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When training endurance, most people will usually only increase the reps, sets, or time for each performed exercise or activity. While those are key metrics to adjust in programming in order to increase muscular endurance, there is another method we can use in order to vary, and improve, our muscular endurance overall. This is where Isometrics come into play.
When we talk about Isometric exercises, we are typically talking about holding the portion of an exercise/movement at some point throughout the range of the exercise/movement instead of simply following the traditional pattern in a "timely" manner.
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While someone may be good at performing traditional sets of an exercise, it is more than likely that they will struggle to perform that same exercise when pausing for a while during a portion of the movement. For instance, if you are doing body weight squats, you may be able to crank out dozens before your legs get tired. However, if you put a ten second pause into each rep, when your thighs are parallels to the ground, you'll find your quads burning after a few reps..
It's a different way to challenge your muscles and build strength and endurance. Different methods are always challenging at first, and challenging things are almost always beneficial - as Isometrics are. Below are 5 different exercises, which are extremely applicable to multiple aspects of OCR, with which you can start practicing some Isometric training.
Isometric Chinup:
Isometric Single Leg Bridge:
Isometric Bird Dog:
Isometric Squat:
Isometric Hanging Knee Raise:
Start implementing these exercises into your workouts, and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with the results, and the challenge!
