It’s not uncommon, in the midst of doing a project or activity with my children, to hear, “Hey Dad, do you think you could (fill in the blank)?” That typically sets the trap that I freely walk into, a competition! Recently I knew the question was coming when I saw my son carrying five gallon buckets of cement to the back of a block wall we were working on. It was cold, wet, muddy, and the only way to move the cement to the back of the wall was in buckets. As I expected, the challenge came, “Hey Dad, how long do you think it would take you to carry two five gallon buckets of cement over to the back side of the garage?” FUNCTIONAL FITNESS is exercise that prepares you for real activities and movement.
The thing is – it’s the real activities and movements that quiet honestly are the best and most real functional fitness. AND – more significantly than being able to physically function well, I’ve found that the greater strengths to be gained are in the relationships with others and God.
HOW TO “CEMENT” YOUR RELATIONSHIPS WITH FUNCTIONAL FITNESS
The trap was set. I tried to improve my chances by reminding him that I am not only 30 years older than him, but also a recent prostate cancer survivor. The sympathy plea didn’t work, it rarely does, but it buys me time to assess the challenge. While I am posturing, the course is laid out, the competition rules are set, the stop watch comes out, and the video camera is started. I elected to go second so I could learn the course.
As he took off, he flew across the course and set the bar pretty high. Now it was my turn, but as he was going I realized this was a combination of exercises: hex bar dead lift, farmer’s walk, balance and agility work, lunges, and a shoulder shrug, all that I knew I could do. I entered the course with my buckets in hand as the countdown started. My heart rate quickened and then I was off. The course was slippery and the challenge was difficult, but quickly came laughs and cheers as I maneuvered to the finish line. As I placed the buckets on the wall, I hear my son shout out my time. Immediately my hands shot straight up with excitement because I didn’t hurt anything, and I had finished the race! We posted the video on social media.
Several feared for my safety and wondered how I was able to train for such an event. This made me smile, but this was far more than an exercise event. This was another opportunity to play with my kids. Yes, this event required gym workouts and functional fitness, but this was much more than a few exercises, this was “Real Functional Fitness”.
THE UPHILL CLIMB TO BETTER HEALTH AND HAPPINESS THROUGH CHRIST
The Bible tells us that we are fearfully and wonderfully made for purposes that God has in store for us to do (Psalms 139:14, Ephesians 2:10). I had not always taken my health serious.
In my late 40’s I had spent many years traveling the world in the industrial sector. Unfortunately, I had taken my eye off of me and my health declined. I was unaware of just how far until one winter day, my teen kids wanted to go sleigh riding. We had not had snow for a few years so we were all excited to hit our hill. When I put on my winter overhauls, they wouldn’t buckle around the middle. I was sure my wife had shrunk them. I squeezed into my clothes and off we went to the top of the hill.
As we started up the hill, I thought, “This hill seems steeper than I recall”. The downhill sled ride was great, but as we started back up the hill, I knew I was in trouble. I made an excuse to the kids and quickly went back to the house. As soon as I entered, I collapsed on my living room floor. I thought to myself as I looked up at the ceiling, “I am too young to feel this old”. However, the reality hit me that my health was a problem.
A physical uncovered that I was overweight, had high blood pressure, and was at risk of a stroke. I said a prayer and asked God to help me figure out my health. God had given me a great family and a great career, but I had become unable to function well enough to enjoy either. That started an amazing journey that had me transform from being overweight to a master’s athlete and body builder during the decade of my 50’s.
Figuring out how to get healthy so I could spend time with my family was my “why”. I wanted to be there to help them and to function with them. I knew very little about health and fitness, but fortunately had amazing mentors that helped me reach (unimaginable to me) levels of physical fitness. Then came my 60’s along with COVID, long COVID, and prostate cancer. My fitness levels plummeted for three years as I tried to figure out how to combat these issues. My faith, family, friends, and fitness helped me recover. So when I got the challenge from my son, 14 months after my cancer filled prostate was removed, I thanked God for the awesome and amazing blessing of health!
When I placed the buckets on the back wall, it was a surreal moment. I was once again fit enough to “play” with my kids. The joy in exercise came from linking together workout programs that allowed me to become functionally able to perform not only for my family, but it opened up unseen doors of opportunities. This gave my gym workouts purpose and my functional training meaning.
HOW OTHERS ARE DOING REAL FUNCTIONAL FITNESS
There is always a fitness bridge that can link inside workouts to outside adventures. I asked 7 fitness influencers to share how they are using functional fitness to help build a more rounded and meaningful experience with their clients.
Jill Allen, Ultra Athlete, mother, author, fitness trainer, and inspirational speaker
Getting out on the trails is a powerful way to build strength, boost agility, and hit your step goals—all while soaking in the beauty of nature. Along the way, you’ll reduce stress, improve your mood, and strengthen your body. It’s also a perfect chance to reset your mind, connect with God, and recharge your spirit. And there’s nothing more rewarding than accomplishing things you didn’t think were possible. Whether it’s conquering a tough hill or putting in the miles with the people you love, the sense of achievement is incredible. The trail isn’t just a workout—it’s a chance to grow, create lasting memories, and connect with each other in a way only the outdoors can offer.
Tina Myers: Fitness trainer and fitness competitor
Functional fitness is all about making life’s daily tasks feel easier and safer. It’s like when my daughter and I haul groceries from the car—our rule is ‘two trips are for losers,’ so we try to make it in one go! This fun challenge is a perfect example of how functional training prepares you for everyday situations. And let’s talk about age—it’s just a number, not a limit. I joke that I’m 53 but identify as 35. I dove into competitive bodybuilding at 46 and I’m fitter now than I was in my 20s. So, forget the number on your driver’s license. It’s about how you train your body and mind to think and act young. Functional fitness helps with that; it’s not just about muscle—it builds resilience for whatever life throws your way.
Vince Gazzara, 72 years old owner of Vince’s Muscle shop and strength competitor
The result of full body gym workouts, whether intended or not, is that you will have the strength and stamina to do useful physical tasks. Natural disaster response, fire evacuation, clearing downed trees, working construction, loading trucks, delivering relief supplies on foot, or maybe just being the friend who can lift furniture when someone moves.
Hondre McNeil, Owner SWET Fitness, Creator SWET Energy® drinks, IFBB Pro Male Physique
Fitness has always been “more than fitness” for me. The joy in committing to a task and completing it is something that touches all aspects of life. Working out when I don’t “feel like” working out has built a calloused mentality that pushes me to complete all tasks in my life. It has eliminated procrastination and allowed me to be successful in avenues outside of the gym. When training clients, I feel I am doing God’s work. As it says in the Bible, we all have talents to help spread God’s word. I do this with the positive energy released during each session. Someone could have had a terrible day, but when they come in my studio, I aim for the energy to be positive and uplifting. When they leave, I want them to be elevated and re-energized for whatever may come their way. This includes being ready from a functional standpoint to do everyday activities. The joy in being able to play with grandkids, walk your dog, or just have energy in general is hard to match. They’re not just my clients. They become family.
Beth Peroutka, Fitness trainer and coach
Faith, functional fitness, and athleticism work together to help us better serve God and others through the act of strengthening our bodies, building discipline, and fostering meaningful relationships. When we approach fitness as an act of worship and stewardship, we reflect God’s design and purpose for our lives. The human body is an incredible example of God’s design. The ability to creatively move, jump, throw, sprint and compete reflects His creativity and power. Athleticism showcases His handiwork and reminds us of His greatness. As Kevin mentioned, we are fearfully and wonderfully made. When we engage in sports or physical challenges, we display this incredible beauty of God’s creation in action and gratitude. Athleticism and fitness requires discipline, perseverance, and focus which are all qualities that are repeatedly encouraged in Scripture as part of spiritual growth. Training the body parallels training the spirit.
(1 Corinthians 9:24-27). The discipline of athletics can mirror our pursuit of holiness, teaching us to persevere through life’s many challenges.
Nisha Keeler, BS in Industrial and Systems Engineering, Doctor of Nursing Practice
We are given just one chance at life. We cannot control genetics. Knowing this, why wouldn’t each of us try our hardest to be as healthy as we can? Functional fitness allows us to provide our body with the ability to freely move in our daily life. Functional fitness can also help reduce stress and improve mental health. Our health, diet, and weight play such an integral part in how we recover from or fight off illness. The health of my patients, diet, weight, fitness levels, and smoking status may impact their risk of prostate cancer. All these factors affect how well and how quickly they will recover after any prostate procedures including incontinence and erection issues. After losing 85 pounds myself, I started a weight loss, diet, and fitness challenge personally. I am healthier than ever at almost 50. Mind over matter is half of the battle. Believing in yourself and having the courage to start somewhere is key. Take the bull by the horns and start your functional fitness today. It’s never too late to help.
Bob Baldwin: Fitness coach, trainer, and competition promoter
Functional fitness is a proactive choice. What I mean is, given my age, I teach my clients of similar age to approach their fitness routine in terms of what functional movements do you wish to be still doing in a reasonably easy fashion in 5, 10, 15 years or more from now? Whatever YOUR answer is, get busy working on those on a regular basis now! If you want to be able to continue comfortably and effortlessly walking up the stairs in your two story home, then train for it. Put in some stepper or step mill work on a regular basis, work on weighted walking lunges, bench step ups, etc. If you continue to step up on a bench for 20 reps per leg, you’re going to walk up your stairs with ease.
If traveling by air for vacations is a desire when you’re 80, then you better be working on “overhead bin suitcase placements and retrievals” right now. You can do this in the gym with weights, or at home with a weighted suitcase and a shelf…just work on it on a regular basis. Whatever you see yourself doing in your retirement years, keep practicing the functional movements that are a part of those activities. Adding in simple performance goals as a form of supplementing functional training can also be very helpful and fun at the same time. Examples in my gym are, walking lunges for at least 10 steps per leg while holding weight equal to 1/2 your total body weight. Another is bench pressing your equivalent body weight for a minimum 12 reps. Challenges make fitness exciting and it is fun to see how far up in age you progress while still maintaining these kinds of weightlifting goals.
WIN ROUND ONE – SAY A PRAYER AND GET STARTED
These are some who have inspired and motivated me over the years. They each use exercise to improve their health and fitness, but also as a way to expand their relationships, quality of life, and to help others. This is real functional fitness.
My “Why” has expanded to include seven grand kids. I want to be there for them so I use exercise as a way to be ready for whatever I am asked – including a ride on the back by my grandson when I do pushups. I can give horseback rides in the living room and act as a mule pulling the grandkids back up the sleigh riding hill, a hill that I could not climb years ago.
If you find yourself stalled in your training or limited in your health, say a prayer, find your “why”, find a program, find a mentor, but get started. Real functional fitness is an investment in your life that will provide an infinite rate of positive returns.
By the way, that cement bucket carrying competition – I won round one!
