6 Isometric Exercises to Prevent Injury & Get Stronger
Isometric exercise is a type of exercise you may be advised to do by your physical therapist (PT) after an injury or illness. Isometric comes from the roots 'iso', which means 'same', and 'metric', which means 'length'. During an isometric contraction, the length of the muscle doesn't change, and the joint that muscle is around doesn't move.
Isometric exercises are those that are performed without moving. Planks are a quintessential isometric exercise and so are wall sits and hangs that go up or down. Isometric exercises make you hold your body still for a certain amount of time. You can do that with just your bodyweight or with weights and bands.
Are Isometric Exercises Good for Injury?
At the most basic level, injuries happen when a force on a tissue is greater than what the tissue can handle. While a tissue is healing, it's temporarily able to handle less tension.
When rehabilitating, it's important to use a level of tension that's just below what the tissue can handle at that moment. When you do an isometric exercise, you have great control over how much stress you put on healing tissues.
Isometric exercises are good for rehabilitating after an injury, as the right amount of stress on the muscle tissues can help to build them faster.
Why are Isometric Exercises Important for Injury Rehabilitation?
Tissues need a certain amount of stress to change and heal fully. Usually, the muscle fibers, ligaments, and other parts of the body run in a way that're best for resisting and/or making forces. Stress on these tissues makes them rebuild in the same way they were broken down.
That's based on the same idea as Wolff's Law, which says that bone tissue forms along the lines of stress. That's also why weight-bearing exercises are an important part of getting better from osteoporosis.
Apply stress to the bone (but not enough to break it); give it time to recover and change, and the body will make the bone stronger to directly oppose the force applied.
So, the right kind of stress shows the way for optimal tissue growth. Without stress, the cells will eventually build up a patchwork of messy tissue (scar tissue).
Top Isometric Exercises to Prevent Injury
Check out the following six isometric exercises you can do to prevent injury.
1) Reverse Lunge
It's done as follows:
Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Step back with your right foot, and bend your right knee to lower into a reverse lunge.
Hold for 30 seconds or as long as you can, tensing your muscles. Rest, and do it again. In your next attempt, try to match or beat your previous time.
2) Isometric Squat
It's done as follows:
Stand with your feet a little farther apart than the hips and toes turned out a bit. Lower yourself into a squat with your knees over your toes. Hold for 30-60 seconds.
3) Wall Sit
It's done as follows:
Stand about a foot from a wall with your back to it. Lean back till you touch the wall with your back. Keep your back flat against the wall as you bend your knees, and lower yourself till your thighs are parallel to the floor, knees are over the toes, and you're sitting for 30-60 seconds.
4) Isometric Push-up
It's done as follows:
Start in a plank position with your arms out. Bend your elbows, and lower your body till your chest is just above the floor. Hold for five seconds. Press up again. Repeat.
5) Vertical Hang
It's done as follows:
Stand in front of a pull-up bar. Reach up, and grab the bar with an overhand grip while lifting your feet a few inches off the ground. Hang on as long as you can (aim for 30 seconds).
6) YWT Hold
It's done as follows:
Lie on your back with your arms out in a Y shape. Pull your shoulder blades together, and lift your arms off the floor. Hold for 20 to 30 seconds.
To make a W shape, bend your elbows, and bring them in toward your body. Keep holding for 20 to 30 seconds. Spread your arms out to make a 'T' shape. Keep holding for 20-30 seconds more.
Benefits of Isometric Exercises
Doing isometric exercises after an injury or surgery can help in a lot of ways, such as:
- Safely tighten a muscle while keeping an incision or scar tissue safe.
- Strengthen a muscle in a very specific way around a joint.
- Isometric exercises can be done without any special tools.
Your physical therapist should be able to tell you if isometric exercises are suitable for you, based on your physical condition.
Takeaway
Isometric exercises can be especially beneficial to those who're trying to build muscle. They are also necessary and effective for people who are undergoing rehabilitation from injury or are involved in active sports.
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