The 411 on Isometric Exercises

You’ve probably heard the term “isometric exercises” before. Maybe, you’ve always wondered what that term really means or perhaps you think you know but are a little misinformed.

No worries! By the time you’re done reading this article. You’ll have a full understanding of what isometric exercises are and what they can do for you.

[Gaining knowledge is an important part of your success in reaching your fitness goals. Hopefully, today you will walk away from your computer knowing that TFLA helped you learn a little something about isometric exercises.]

To gain knowledge about isometric exercises to help you in your fitness journey, keep reading…

When you get a mental image of exercise, what is it?

Maybe you see a big guy, sitting on a weight lifting bench, grunting and groaning while he is benching an insane amount of weight and his muscles are bulging and his veins are popping out and the air is intense.

Maybe you see a group of women jumping around to upbeat music in perfectly matched jumpsuits, with big smiles on their faces and bringing their legs up over their heads.

We all have stereotypical ideas of what exercise is supposed to be, but a good exercise regime involves thinking outside the box.

Isometric exercises are a good example of exercise that breaks through the boundaries that society has taught us of exercise.

What are Isometric Exercises?

Let’s look back at those two examples, whether the big, iron pumping He-Man, or the Barbie Doll Aerobic Dancer, both involve bending joints to create resistance to gain muscle strength.

Isometric exercises are the opposite of that. No joints are being bent during the isometric exercise. For example, think about putting your hands up over your head and keeping them there. How long before your arms are going to get tired?

It’s all in the contraction. With dynamic exercises, the resistance comes from a constant contraction and retraction of certain muscles by bringing a weight, whether it be body weight or other, back and forth through a joint extension. A good example of a dynamic exercise is the curl. Holding a weight in your hand you bend and extend your elbow, working the bicep muscle.

Why do Isometric Exercises?

With isometric exercises you gain strength by holding a position for a certain period of time. This works different fibers in the muscles and the joints to create more strength in the muscles at different joint angles.

This can be very useful in certain life situations.

Dynamic exercises are great for when you need to dig a hole but isometric exercises can give you more strength for emergency situations.

Say you fell off a cliff and all you needed to do was hold on for 10 minutes until a chopper arrived to save you. Or maybe, you were in an earthquake and you needed to hold a wall from crushing your daughter until she got out.

Had you trained with isometric exercises, your chance of success in these situations would have greatly increased.

My Favorite Isometric Exercises

Upper Body-

• Isometric Push Ups-Hold yourself at bent elbow position.
• Planks
• Isometric Flyes- Hold the weight at shoulder height.

For more great upper body exercises check out our Best Bicep Workout for Kissable Guns.

Lower Body-

• Isometric Squat- Hold yourself as close to the ground as possible.
• Isometric Calf Raise- Hold yourself with pointed toes.

For more great lower body exercises check out our Top 10 Best Thigh Firming Exercises.

When doing isometric exercises, always remember to breathe while you hold the position for 10-30 seconds at a time.

For a great and sensible eating plan to help you with your isometric exercises, check out our review of The Diet Solution Program.