If you've ever read my article on Isometrics being the Game Genie Of Fitness, it should give you a hint to the answer to this question, but just in case you haven't gotten the memo....When it comes to the old time strongmen, the one thing they have in common in most cases throughout the early 20th century to today's legends is the use of Isometrics. For some in today's world of the influencer and trendy shiners of gadgets and other equipment, Isometrics isn't as big of an influence or not as understood as it should be. It can be seen as a foreign thing and it doesn't give off a massive following.
For centuries, Isometrics whether inadvertently or intentional, has been used as a means to keep certain aspects of strength in the realm of warriors, laborers (slaves in many cases), athletes, archers, gladiators, farmers and many more. I didn't understand much about Isometrics until I read Matt Furey's Gama Fitness Course and started studying up on it all the way up to learning about Zass, Maxick, Otto Arco, Dennis Rogers, Steve Justa and the man of the 1000 lb Squat Bud Jeffries. Getting several courses like Overcoming Isometrics and others, it became apparent that Isometrics truly have stood the test of time and have become a lost art along the way.
I've shown a few Isometric videos here and there and performed a few myself on film and it's awesome to see how known they've become in some circles but at the same time it's sad that many can't even do some of the simple holds, but hey there's always time to learn them. The truth is, despite the simplicity, even the simple Isometric holds can be very demanding and holding for 30 seconds can feel like an eternity. It happens a lot and it can be grueling doing various Isometric positions for 7-12 intense seconds and then with little rest, adjust to the next one and keep going, most can't handle that.
When you truly start to understand the concept of Isometrics and how to apply them whether doing Overcoming, Yielding or a Hybrid style, you'll start to see why they've been a real backbone to how getting fit and strong is. Do what you can and make little progressions but never turn away from the basics and using Isometrics to enhance your strength and fixing some of the weak parts of your body.
For simple equipment to train with Isometrics, check out here...
Happy Veterans Day
