Functional Movement Patterns Everyone Should Train
When you train these well, everything else gets easier
By
July 2, 2025
Functional training. Functional movements. Functional patterns. You’ve probably heard one or all of these phrases, but what the heck do they mean?
Functional movement patterns refer to the way your body is designed to move. When you train these well, everything else gets easier: your workouts, your daily life, even your ability to age with strength and confidence. If you can master and strengthen these movements, you can live well and, importantly, without assistance.
There are six foundational movement patterns we coach and program for consistently:
Let’s break each one down — what it is, why it matters, and where it shows up outside the gym.
1. Squat
What it is: Think of this as sitting down and standing up in a controlled manner — hips and knees bend together as your torso stays upright.
Where it shows up in real life: Getting on and off a toilet. Sitting in a chair. Picking up your dog or kid from the floor.
In the gym: Air squats, goblet squats, front squats, back squats.
Why it matters: If you lose your ability to squat, you lose your independence — period. We train it so you can keep living life on your terms. We’ve worked with people that, when they first come in, don’t even realize that they can’t stand up from a chair or bench without momentum and/or using assistance by pushing up on the chair’s arm. It becomes important to strengthen that movement.
2. Hinge
What it is: This is all about your hips. Your torso leans forward as your hips move back, with minimal knee bend.
Where it shows up in real life: Deadlifting groceries from the trunk. Picking up a laundry basket. Bending over without blowing out your back.
In the gym: Romanian deadlifts, kettlebell swings, barbell deadlifts.
Why it matters: Mastering the hinge protects your spine and builds the kind of posterior strength that makes everyday tasks feel lighter. A large percentage of people enter our gym without the ability to hinge correctly. Often, they are unable to keep their backs flat and sequence the movement correctly. In learning to do so, they protect themselves from injury.
3. Lunge
What it is: A single-leg movement pattern where one leg leads and the other supports. This builds stability and strength in an asymmetrical position.
Where it shows up in real life: Walking up stairs. Getting up off the ground. Hiking. Chasing kids or grandkids across the yard.
In the gym: Split squats, reverse lunges, forward lunges, step-ups.
Why it matters: Life doesn’t always happen symmetrically. Train for balance, coordination, and strong legs that move independently.
4. Push (or Press)
What it is: Anytime you’re pressing something away from your body — horizontally (think push-up); vertically (think overhead press); or in other planes of movement.
Where it shows up in real life: Putting away groceries on a high shelf. Shoving open a heavy door. Moving a couch.
In the gym: Push-ups, bench press, dumbbell overhead press, landmine press.
Why it matters: Upper body strength = self-reliance. Bonus: stronger pressing = better posture and shoulder health.
5. Pull
What it is: The opposite of pushing — pulling something toward you. Again, we do this in different directions: vertical (pull-up) and horizontal (seal row).
Where it shows up in real life: Opening a stuck drawer. Climbing, playing, or carrying your weight in a variety of ways.
In the gym: TRX rows, dumbbell rows, chin-ups and pull-ups, lat pulldowns.
Why it matters: Pulling builds back strength, grip strength, and helps undo all the hunching develop from all the sitting and scrolling.
6. Carry
What it is: Holding something heavy and walking with it while staying tall and stable. Sounds simple, but it’s powerful.
Where it shows up in real life: Hauling groceries or paint cans, carrying luggage, wrangling kids and strollers.
In the gym: Farmer carries, suitcase carries, overhead carries.
Why it matters: Carries train your grip, core, posture, and endurance — all at once. Plus, there’s something satisfying about picking up something heavy and owning it.
BONUS: Bracing
What it is: Bracing is the ability to create tension (intra-abdominal pressure) through your midline — think of it like turning your core into a sturdy column. It’s not sucking in or “crunching,” or “pulling your belly button to your spine,” it’s learning how to engage your abs, obliques, diaphragm, and pelvic floor as a unit. It's a critical skill to learn in order to protect your spine.
Where it shows up in real life: Literally everywhere. Picking up something off the ground. Standing up. Rolling over in bed. Lifting weights safely. Even breathing well requires good bracing. However, most people come to us not knowing how to brace (so we teach them!).
In the gym: We coach and cue bracing in nearly every movement — especially squats, hinges, carries, and heavy lifts. Lifting actually trains your abdominals if you brace correctly! Dead bugs, bird dogs, planks, and breathing drills (you know when Rob makes you act like you’re blowing up an imaginary balloon) are great for learning it.
Why it matters: Without a strong brace, your spine is vulnerable. With it, you move with power, control, and confidence. It’s the secret weapon behind every strong lift — and every strong body.
At Vero Strength, we program workouts to train these patterns. That means we aren’t married to specific exercises, but instead these patterns. For instance, if someone can’t yet perform a barbell back squat, they can regress with a goblet squat to a box. It’s still a squat. Over time, they progress to more challenging versions of the squat.
Simply put, we train what matters. These six movement patterns (plus bracing) give you the most bang for your buck — in the gym and in life. Master them and you build a strong, stable foundation. The most common feedback we receive from members at the gym is how much easier “real life” tasks become!
For those of you at home, try some of these movements and see how well you can perform them (safely) - do an air squat and achieve depth lower than a chair seat; look in a mirror and see if you can hinge correctly by driving your hips back and keeping your back flat; lunge, getting your knee to the floor; etc.
If you’re lacking in any or all of these movements, don’t look at it as a failure - it’s your new starting point.
Click "free into" at the top of this page or send an email to contact@verostrength.com for your free assessment - we want to help!
