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Doing Isometrics Before Resistance Training

Using isometric holds as part of your warm-up can be beneficial for:

• Muscle Activation: Isometric exercises can "wake up" the nervous system and prime your muscles for the dynamic movements to come.¹ This can improve the mind-muscle connection and lead to better performance during your main lifts.

• Strengthening Sticking Points: If you have a specific point in a lift where you consistently fail (a "sticking point"), performing an isometric hold at that joint angle before your working sets can help you build strength and stability precisely where you need it most.

• Injury Prevention: By focusing on stability and control without movement, you can warm up the muscles that help stabilize your joints, potentially reducing the risk of injury.² This is particularly useful for people with existing joint issues or those recovering from an injury.³

Doing Isometrics After Resistance Training

Incorporating isometric holds at the end of your workout can be effective for:

• Increasing Time Under Tension: Holding a static position after your dynamic reps can push the muscle to fatigue, promoting muscle growth (hypertrophy).⁴ This is a great way to add intensity to your workout without increasing the weight.

• Pre-Exhausting Muscles: You can use an isometric hold to pre-fatigue a muscle group before a dynamic exercise.⁵ For example, doing a wall sit before a set of squats can force your legs to work harder during the squats, leading to greater muscle activation.

• Improving Muscular Endurance: Holding a position for an extended period, such as a plank or wall sit, trains your muscles to sustain force over time, which directly improves muscular endurance.⁶

• Joint and Tendon Health: Isometric contractions can be beneficial for strengthening tendons and improving joint health without the impact and stress of dynamic movements.⁷ This can be a smart way to work on a specific area without causing further irritation.

Summary

There is no single "right" answer. The ideal time to perform isometric exercises is highly dependent on your goals for that specific workout.

• For strength and performance: Consider using high-intensity, short-duration isometrics before your main lifts to improve neuromuscular activation and overcome sticking points.

• For muscle growth (hypertrophy) and endurance: Use longer-duration isometric holds at the end of your workout to increase time under tension and exhaust the muscles.

You can also integrate them within your resistance training sets, for example, by adding a pause at a key point in a squat or bench press.⁸ This can provide the benefits of both worlds.

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