Isometrics with weights, full ROM

rubadub · 20-03-2009 02:11PM #1

I was thinking of having a go doing isometrics, mainly for deadlifts & squats & maybe military presses. My idea is having 2 adjustable webbing straps near the plates around a heavy barbell on the ground, then having another bar looping through these straps.

I can adjust the straps to be various lengths going through the full ROM of the movement. i.e. you start on the actual bar attempting a deadlift at a wieght too heavy to lift, then you go a few inches higher for another static hold, then keep lengthening the straps until you are at the top, maybe doing 10 holds in all. I have done this before to do a sort of rack pull deadlift.

Has anybody done or heard about people doing this? Does anybody do isometrics at all?

itsallaboutheL · 20-03-2009 02:14PM

i imagine your back will die, but it should be a quick death:D

the drifter · 20-03-2009 02:33PM

im gonna need a diagram of this....

brianthebard · 20-03-2009 02:37PM

I think he means move the barbell up a bit for each time he wants to do an isometric hold, using straps or bars or whatever.
Rubadub, what's the purpose behind it?I think I've heard about people using isometrics to get through a sticking point, or as a means of getting bigger, but I've no personal experience of results (never tried it). why do you want to go through the whole rom?

itsallaboutheL · 20-03-2009 02:39PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZpzW_TTqb8 ????

i'm assuming this isn't what you mean?

the drifter · 20-03-2009 02:42PM

do you mean this?

the drifter · 20-03-2009 02:45PM

ah...not this makes more sense... so what your looking to do is ancor the barbell to the floor with say resistance bands and pull against them and hold??

the drifter · 20-03-2009 02:47PM

ok sorry for all the youtube links....basically this except holding at the top for a period of time?

itsallaboutheL · 20-03-2009 02:47PM

the drifter wrote: »

ah...not this makes more sense... so what your looking to do is ancor the barbell to the floor with say resistance bands and pull against them and hold??

i dont care how good it is as an exercise, i would point blank rule out doing it owing the state a yer man!

the drifter · 20-03-2009 02:48PM

itsallaboutheL wrote: »

i dont care how good it is as an exercise, i would point blank rule out doing it owing the state a yer man!

look i dont care hes in a squat rack...hes got one up on you straight away:P

itsallaboutheL · 20-03-2009 02:51PM

Low Blow!:D

And for your information i do my curls in a squat rack..................... with the safetys on

the drifter · 20-03-2009 02:53PM

itsallaboutheL wrote: »

Low Blow!:D

And for your information i do my curls in a squat rack..................... with the safetys on

ive just lost so much respect for you...........:D

anyways lets wait for the OP to come back and confirm what hes after...this could be a good discussion...

itsallaboutheL · 20-03-2009 03:00PM

Back on topic

seen as you asked if any of us do isometrics.....

i do occasionaly, after chin ups and negative chin ups i do some isometric holds bout half way down.

also bicep curls iso holds purely for vanities sake.

buddy of mine swears by them for everything but he's a complete mentalist.

I think Doggcrapp has Iso Holds as a mainstay in the program, or at least i've read some of Dantes Stuff where he was ****ting on about them, i'll have a look for the link later

EDIT: that was easy i think it was here maybe not, still a good read tho.

http://www.thepumpingstation.com/doggcrapp.html

the drifter · 20-03-2009 03:03PM

i know hanley has been doing some dogg crap stuff he will be along after to elaborate more on it...although from reading the link it seem to be more stretching than isometrics

itsallaboutheL · 20-03-2009 03:10PM

yeah i think its the wrong link, im pretty sure they're somewhere in advanced doggcrapp tho

rubadub · 20-03-2009 04:02PM

the drifter wrote: »

do you mean this?

That is pretty much it, now if he lowered the bar down lower he would be bent over more and in the half way up position. That guy is a member here called Boru who is big into isometrics. I read some his e-books which were into self resistance isometrics, i.e. pushing one arm against another. I prefer using weights as it is easier to track gains involved and gauge if they are working. e.g. if I could just begin to move a bar on a static hold and then the next week I got a tiny bit more I would know I am progressing.

im gonna need a diagram of this....

I have an empty barbell with loops hanging where the plates should, the loops go to a bar on the ground and I pullup on the empty bar, attempting to lift the other off the ground. I also have 2 short bits of rope, these usually loop over my chinup bar, but I have put them on the barbell too, you simply move your hand up or down the rope and pull up the bar.

brianthebard wrote: »

Rubadub, what's the purpose behind it?I think I've heard about people using isometrics to get through a sticking point, or as a means of getting bigger, but I've no personal experience of results (never tried it). why do you want to go through the whole rom?

I would like the full rom as I heard you might only get stronger at the particular point you train at. It would be a convenient way for me to train, just have an extra heavy bar on the ground, no unloading etc, no squat rack, all very safe (I hope). I use grippers which are pretty much an isometric exercise as far as I am concerned. With a gripper the resistance is not at it fullest until it is closed, so in that way it is like a band pull, I have developed a good grip due to them and just want to try isometrics in another way, but one where progress can be tracked.

And just something new to try out!

the drifter · 20-03-2009 04:17PM

rubadub wrote: »

I have an empty barbell with loops hanging where the plates should, the loops go to a bar on the ground and I pullup on the empty bar, attempting to lift the other off the ground. I also have 2 short bits of rope, these usually loop over my chinup bar, but I have put them on the barbell too, you simply move your hand up or down the rope and pull up the bar.

I cant see the purpose or benifit of this...but that doesnt mean its useless its just a method ive never come across...keep us poseted on how it goes..

Hanley · 21-03-2009 12:08AM

the drifter wrote: »

do you mean this?

W....T....F....??

A 180kg high rack deadlift, in a smith machine, is amazingly strong? Or meant to do something for you strength/size wise??

And while I'm on it, I say again... WTF...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBzT3ySoEDE

Hanley · 21-03-2009 12:30AM

And RE: Isometrics in Doggcrapp

AFAIR, the iso's recommend by Dante are only to be used for ultra advanced trainees, and then the application of them is different to "traditional" isos.

The idea is to hold the bar or dumbbell or whatever in a stretched/bottom position at the end of a rep. So say you're doing incline benches, you hold the bar on your chest.

Can be 100% certain that's how it works tho, so open to correction on it.

rubadub · 21-03-2009 07:09PM

Hanley wrote: »

A 180kg high rack deadlift, in a smith machine, is amazingly strong? Or meant to do something for you strength/size wise??

Dunno about it being particularly strong, but the numbers do not really matter, you lift what you can. I imagine it would make you stronger if you did them every week, just like any other training, and I figure with strength you should get some size gains too. If anything the straps allow people to perform rack pulls at home very easily, or shrugs. I loaded up my bar today and was able to lift 147kg like a rack pull, I think the most I have properly deadlifted before was ~120kg. I always am worried about doing my back in on squats and deadlifts but felt safe doing these, though the higher weight is causing more stress on joints.

Now I do not know if a heavy weight short ROM can stimulate all the same fibres as a lower weight full ROM (of course I imagine lifting the same weight in a full ROM will do more). But could there be a point where the damage to the fibres would be about the same and so cause similar growth. e.g. if I did 10reps of rack pulls at 150kg would it cause the same microtears as 10 full ROM reps at 100kg.

I have heard the ISOs will make you stronger at that particular point, and this would make sense for people overcoming sticking points, as mentioned earlier. So if you did ISOs at everypoint in the ROM then I figure you would get better at full ROM movements when you switched back.

Mikel · 21-03-2009 07:38PM

Hmmm.... doesn't everyone sneer at those videos of partial smith squats?
And why doesn't he count the weight before he turns the camera on?

amazingemmet · 22-03-2009 04:43PM

the drifter wrote: »

do you mean this?

For some info thats Boru. who used to post here:eek:

Isometrics with weights, full ROM

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