5 reasons to do Unconventional Training
By Mark Glanville, Co-Founder, Movement HQ, Personal Trainer for 21 years.
Let’s chat about my favourite form of training.
Unconventional training is everything other than the usual Dumbbell, Barbell and isolated machine work (conventional training methods).
Unconventional training can consist of so many forms. Think Animal Flow, Rings and Stallbars and Functional Mobility style training.
It can also use so many different types of equipment like Kettlebells, Suspension Trainers, Gymnastics Rings, bodyweight, Vipr, Battle Ropes, Mace Bells and Indian Clubs just to name a few.
Why do it?
The benefits of changing it up to this style of training are endless.
Just a few would be….
1 Increased instability in training like when using a suspension trainer or rings forces your body to work much harder to stabilise. This utilises more of the deeper muscle groups and core. That in turn increases the metabolic demand by adding higher stresses to the nervous system
2. This really can take the boredom and monotony out of training by giving you much more freedom to be creative. It will also test your body’s functional limits
3. Increased mobility is a result of moving the body through space (rather than just moving a weight through space) that can be much more challenging than conventional lifting and challenges multiple muscle groups if not the entire body all at once. Changing movement patterns and ranges increases stresses on the body forcing it to adapt to variations obtaining real world strength and resilience
4. Unconventional Training has the ability to call on both anaerobic and aerobic energy systems. This takes away the need to jump on the old treadmill every session to achieve that cardiovascular burn
5. A well programmed Unconventional Training circuit can/will also be ultra time efficient. You’ll have more time to do life and not feel obligated to spend hours of time at the gym.
How to master Unconventional Training
It would be so easy to read this, get pumped and start YouTubing the most outrageous and crazy exercises. If you’re a beginner this could increase the risk of injuries which may just turn you off exploring this training style any further.
So please hear me when I say I believe that Unconventional Training needs appropriate coaching.
Please don’t rely on video tutorials. Come and try a bodyweight, rings and stall bars, kettlebell or animal flow class.
Or talk to myself or one of our awesome coaches about a program or personal training sessions focused on some unconventional routines.
Now before I go, I need you to understand that this is in no way piling crap on ‘Conventional’ strength or cardiovascular training because it absolutely has its place.
I am merely trying to highlight the benefits of changing it up and stepping away from the norm.
Trust me when I say that throwing some kettlebells around and implementing some primal movement along with some of the other examples I have mentioned into your training schedule will have you feeling ‘unreal’.
It may also help you find a new motivation and allow some creativity and new achievements to take place.
Now go get ya monkey on!
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Handstand Training
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About Mark Glanville
Mark is co-founder of Movement HQ and has been training and coaching since 2001. Mark specialises in three dimensional and functional movement, rehab, active aging, pre and post natal and athletic development. Mark’s aim is to motivate and educate people to become stronger, more athletic and increase general movement and function.
He set up this beautiful facility to coach and educate people on the importance of adapting a multi disciplinary and multi dimensional approach to movement. Mark says “for me helping people understand the ultimate balance and importance of movement, regeneration and nutrition is really important”.
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