link to isometric and Charlie Franci's msg board

[Guest guest]

Someone posted info for Charlie Franci's message board concerning

Christian Thibaudeau's isometric work, I found the article on T-Mag, but

can't find anything on that message board?

Any link or idea where this forum might be?

Thanks!

Ron Sowers

Post Falls Id

USA

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[Guest guest]

> Someone posted info for Charlie Franci's message board concerning

> Christian Thibaudeau's isometric work, I found the article on T-

Mag, but can't find anything on that message board?

> Any link or idea where this forum might be?

***Search? e.g., isometric. Look through the posts et voila:

http://www.charliefrancis.com/community/showthread.php?t=4116 & page=2 & highlight=i\

sometric

" Isometric training methods (Christian Thibaudeau)

Isometric methods refer to producing muscle tension without moving.

So you are basically fighting a source of resistance without altering

its position

We will discuss three applications of this method:

1. Max duration isometrics (equivalent to the repetitive effort

method)

2. Max intensity isometrics (equivalent to the max effort method)

3. Ballistic isometrics (equivalent to the dynamic effort method)

There is also mixed regimen isometrics (also known as functional

isometrics) but these applications have already been discussed

earlier.

You'll notice that I mention two types of isometric exercises:

overcoming-isometric and yielding-isometric. Understand that this

doesn't mean that you are combining a concentric (or eccentric)

action along with the isometric action. The actual external outcome

of the exercise is the same: there is no movement at all. However the

intent during the exercise changes:

Overcoming-isometric: You are pushing or pulling against an immovable

resistance. There is thus no external movement but your intent is to

move the resistance (even though that's impossible).

Yielding-isometric: You are holding a weight and your objective is to

prevent it from going down. So once again there is no external

movement; however your intent is no longer to move the resistance but

to stop its movement.

It is important to understand that both techniques will not have the

same effect; for one thing the neural patterns used in both cases

will be different. Overcoming-isometrics may have a bigger impact on

concentric strength than yielding-isometrics and vice versa.

Max duration isometric (repetitive effort)

With max duration isometric exercises you are pushing/pulling or

holding a submaximal load for as long as possible, going to muscle

failure. For maximum effect we want to use sets ranging from 20 to 60

seconds in length. The effect of this type of training on muscle mass

can be important as there is a very significant growth stimulus

placed on all of the muscle-fibers.

* Note: A lot of studies don't report a lot of muscle growth from

isometric training. This is only because the old German model of 6

seconds actions (or something similar) was used in the experiments.

This duration of effort, albeit adequate for strength gains, is not

sufficient to cause hypertrophic changes in the muscles. However when

using sets lasting 20-60 seconds, the growth stimulus is important.

With this method you can use both overcoming-isometrics and yielding-

isometrics (which were explained earlier). However I find that

yielding isometrics (holding a weight) are much superior when it

comes to max duration isometric training. In this case a load of 50

to 80% for a duration of 20 to 60 seconds is best.

As it was mentioned earlier in the text, with isometric training you

will want to use at least three positions per exercise to get

improvement throughout the entire range of motion.

Here are the characteristics and parameters of this method:

Perceived effort/difficulty: very high

Effect on structural elements (hypertrophy): high to very high

Effect on functional elements (strength, power): low

Load: 50-80% of the concentric maximum if using yielding-isometrics

Number of reps per set: 20-60 seconds per set

Number of sets per exercise: 2-4 per position / 3 positions per

exercise

Number of exercise: 1

Rest between sets: 60-90 seconds between sets

Max intensity isometric (maximum effort)

The max intensity isometric method is related to the concentric

maximum effort method. You will try to maintain a maximum isometric

action for 3-6 seconds. You can once again use either overcoming-

isometrics or yielding-isometric but in this case, overcoming

isometrics (pushing/pulling against pins or an immovable resistance)

are best and much safer.

This type of isometric training doesn't have a significant impact on

muscle mass, however it can increase muscle density and myogenic tone

(also called " tonus " , or the firmness/hardness of your muscles). Its

main effect is on maximum strength development, and it occurs

specifically at the joint angle being trained. So once again you'll

want to use multiple positions. There is also some evidence that

maximum isometric training can improve the capacity to recruit and

synchronize motor-units (intramuscular coordination) even in dynamic

movements.

Even though overcoming-isometrics are best for this method, you can

still use yielding-isometrics. In this case you would use a load of

100 to 110% of your maximum.

Here are the characteristics and parameters of this method:

Perceived effort/difficulty: moderate

Effect on structural elements (hypertrophy): low

Effect on functional elements (strength, power): high

Load: 100-110% of the concentric maximum if using yielding-isometrics

Number of reps per set: 3-6 seconds per set

Number of sets per exercise: 3-6 per position / 3+ positions per

exercise

Number of exercise: 1

Rest between sets: 30-90 seconds between sets

Ballistic isometric (dynamic effort method)

Be careful not to mix up iso-ballistic (or stato-ballistic) training

with the ballistic isometric method. Iso-ballistic is a mixed regime

method in which an explosive action is preceded by an isometric pause.

The ballistic isometric method refers to pushing against an immovable

resistance for a very brief period of time (1-2 seconds) trying to

reach peak force output as fast as possible (basically trying to go

from 0 force to 100 force in 1 or 2 seconds).

You cannot use the yielding-isometric method here as it doesn't suit

the nature of the exercise. The nature being to produce maximum

isometric tension is as little time as possible.

This type of exercise is especially good to develop starting-strength

and is very useful for any athlete involved in a sport where

explosive starts from a static position are involved.

Here are the characteristics and parameters of this method:

Perceived effort/difficulty: low

Effect on structural elements (hypertrophy): very low

Effect on functional elements (strength, power): high

Load: N/A

Number of reps per set: 1-2 seconds per set

Number of sets per exercise: 5-10 per position / 3+ positions per

exercise

Number of exercise: 1

Rest between sets: 10-30 seconds between sets "

BTW, EMS training could also be classified as a form of isometric

training.

--------

Carruthers

Wakefield, UK