This article is geared towards older people. There's no way around it, as you age your body changes, and you have to learn to adapt your fitness practices or wind up dealing with more injuries that take longer to heal. No amount of willpower is going to stop the aging process.
Once your mobility goes, it's all over.
Why I Like Isometrics
Steve Maxwell — April 24, 2026
In my lifetime, it seems like I’ve tried every kind of exercise there is, and from many systems, I’ve gotten good results, but after decades of physical wear and tear, I’ve found myself drawn to no-movement exercise systems.
Without using any movement you can— very effectively— increase strength, muscle size, and stamina; this is isometric exercise.
As a youth, in the 1960s, I regularly used isometric exercises, along with barbell training.
For my twelfth birthday, my dad bought me a York Barbell portable isometric apparatus, and my high school wrestling coach—who was also my PE teacher—had a York Barbell power rack, which was originally created for isometrics.
I got very good results, and was known as one of the strongest kids in the school.
In those days, arm wrestling was a very popular activity amongst us young guys; no one could beat me in arm wrestling, although one guy gave me a really hard time—and I still remember his name.
Oh, it was very common for a large crowd to gather ‘round to watch two young bucks lock arms—with half the school looking on—and the winner to take the opponent’s lunchtime dessert!
Later, in college, for some reason or other, I dropped isometrics and got involved in other types of training.
Fast forward four decades—and several injuries from martial arts later —and more, general wear and tear from being too willing in demonstrating my strength, I’ve returned to my roots and found isometrics to be a good place.
There are many athletes who have found isometrics to be a very useful tool and their primary source of strength training. For example, Shaolin monks use isometrics in their Kung Fu training; modern gymnasts and acrobats also rely on isometrics. One famous martial artist, Bruce Lee, highly favored isometric training.
Isometrics are one of the safest ways you can possibly train.
Anyone who wants to get really explosive, will find that isometrics really develop this attribute.
I find many elderly people —who are otherwise immobile, due to joint pain— can well-tolerate isometrics.
One of my clients, a woman in her mid-eighties, when we first started, could not arise from a chair without assistance; but after a mere two weeks of static squat holds/wall sits, she gets up and out of a chair quite well on her own.
Types of isometrics
There are two types of isometrics:
Yielding and Overcoming
An example of a yielding isomer is the aforementioned wall sit hold. Another version would be the horse stance used in martial arts. Many classic yoga positions are examples of yielding isometrics, like the crescent lunge, and crocodile pose.
The flexed-arm hang is a yielding isometric that serves as a standardized fitness test, wherein you hold your chin over the bar, for time.
The other type of isometric is the overcoming isometric. This is where you push or pull against an inanimate object, such as a cord or strap. There are actual cords, straps and devices specifically made for this purpose, and they are adjustable. The only drawback to overcoming isometrics is that— other than deep level muscular fatigue—you can’t quantify what you did.
I’ve never found this to be a problem, because if you give it a really hard, honest effort, you’ll produce a very good training effect, which is the objective.
There is a high-tech isometric system, where you use a force gauge to give a readout, and there also exists very sophisticated computer feedback statics, where you push or pull against a machine-lever, and watch a graph from a computer show how much force you’re producing.
Back in the early days, the isometrics protocols were short holds of 6-10 seconds, usually in three positions. Early research indicated that strength only increased at 15-degrees on either side of the joint angle. For example, if I did a 6-10 second contraction at the bottom range of a bicep curl, I would only strengthen that specific range of motion. To insure full-range strength, a second contraction would be held around mid-range, then a third near end-range, which is the fully-contracted position.
Later on, it was discovered that a single, prolonged contraction—at the mid-range, which is halfway—increased strength in all ranges of motion of that joint. What is a prolonged contraction?
70-90 seconds.
This technique is known as SuperStatics.
Let’s go back to the example of the bicep curl:
to perform a bicep curl as a SuperStatic, assume the isometric position at mid-range, arm bent 90-degrees. For a human being, the halfway point of any given exercise is the weakest point of motion. By strengthening that weakest range, for a prolonged length of time (70 to 90-seconds) the entire range is thereby strengthened.
Technique fundamental:
Because you’re contracting the muscles very hard, you will ease into the contraction, using only fifty percent of your strength. So, each exercise has a built-in sub-maximal warm up.
Then, for the next 30-seconds, you slowly increase effort to 75%
The final thirty seconds is an all-out effort, or, at least, as hard as you dare—backing off if there are any sharp or “strange” pains in the joints.
The goal of this exercise is to produce deep-level fatigue in the involved muscle structure.
Your body, in its wisdom, will directly send valuable resources and nutrients to the affected muscle structures, because the fatigue is perceived as a threat. In this way, you’re consciously tapping into the body’s survival mechanism.
The beauty of the isometric system—particularly timed static contraction (TSC) is that you can work out even when injured, the system requires minimal equipment, an is ideal for people with arthritis or other joint issues.
Isometrics are extremely time-efficient, with some workouts taking less than thirty minutes!
Additional benefits are improved bone density, elevated metabolism, and hypertrophy.
Another attribute —often overlooked—is improved mind-body connection.
Believe it or don’t, isometrics can give you a legitimate cardio workout; I find myself breathing quite hard.
Isometrics are also effective for lowering high blood pressure; I especially like isometrics for jiujitsu and grappling because the you will learn how to breathe while under tension.
With yielding isometrics, it’s easy to measure what you’re doing, because you have a measurable weight and measurable time.
I like to mix both kinds of isometrics in my workout.
Isometric training also develops mental toughness and concentration; you learn to push yourself physically, using the power of the mind.
I see isometrics as a real boon to people of all ages, but particularly those who have some wear and tear from hard living. I recommend that you check out my video set, Isometric 3-Ways, if you want a tutorial on how to do this thing.
I also have a great table-and-chair workout for elders wishing to regain strength. I am available for personal training for those who want to be supervised, which increases the intensity beyond what a trainee will achieve on their own.
Thank you for reading!
Best,
Steve
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