High rep Isotonic with 100% effort Isometric finish?

[Guest guest]

All this talk about 70% effort and tendon safety got me thinking a little bit.

(Always a dangerous proposition, I know…)

What about pre-exhausting the muscle group with a lengthy/high rep set of

isotonic motion before a 100% effort 7-10 second isometric hold? Wouldn't that

mean the muscles you were using to exert a perceived 100% effort would be

incapable of firing at max power due to the previous high rep isotonic routine

you used to pre-exhaust the muscle group? Would this not translate into a 100%

effort isometric that had an increased margin of safety for the tendons?

I've seen numerous bullworker routines advocating 7-10 reps of isotonic followed

by a 7-10 second 70% effort isometric. I have further read cautions/warnings

about using 100% effort isometric holds.

I, unfortunately, seem to be a 100% kind of guy. I haven't had any problems with

that so far, but I limit the frequency of my 100% effort workouts. Maybe one a

week, and I kind of go on an instinctual basis. Meaning, if I feel a little beat

up, I won't go at 100% and when I do, I give myself a couple of days to recover

post-workout.

Anyway, some of the things I have read fed my curiosity about the possible

results of high rep isotonic followed by 100% effort isometric holds. I have

started to dabble with it here and there, so now I am curious as to what the

bullworker think tank/brain trust will conclude. Am I playing with fire or will

I soon be leaping tall buildings in single bounds?

The number of reps is going to vary from exercise to exercise and physique to

physique. In practice I'm doing reps to the point of serious difficulty with

continuation and THEN going for my 100% effort isometric hold.

I remember reading some stuff from Nautilus guru (A. ?) a long time ago. He

advocated 6 to 12 reps to absolute failure on his machines. Failure defined as

about 7 seconds of struggle with no movement possible as I recall. (An

isometric?) People were concerned about injury potential going to absolute

failure. contended that your muscles are weakest on those last few reps

and thus the opportunity for injury is lower the closer you get to failure. In

some ways this seemed counter intuitive to me at first, but it makes sense and

indeed, the vast majority of the time I have hurt myself on a set it has been

early in the set.

But I digress somewhat.

What do YOU think?

[Guest guest]

The reverse makes more sense, if you must do hi rep work.

Isos work the neurology very nicely. To do this, it is better for the muscle NOT

to be fatigued, but to be clear of lactice acid. Ditto for the nervous system.

That said, personally, I would not do hi-rep iso work.

Good luck!

>

> All this talk about 70% effort and tendon safety got me thinking a little bit.

(Always a dangerous proposition, I know…)

>

> What about pre-exhausting the muscle group with a lengthy/high rep set of

isotonic motion before a 100% effort 7-10 second isometric hold? Wouldn't that

mean the muscles you were using to exert a perceived 100% effort would be

incapable of firing at max power due to the previous high rep isotonic routine

you used to pre-exhaust the muscle group? Would this not translate into a 100%

effort isometric that had an increased margin of safety for the tendons?

>

> I've seen numerous bullworker routines advocating 7-10 reps of isotonic

followed by a 7-10 second 70% effort isometric. I have further read

cautions/warnings about using 100% effort isometric holds.

>

> I, unfortunately, seem to be a 100% kind of guy. I haven't had any problems

with that so far, but I limit the frequency of my 100% effort workouts. Maybe

one a week, and I kind of go on an instinctual basis. Meaning, if I feel a

little beat up, I won't go at 100% and when I do, I give myself a couple of days

to recover post-workout.

>

> Anyway, some of the things I have read fed my curiosity about the possible

results of high rep isotonic followed by 100% effort isometric holds. I have

started to dabble with it here and there, so now I am curious as to what the

bullworker think tank/brain trust will conclude. Am I playing with fire or will

I soon be leaping tall buildings in single bounds?

>

> The number of reps is going to vary from exercise to exercise and physique to

physique. In practice I'm doing reps to the point of serious difficulty with

continuation and THEN going for my 100% effort isometric hold.

>

> I remember reading some stuff from Nautilus guru (A. ?) a long time ago.

He advocated 6 to 12 reps to absolute failure on his machines. Failure defined

as about 7 seconds of struggle with no movement possible as I recall. (An

isometric?) People were concerned about injury potential going to absolute

failure. contended that your muscles are weakest on those last few reps

and thus the opportunity for injury is lower the closer you get to failure. In

some ways this seemed counter intuitive to me at first, but it makes sense and

indeed, the vast majority of the time I have hurt myself on a set it has been

early in the set.

>

> But I digress somewhat.

>

> What do YOU think?

>

[Guest guest]

> > >

> > > All this talk about 70% effort and tendon safety got me thinking a little

bit. (Always a dangerous proposition, I know…)

> > >

> > > What about pre-exhausting the muscle group with a lengthy/high rep set of

isotonic motion before a 100% effort 7-10 second isometric hold? Wouldn't that

mean the muscles you were using to exert a perceived 100% effort would be

incapable of firing at max power due to the previous high rep isotonic routine

you used to pre-exhaust the muscle group? Would this not translate into a 100%

effort isometric that had an increased margin of safety for the tendons?

> > >

> > > I've seen numerous bullworker routines advocating 7-10 reps of isotonic

followed by a 7-10 second 70% effort isometric. I have further read

cautions/warnings about using 100% effort isometric holds.

> > >

> > > I, unfortunately, seem to be a 100% kind of guy. I haven't had any

problems with that so far, but I limit the frequency of my 100% effort workouts.

Maybe one a week, and I kind of go on an instinctual basis. Meaning, if I feel a

little beat up, I won't go at 100% and when I do, I give myself a couple of days

to recover post-workout.

> > >

> > > Anyway, some of the things I have read fed my curiosity about the possible

results of high rep isotonic followed by 100% effort isometric holds. I have

started to dabble with it here and there, so now I am curious as to what the

bullworker think tank/brain trust will conclude. Am I playing with fire or will

I soon be leaping tall buildings in single bounds?

> > >

> > > The number of reps is going to vary from exercise to exercise and physique

to physique. In practice I'm doing reps to the point of serious difficulty with

continuation and THEN going for my 100% effort isometric hold.

> > >

> > > I remember reading some stuff from Nautilus guru (A. ?) a long time

ago. He advocated 6 to 12 reps to absolute failure on his machines. Failure

defined as about 7 seconds of struggle with no movement possible as I recall.

(An isometric?) People were concerned about injury potential going to absolute

failure. contended that your muscles are weakest on those last few reps

and thus the opportunity for injury is lower the closer you get to failure. In

some ways this seemed counter intuitive to me at first, but it makes sense and

indeed, the vast majority of the time I have hurt myself on a set it has been

early in the set.

> > >

> > > But I digress somewhat.

> > >

> > > What do YOU think?

> > >

> >

>True,Shenandoah,when I read my response back I started to wonder who the

illiterate was.I shall have to be more careful in future.Thanks.Ed