How to Get Complete Functional Fitness in 10 Moves

Photo by Getty Images

Speed. Power. Control. They’re the holy trinity of sports: the tools you need to succeed in your pickup basketball game, your weekly squash match, or your big week in Whistler.

Do the warm-up and 10 exercises three times a week. (They will only take about an hour.) Then, a month from now, see if your opponents don’t seem as if they’re wearing cement shoes.

RELATED: The Only 8 Moves You Need to Be Fit

WARM-UP

Medicine Ball Lunge
Hold a medicine ball in front of you, lift it over your head while lunging, as in photo at left, then return to the start position.

Single-Leg Crossover
With a light weight in your left hand, balance on your right foot. Dip into a one-legged squat as you lower the weight across your body to outside your right foot. Stand back up.

Side Lateral Pull
Attach an elastic band to a bar at shoulder level. Standing with the handle to your left, grab it with both hands, get into a slight squat, and pull on it as you pivot away from the bar until you’ve twisted 180 degrees. Ratchet back slowly; repeat.

Muscles worked: Every muscle in the body.

Sets/Reps: 3 sets of 10 on each side.

Applications: Fires up nervous system, raises core temperature, and increases blood flow to get the most out of the exercises that follow.

DEATH JUMP WITH MEDICINE BALL

Standing on a medium-high bench or box, hold a medicine ball in front of you. Hop onto the floor, sinking briefly into a squat while swinging the ball between your legs. Then immediately explode back up to throw the medicine ball up and out. Collect the ball, return to the bench, and repeat.

 Muscles worked: Quads, glutes, hamstrings, calves, deltoids.

 Sets/Reps: 1 set of 20.

 Applications: Improved coordination and power transfer between lower and upper body.

SLED PULL

Load a weight sled with about half the weight you would squat. Set your body at a 30-degree angle to the ground and sprint 15 yards. More gyms than you’d think have weight sleds. (They look like industrial-strength Flexible Flyers with harnesses.) If your gym doesn’t, you can order one for about $155 from performbetter.com. Or you can improvise by pulling a weight stack with elastic bands.

 Muscles worked: Quads, glutes, hamstrings, calves.

 Sets/Reps: 3 runs.

Applications: A more explosive step off the line, out of the box, or on any kind of court.

RELATED: The 10 Moves You Need to Get a Rock-Solid Core

BOX SQUATS WITH BANDS

Place the bench behind you. Tie elastic bands between the bar and two heavy dumbbells. Sit on the bench with your feet shoulder-width apart and the bar across the back of your shoulders. Then push up. (The bands will increase the resistance just as your quads start burning.) Lower yourself into the seated squat position and repeat.

Muscles worked: Quads, glutes.

Sets/Reps: 2 sets of 8.

Applications: Greater acceleration and leaping ability with less grinding and damage to your knees.

CARRYOVER

With your back on a physioball and your feet propped on a bench, extend your arms out and toss a medicine ball back and forth over your body, keeping your arms straight.

Muscles worked: Obliques, pecs, rotator cuffs.

Sets/Reps: 3 sets of 10.

Applications: Excellent for bolstering the shoulders against wear and tear.

PHYSIO DODGEBALL

Once you’ve learned to kneel on a physioball without pinching your knees together to hold it, get a partner to do the same and play catch or dodgeball. Start by gently tossing a basketball; work up to winging a light medicine ball.

Muscles worked: Hams, core, pecs, related minor muscles.

Sets/Reps: Work up to 10+.

Applications: The kind of balance perfect for sports in which getting (and staying) up is key.

WEIGHTED PULL-UPS

Start by using a dip belt to hang a 5-pound plate between your legs; increase the weight as you progress.

Muscles worked: Lats, rhomboids, biceps, related muscles.

Sets/Reps: Until failure.

Applications: Builds pulling power, which is crucial in sports from swimming to climbing.

RELATED: A 20-Minute Rowing Workout That Targets Every Muscle

THE NECK BRACE

Lying on a bench with your head extended off the end, have a partner push down on your forehead with a length of towel as you try to raise your head.

Muscles worked: Neck muscles.

Sets/Reps: 3 30-second sets.

Applications: Neck strength, an often overlooked asset that fights fatigue and helps you keep your head up on the trail or court.

Photo by Getty Images

PHYSIOBALL PUSH-UPS

tart on your hands and knees. Place your ankles on top of a physioball (don’t use your toes to grip it) with your arms extended in the push-up position. Do push-ups. Once you get the hang of that, place each hand on a medicine ball, as shown.

Muscles worked: Abs, erector spinae, pecs, triceps.

Sets/Reps: 3 sets to failure.

Applications: Great for adding upper-body control and bilateral strength.

RELATED: 10 Easy Ways to Sneak a Workout in at the Office

SIDE BRIDGE

Lying on your side, prop yourself up on your elbow and hold your body rigid for 30 seconds. Switch arms to complete the set. To increase the difficulty, try holding a medicine ball with your free hand, extending your arm straight up from your shoulder, as shown. Then try doing that while your elbow is resting on another medicine ball.

Muscles worked: Obliques, shoulders.

Sets/Reps: 4 sets of 1.

Applications: Highly functional core strength that will put zing in your swing, throw, or shot.

Photo By Getty Images

V-UPS

Lying on your back with your arms stretched above your head, bring your hands and legs together above your body. Use your hips as your balance point — not your lower back — and keep your legs perfectly straight. If you start rolling on your back, you’re doing it wrong.

Muscles worked: Abs.

Sets/Reps: 3 sets of 1; hold each as long as you can.

Applications: Torque and back protection for twisting motions and uncorking all that power.