The Importance of Practical Exercise

If we look at the definition of the word practical, we get two definitions: "likely to succeed or be effective in real circumstances" and "of or concerned with the actual doing or use of something rather than with theory and ideas."

When it comes to practical exercise, we can easily apply the first definition in that the exercises being done are likely to be effective in the real circumstances they are being used for; and nothing more than that.

Why does this matter? 

The fitness industry has gone down a rabbit hole of "functional fitness" and what started out in terms of "functional" mimicking real life, has evolved into excess.

Practical, on the other hand, is exactly what one needs to achieve their goals, and nothing more.

Here are some examples of what we mean:

Let's look at a back squat. Is having the strength to squat down and up important for every day life? Definitely. 

Is if functional? Probably.

Is having a 300# back squat practical for every day life? Not really.

If you have a specific goal to increase your back squat to a certain number because it's important to you or you're a competitive athlete, does that now become practical for you? Yes.

Another example:

Running long distance. Is running practical? Maybe.

Is running 5 miles in a row practical for someone who has a goal to run 1 mile? Probably not.

Is running 5 miles in a row practical for someone who wants to run a half marathon? Absolutely.

The point in all of this is to understand practicality.

What are your goals? Do your workouts and exercise selection actually align with your goals?

If yes, then its extremely practical for you!

If not, figure out where the excess is, and trim the fat. Figure out where your time could be better spent.

Maybe it's in other exercises that are actually more practical for you.

Maybe it's somewhere else in your day to day life.

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