[Cynic]

Originally Posted by Allerious

That's just bodyweight floor work that you've described. It's no different from having people perform BW squats, pushups, dips or chins. Leg curls using the ball, maybe, but you don't need an implement to do supine extensions.

It works better if there is an element of instability the transverse abdominals have to work to correct. I'm not advocating DB curls while standing on a swiss-ball, but swiss-balls, bands, chains, etc, have their place.

We often do not work on stable platforms and/or with stable postures. When I worked at a warehouse (un)loading trucks and pushing boxes onto a carousel for sorting, rarely was it the case that I could make sure my posture was correct, my spine in alignment, etc. I suffered a few injuries for the reputation of middle management types who wanted greater "productivity."

I was using the opportunity to make a general commentary on the issue, not just to reply to what others had written. I passionately despise functional training and I hope I got that across in my post.

Learn to stay in context, you won't look foolish.

But how much better will someone do on an assessment if said assessment consists of the same program used in that person's training? The answer is kind of obvious. I'm pretty sure I got his message. I'm not sure that you got mine. I was making a point about the importance of training specificity in contrast to the mainstream "cross training" dogma which I fervently despise.

If I recall PMDL's words on this subject, for the mainstream of the public, specivity is totally unnecessary. It's better implemented for professional and semi-professional athletes who need to groove a movement pattern specific to their sport.

The mainstream of the public would do well to simply move weight in a well designed full body and incorporate some cardio/HIIT work. This is both logical and in keeping with my experience as a 44 yr old man who is simply trying to keep the effects of age at bay.

If you want to improve on "squats, deads, pushes and pulls, test max times on planks" then there is no better way of doing it than to regularly include all of those movements into your training.

There is a need to allow the body to adapt and then take that comfort away by changing up movement patterns. The pure forms are good to use in any program, but not all the time, week after week, month after month. They make good assessment movement patterns but even that is hardly real world.