90 Seconds Of Isometric Exercise

 If you ever have read my articles or have done research on Bud Jeffries, Steve Justa and even Bruce Lee, you know we're all big advocates of Isometric Training. My favorite style is doing the 6-12 sec intense contractions from as many angles as possible but every few workouts or so, I do either a mixture of intense Iso training and Aerobic Isometric Training or do Aerobic exclusively for that particular workout day. 

Long Isometric Holds take on a whole other realm of strength training and conditioning. The most common AI hold is the Plank which can be really good especially if you practice certain variations instead of the typical hold with the forearms on the floor. One variation that is difficult but simple to do is holding the plank on your fist with elbows bent at mid-range, most people barely last 20-30 seconds if that but if you can last a minute or more, that shows some serious strength.

Some people have experienced some interesting results with AI's such as hypertrophy, feeling lighter as they move, loss of body fat, increased strength, better stamina and even an increase in testosterone. When you hold a position for more than a minute, it takes another level of strength beyond the muscles, it is the strengthening of the tendons and ligaments. Shaolin Monks can attest to this as some of their holds go for hours, talk about strong joints. I've had great results in doing long holds but unless it's bridging or holding a horse stance, 90 seconds is my cut off point not because I can't go anymore but because I want to do other exercises and not just do one for a long ass time (I get bored easily).

For the most part with Isometric Training, most courses teach people to do holds at 60-90 seconds because that's where they'll start to experience the fatigue of the muscles and only exerting no more than 60% of their strength. The truth is, very few people know how Isometrics work and the understanding of where fatigue starts or ends depending on what they're doing. Isometric Holds are nothing new obviously but the knowledge of when fatigue sets in, the experience of fat being burned and strength that is developing conjures up more to what the real veterans of the method teach as opposed to those B-Movie style books where knowledge is virtually non-existent and go through the motions (oxymoron I know) of just showing exercises have little to do with real world applications and have dangerous consequences when they're not applied right.

One of the most common mistakes people make when doing Isometric Training is how to breathe. This is because Bodybuilders today and even quite a bit of yesteryear that hold the breath as they flex as hard as possible, this is extremely dangerous and could prove fatal to someone's brain. In longer holds, the objective is to breathe deeply and as controlled as possible and to not exert more than 40-50% of force. If you're a shallow breather, you may not hold a position for very long but if your breathing is controlled, you can hold for a good extended period of time. The better your breathing with long holds, the stronger you can be. 

The fact is, Isometric Training is far from easy and it takes a decent level of concentration that many don't understand. Once you exert an amount of force, you need to keep it there for the duration as much as possible. It is literally impossible to hold an isometric at 100% for 90 seconds or more but if it's around half or less than half that amount of force, you can go longer and develop strength that can shoot past plateaus in your regular training. 

At first, 90 seconds may not seem like that long but when certain things start to set in, it may feel like an eternity. Once you can control your breathing and keep that exertion of force at that level, it can give you one hell of a workout and feels very relaxing when you come out of it. One of my favorite exercises is the 90 second Deadlift using my Iso Strap & Dowel, I feel it everywhere and builds a great level of power in the forearms and strength in the legs and lower back. You don't need to do a ton of exercises to get in a good workout, just a few that totals around 10-15 minutes is more than enough. The results can often be extraordinary and it's not complicated unless you make it that way. simple and yet can beat you into submission. 

You can do them anywhere and use just about anything. Have fun and make it interesting. 

Are Isometrics Good At Healing The Body?

 When we think of exercise, from a general perspective it's about health, well-being and a way to make ourselves better not just physically but mentally as well. Now we don't necessarily would say exercise cures us from anything but there might be a way to have it heal the body, as in take in the HEAL part in healthy.

Isometrics have long been debated on its uses, its ability to strengthen and having a somewhat decent discussion if it's worthy to be in the same realm as weights, machines and sports. The truth is, Isometrics can be used in all three but from specific uses within those three types of training or competitive undertaking. You can practically use anything and turn it into some kind of Isometric exercise, you can either hold something and hold a position for time, hit a specific angle an not move but exert as much force as possible or just use yourself. The point is, Isometrics isn't always a black and white outlook of the method, there's more to it than meets the eye.

When it comes down to healing the body, many wouldn't think Isometrics has anything to do with healing the body but that's where most either don't understand or just pretty damn arrogant. When you have an injury and you can't quite move yet, there could be something done about that. Now, I'm not a medical doctor nor am I a occupational/physical therapist but I do understand from experience what Isometrics can do to help with injuries. I never really talked about this but when I was laid up from my leg injuries, I had to use practically 100% of my upper body in order to get around, if I ever used my legs for anything, I would Isometrically press my feet on the wall, only for like a second or two but I would press with the strength I did have which was maybe 5-10%, I would press and walk up the wall, 2-3 at time. I felt that did strengthen me and I was told I was healing rather quickly by then and it was maybe less than a few weeks before my last surgery when I did that but it could also be I was 20-21 at the time so youth was a bit of a factor. This was an alternative since I was no where near ready to walk yet.

The biggest contribution to my rehab was ultimately calisthenics but it wasn't until I learned about Isometrics specifically what they were all about. I tried many different ways to do them and they helped me really well. Once I got into my 30's, Isometrics have been edging more and more to that area where it's now a top 3 set of methods I use to train. The older I get, the more Isometrics become a great asset especially for my legs. 

Depending on what you want to accomplish and is it plausible to heal certain injuries or problem areas such as the lower back, knees, ankles and shoulders? Many people have claimed Isometrics have completely healed them but how many are true? Other than me, I would say there are quite a few people who have legitimately healed themselves using Isometrics such as Steve Justa, Bud Jeffries, Steve Maxwell, Logan Christopher and others. The healing areas are mainly the strengthening of the joints and utilizing the strength of the tendons and ligaments. 

There have been studies done on how Isometrics help strengthen the body through rehab or as a program to shoot past plateaus in an athlete's sport (with so many studies out there, very few are legit). The healing aspects depends on the exercise used in a safe and controlled manner and which joints to strengthen. I firmly believe that with Isometrics, you can make gains in how you strengthen the structure beyond the muscles. It gives you the ability to walk better, carry things easier and making the body near injury-proof.

Holding a position say the Wall Sit where the target areas are the thighs and calves help immensely for those who have trouble with squats or have trouble bending the knees to a certain degree without pain. This is all too familiar with those with knee and ankle issues but with Isometrics, you can strengthen those areas to hold off pain going up flights of stairs. Some people only do Isometrics exclusively because other forms of exercise either cause them pain or it's because their movements are so limited, Isometrics is the only thing that's helping them stay strong for this long. Justa was nearly crippled before Isometrics healed him and it got him off meds for Type 2 Diabetes. Some people do only Isometrics because that's the amount of strength training for them to do so everyday activities can feel easier to do. It all depends on where you're currently at and what possibilities there are.  

Find out for yourself if this method has healing properties. I certainly believe in it and it has kept me from getting seriously injured over the years.  Keep your joints strong. It goes beyond just doing exercise, it's developing a powerful structure that keeps you strong into your golden years. 

New PR In Step Ups And Club Swinging

Sometimes, certain things inspire you to test yourself and see what you're capable of. Yesterday for Easter, I decided to do 1000 Step Ups using the deck of cards again and see how fast I can do them. My previous best was 51:38 and I thought I'd never be able to go faster than that. I guess things have a way of surprising you and after all the sweat and number of times I wanted to quit I did it and broke my own record by finishing in 50:01, shaving off nearly 100 seconds of my previous best.

Step Ups are for all intents and purposes an underrated exercise that works like a charm when it comes to building leg strength and conditioning. Hell if Bob Backlund can go for hours straight doing them, a few minutes a day would be just as good for the average person. I'm not big on celebrating holidays like I used to. When I was living in Santa Cruz, holidays were a constant thing with my dad's side of the family especially Easter and Xmas (my grandmother is Roman Catholic) and ever since I've lived up here for nearly 10 years, it hasn't been the same since it's gotten harder and harder to travel to see them.

For holidays, I like to do crazy workouts to celebrate which is kind of a weird thing for most people but it gives me an opportunity to celebrate victories for presents. Now that I'm married for almost 2 years now, my wife and I would do some holiday celebrating but because of her job, it's not as easy and we celebrate either the day before or some time after. 

One of the other workouts I did on Easter was doing 1000 Reps with the Indian Clubs doing various exercises. Getting fresh air and getting into almost a meditative state that just feels incredible and getting in some conditioning for the shoulders, wrists and elbows. It was fun and just having that calmness and happiness instilled into you as you exercise. That's what it's all about and making the most of your time so you can enjoy other things later on. 

Today for some reason I just decided to start my day with 5 straight minutes of calf raises on one leg switching from one to the other each rep, it's one of the exercises I learned from Kevin Wikse's Pan Program which is now defunct and consisted of training the legs in a unique way. You can learn a bit more about Pan and his other takes on mythology by going to https://mightandmagick.com/. It just felt right to do and I enjoyed it. That's one of the great perks about fitness is that when it feels right and you enjoy it, it becomes something more than just physical, it becomes a mindset. Most likely today would be an Isometric Day but who knows what will happen. 

Enjoy the day, be happy and make the most of what is possible for you. 

A Moment In My Life That I Thought Would Never Happen

 For those that have known me my whole life know the struggles I had to endure when I was diagnosed with Spinal Meningitis. It made a major impact on the nerves around the right side of my body and scrambled my brain to the point where it would either kill me or make me live my life as an unintelligent member of society. When I was little, I used almost nothing but the left side of my body and barely did anything with the right side. Couldn't even pick up a pen or pencil with my right hand because the nerves were badly damaged. I struggled for decades but I kept fighting.

By the time I was a teenager, I could do quite a few things here and there for basic daily life but some things still weren't possible. I could lift some decent weight and move ok without the assistance of my left arm. Still can't shoot a basketball or throw a baseball or football with my right arm. After my leg injuries, I focused on getting stronger in a different way than ever before (as you may have read) but I also needed to challenge my right side even more. In gymnastics, I had a moment where I could do a one arm hang either on the horizontal bars or the rings with my right arm and that was an amazing feat for me, I was 24 at the time.

As I got older, I had to find more challenges, I was bending steel bars, nails, ripping phone books, levering hammers and holding myself up in a one arm push-up. Yesterday was a defying moment that made all those years struggling worth while. You've seen the videos of me pressing the Darth Vader Kettlebell with either hand or doing one arm farmer's carry with it, I wanted to make it harder so I thought I would attach one of my fat gripz to the handle. I never thought I'd be able to even clean it, let alone lift it with that thing attached and to my surprise, I did it with each arm and didn't use any assistance with my left when I did it with my right. I got it up to my shoulder and pressed that son of a bitch 10 times each arm, this thing is 70 lbs BTW and took a lot of concentration to use the muscles I needed to lift it. At 3-4 years old I have gone from not being able to pick up a damn pencil to basically cleaning and pressing a thick handled kettlebell that weighs 70 lbs. more times than I ever thought I could. This to me was decades in the making and I made it possible. 

You have the power to overcome adversity beyond anyone's expectations. Some never thought ever that you could do something they thought was impossible. You have the power to become stronger and make the impossible possible. The struggle is part of the journey but its those moments in time where everything came together and something incredible happens. Look at some of the old-time strongmen and what they endured to become legendary figures in the world of strength. I made something happen for myself that I never dreamed would happen and yet, it came to light when for years there were dark clouds over me. Although the fighting never stops, it's in those brief moments where you have won the battles over yourself and those who told you it wasn't going to ever happen. You made things happen and you CAN continue to make things happen. You are a bad ass my friend and never stop becoming something YOU were meant to be. 

Starting The Day Off With The Wu Ji Posture And A Cold Shower

 Sometimes when we wake up in the morning, we're still groggy and barely alert but also we wake up full of anxiety and feel the need to really haul ass; shower, dress, get a quick bite and run out the door to head to our job. I wanted to start my day with the Wu Ji Posture and just stand there practicing deep breathing for 10 minutes. It felt really good and it was a great moment of just getting blood flow to the body, breathe deeply and controlled and shake the cobwebs out a bit. The cherry on top of a beautiful Tuesday morning was getting into a cold shower.

For all intents and purposes, a cold shower is a hell of a way to wake your ass up out of that groggy zombie like state. Most wouldn't last 10 seconds and I can't blame them. Who in their bloody mind would want to emerge themselves in cold water, let alone bathe in the damn thing? This practice is more than just having the guts to withstand the cold, it's to really tech you how you handle your body and being calm, cool and collected. I practiced my deep breathing and focused on that as much as possible. It's never easy but the benefits are incredible man.

Getting into the habit of taking a cold shower does take time and taking small steps into letting that fear go and just let the water consume you and build that tolerance for cold temperatures. Is it meant for everyone, probably not but you never know until you test it out for yourself. For the most part, it's fear and others can be because of certain conditions. You don't need to take a 20 minute shower in order to notice the benefits, just a couple minutes is more than enough for most. 

The absolute key to both standing in the Wu Ji Posture and being in a cold shower is how you breathe. Cold showers tend to really get the lungs going and naturally make you breathe even deeper than normal (at least from my experience). You breathe in as deep as you can without straining, breathe out everything without straining and hold onto that. It's a very powerful sense of focus and concetration, think of it this way; you remember the stories of Peter Pan? The idea of slapping on some pixie dust and focusing on a happy thought, put them together and you can fly. Your pixie dust is your breath, your happy thought is your mind and picturing being calm, happy and full of power (I know this sounds goofy but it's the best analogy I can come up with on the spur of the moment).

We hate starting the day off with being anxious, in a rush, having our brains go haywire and dealing with negative thoughts. Start your day fresh and ready to kick ass, whatever it might be and being cool and collected in the midst of chaos.