Move Better, Live Stronger: How Functional Range Conditioning Builds a Bulletproof Body & Resilient Joints
- Cole Mercer
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
What is Functional Range Conditioning (FRC)?
At Method Fitness, our trainers use Functional Range Conditioning (FRC) to help clients build stronger, more resilient joints. You will often find this type of work in the first 15-20 minutes FRC is a system developed to improve mobility, flexibility, and joint control. Unlike passive stretching, which only focuses on increasing range of motion, FRC emphasizes active control and strength throughout that range. This means not just being able to get into a position, but owning that position with strength and stability.
Why We Use FRC Techniques
Our trainers are certified in FRC because it gives us an efficient and strength-based method to maintain and expand your usable movement capacity. First, you should know that there is a difference between flexibility and mobility:
Flexibility is the passive range of motion around a joint; essentially how far you can move a joint without exerting any effort. Think of a standing toe touch stretch, and how you may feel your low back, glutes, or hamstrings tighten up upon bending over.
Mobility is the active range of motion around a joint, which is how far you can voluntarily move a joint. In the example of the toe touch, this would be you reaching as far as you can to the floor by flexing your quads, hip flexors, and abs.
Both FRC and Method believe that mobility is the key to ensuring your joints have what it takes to stay healthy and continue to get stronger in the gym.
Here are the techniques we use to apply FRC:
CARs (Controlled Articular Rotations): These are daily joint circles designed to keep your joints healthy, identify limitations, and maintain your current range of motion. We will often teach you these to apply to your home programming and daily life!
PAILs/RAILs (Progressive and Regressive Angular Isometric Loading): These develop strength at the end ranges of your mobility. PAILs focus on building tension in the direction of stretch, while RAILs activate the opposing tissue to pull deeper into the range.
Passive Range Holds and Liftoffs: These help bridge the gap between passive flexibility and active mobility by training your nervous system and muscles to engage in positions you may not yet fully control.
Isometric Training: Many FRC methods use isometrics (static muscle contractions) to increase joint integrity, tendon strength, and neuromuscular control—critical for both performance and injury prevention.
Why does this work?
Tension is the language of muscles and bone. When the body experiences forces from gravity, weights, or holding your child, all parts of your anatomy work together to adapt to that stimulus. If you sit in one position for long periods of time, every day, your body will increase its “efficiency” in staying in that position by changing the joint range of motion and setting muscle tone to allow for a more comfortable execution of that seated position. However, over long periods of time the body will maladapt too, meaning it will lose muscle or reduce range of motion because it doesn’t explore other positions. Essentially, you use it, or you lose it.
FRC focuses on maintaining and expanding range of motion of all joints to allow all possible positions to be strong, rather than just training a specific muscle group to be flexible.
First, a stretch is used to generate passive range of motion. Then, we use different types of isometric and eccentric exercises to generate strength across those passive ranges of motion to turn them into ACTIVE ranges of motion. From there, we can seal in those positions and get even stronger doing activities like deadlifts, squats, and presses without added risk.
The Goal: We implement FRC techniques to improve how you move, reduce injury risk, and build a foundation for strength and performance. Whether you're squatting, running, or just living actively, FRC helps ensure your joints are working at their full potential—safely and efficiently. While other techniques exist to do this, we have found that FRC is so potent that it cannot be ignored. You will find yourself doing a lot of different isometric exercises and stretches, and now you know why!