Competitive Functional Fitness is a sport which tests athletes’ proficiency across a variety of movement patterns, activities, and energy systems. Athletes must show their competency in various realms, including demonstrations of their strength, strength endurance, speed, bodyweight/gymnastics skill, and aerobic capacity.
In each competition, athletes are presented with various tasks, each of which require the completion of a certain amount of work (i.e. number of repetitions of a given movement). The athletes then attempt to complete the required movements and repetitions as fast as possible. The athlete who completes the work the fastest is the winner of that task.
Functional Fitness athletes showcase resiliency, in that they can perform to their max potential through the expression of strength, power and endurance.
How To Host A Sanctioned Event
In order to have your functional fitness event sanctioned by USA Functional Fitness (USAFF) you must submit a sanctioning application at least 30 days before your event. In order to have you event considered a qualifier to the National Championship in 2018 you must submit your application at least 90 days before your event. In the application you will be asked to provide information in order to prove you meet the USAFF sanctioning requirements listed below.
The competition rules specify the conduct and behavior of athletes during sanctioned USAFF competitions. The goal is to create an atmosphere of sportsmanship, equality, and fair play as well as provide safety and protection for the athletes. It emphasizes movement quality and skill without unduly limiting the athlete’s freedom of action and penalizes actions that otherwise confer an unfair advantage.
USAFF complies with the movement standards enforced by the iF3n. Any movement listed and described within the document is eligible for inclusion in iF3 Sanctioned Events in the 2019-2020 competition season. The following document sets forth the general regulations applicable to a collection of the most common otherwise notable athletic tasks employed and evaluated for purposes of iF3 sanctioned events.
Functional Fitness Competition under USAFF is conducted in the following formats:
Speed Benchmark
The speed benchmark format is a bracket styled competitive format where athletes complete an established functional fitness benchmark task for time. Each heat of athletes will start together at one end of the field and proceed to the other end of the field by completing the required work. As athletes complete their required repetitions or workload they advance farther down the field, finally crossing the finish line when the work is complete. Competitor with the fastest times among all heats will move on to the next round, with the total number of competitors dwindling until the final round, which will determine the winner in a winner-take-all race. The benchmark task remains the same for each heat, and all athletes will perform the exact same task each heat and each round of competition.
Pure Speed
The pure speed format is a bracket style competitive format where athletes complete a functional fitness task for time. Each heat of athletes will start together at one end of the field and proceed to the other end of the field by completing the required work. As athletes complete their required repetitions or workload they advance farther down the field, finally crossing the finish line when the work is complete. Competitor with the fastest times among all heats will move on to the next round, with the total number of competitors dwindling until the final round, which will determine the winner in a winner-take-all race. In the pure speed format the work the athlete is required to complete changes each round of competition. The athletes will perform a different task after each athlete cut.
Individual Medley
The individual medley is considered the traditional functional fitness competitive format. This is a multi-part competition where athletes perform various tasks and are assigned points based on their finishing order in each individual task. The points earned on each task are then tallied to determine an overall winner. Athletes will be tested in each of the following six capacities at some point in the medley: aerobic capacity, strength, bodyweight endurance, bodyweight skill, mixed modal, and power. At the championship levels medleys are multi day competitions, thus they also test the athletes’ ability to recover from volume.
Team Medley
The team medley is a competition format where mixed-gender teams of four (2 males, 2 females) compete against each other. This is a multi-part competition where teams perform various tasks and are assigned points based on their finishing order on each individual task. The points earned on each task are then tallied to determine an overall winner. Testing in team competition prioritizes testing the athletes’ ability to work together as a cohesive unit while demonstrating their individual abilities in the realms of strength, power, bodyweight skill, and aerobic capacity. At the championship levels medleys are multi-day competitions, thus the medleys also test the teams’ ability to recover from volume.
Team Head-to-Head
The Team head-to-head format is a tournament style format where mixed-gender teams of four (2 males, 2 females) compete against each other for a condensed (two or fewer hours) version of the medley event. While only two to four teams compete against each other at a time, there are typically many more teams in the tournament. Teams will rotate through and play each or most other teams in a matter of hours or a few days before eliminations occur based on a team’s win-loss record. The teams with the most wins will compete head to head for the overall victory.
Partner Medley
The partner medley is a competition format where mixed-gender pairs (1 male, 1 female) compete against each other. This is a multi-event competition where partners perform various tasks and are assigned points based on their finishing order in each individual task. The points earned on each task are then tallied in order to determine an overall winner. Testing in partner competition prioritizes testing the athletes’ ability to work together as a cohesive unit while demonstrating their individual abilities in the realms of strength, power, bodyweight skill, and aerobic capacity. At the championship levels medleys are multi day events, thus they also test the pairs’ ability to recover from volume.
Partner Head-to-Head
The partner head-to-head format is a tournament style format where mixed-gender pairs (1 male, 1 female) compete against each other for a condensed (two or fewer hours) version of the medley event. While only two-to-eight pairs typically compete against each other at a time, there are typically many more pairs in the tournament. Pairs will rotate through and play each or most other pairs in a matter of hours or a few days, before eliminations occur based on a pair’s win-loss record. The pairs with the most wins will compete head to head for the overall victory.
