Isometric exercises involve the contraction of muscle tissue at a specific angle. You would not use isometric exercises to improve overall strength, speed or endurance. You would use isometric exercises to rehabilitate an injured joint such as a shoulder. One other caution, is for those who have high blood pressure, isometric exercises are not recommended as the increased muscle tension tends to increase blood pressure.
Definition
Isometric means without movement. Another way of defining isometric is to break down the word. Iso means equal and metric is a measurement, therefore isometric means equal measurement. In relation to strength training, isometric means that your muscle remains contracted at the same measurement. Your muscles will not contract and release during isometric training and your limbs and joints will remain in the same position.
Example
One example of an isometric exercise is to grasp your hands together and press your palms toward each other. You can vary the angle by moving your hands closer to or father from your body. Another example of an isometric exercise is holding still the top position of a push-up exercise. You can also use dumbbells to perform an isometric exercise by holding onto the dumbbell and bending your arm to a 90 degree angle and holding the weight still for a count of 20.
Benefit
Isometric exercises are easier on the joints of people who have arthritis. Since isometrics do not involve movement of a painful joint, those with arthritis can strengthen their muscles with limited painful side effects. You can also use isometric exercises to recover from a joint injury. For example if you have torn a ligament in your knee and should not bend your knee, you can sit with your legs extended in front of you and lift and hold your leg off the floor.
Limitations
You will only improve your strength in the position in which you hold the isometric exercise. You will not gain strength throughout the muscle's full range of motion. Isometric exercises will not build strength, but maintain strength, and are not used for building speed since movement is not involved in the training.
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