benefit of functional bodybuilding, you or the clients must already possess a certain base level of muscle endurance. Should you not, we
suggest full body, isolated resistance training three times a week to improve your core
control. For example:
When your muscle endurance capabilities have progressed you can begin Functional
Bodybuilding properly. Start by introducing lower and upper body splits four times a
week. For example:
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HOW FUNCTIONAL BODYBUILDING FITS
INTO YOUR BROADER TRAINING
Whether you’re just beginning or more advanced when it comes to muscle endurance,
it’s important to appreciate that the above principles are broad. Best practice would see
you look at how this work fits into your overall fitness plan and goals. This comes down to
understanding what contractions you’re undertaking in your strength training and how
they compliment (or not) any other training you’re doing. In an ideal world, for strength
work to be truly functional it should have a bias so it can be carried over to whatever you
wish to accomplish; be that to prepare for dynamic contractions in the Sport of Fitness™
or the improvement of movement or metabolic capacity.
To give you a sense of how Functional Bodybuilding might fit into a broader training plan,
a year for an athlete in the Sport of Fitness™ might look like this:
FUNCTIONAL
BODYBUILDING FOR
THE SPORT OF FITNESS ™
Since 1999 and the founding of OPEX Fitness (formerly OPT) James FitzGerald has
been investigating ways of using strength
training to create the structure necessary to
compete in the Sport of Fitness in a strong
and healthy manner. As a former CrossFit®
Games Champion, James had good results
introducing Functional Bodybuilding into his
off-season training, allowing his brain and
body to develop the necessary strength, tendon, and joint requirements to stay healthy
throughout competition.
In the eight-week program design that completes this guide, Mike Lee draws and builds
on James’ work plus his own experience of
training athletes for the Sport of Fitness™.
It’s important to remember the template
is for illustrative purposes only, and to get
the most from Functional Bodybuilding a
program should be designed to meet your
individual fitness requirements. Use the
template as a way of learning how diferent
strength movements can facilitate specific
aspects of performance for athletes with an
advanced training age.
“You don’t have to do intensity all the time. This balance that Functional
Bodybuilding provides allows athletes to enhance their physical skills and
progression without causing burn-out and injuries down the road.”
- Director of Coaching Mike Lee
Functional Bodybuilding provides the athlete and client with tools to approach longevity
in training. Because of its balanced approach to training, people will experience an excitement for the progression, nurture good movement patterns to enhance performance,
decrease the likelihood of injury, and a balance of the both the mind and the body.
You don’t need to grind away day in and day out in order to reach your goals, whatever
they may be. Intensity is not the path to success, but it is the path to burnout and fatigue
for a large percentage of trainees. You may be surprised at how simple movements and
concepts can deliver powerful results.
Like any training doctrine, the best way to learn about Functional Bodybuilding is to do
it. So, once you are done reading this guide, be sure to actually try out the above program
and experience what Functional Bodybuilding can do for you and your clients. Self awareness combined with a commitment and openness to try new things will teach you the
majority of what you need to know.
Functional Bodybuilding is here to stay as a fitness program. The appeal of this approach
to training goes far beyond the competitive athlete and is touching lives all over the planet. We are connecting with people that love to move and look good at the same time. We
are connecting with people that are tired of being fed the lie that if you don’t suffer you
aren’t any good and that your fitness is inferior.
Are you a fitness coach who wants to learn about how to create a comprehensive and
structured functional bodybuilding program? Click below to apply for our Coaching Certificate Program.
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