Steve Justa’s Iron Isometrics Part 1
Intro
How To Gauge Your Progress
Rep Training High Reps/Medium Reps
Training For Maximum Strength
Holding For Time
Wrap Up
Intro
I love reading and gathering new ideas. One day I’ll make an overcoming isometrics book for all fitness levels with interesting tactics that I have learned about and used over the years.
But for now, I can run you through the most important parts of a book that helped me to think more outside the box when it came to overcoming isometrics. This book is Steve Justa’s “Iron Isometrics.”
Don’t ask why there's tape on the upper left picture….
I first stumbled on Steve through an e-book of his titled, “Rock, Iron, Steel, The Book of Strength”
In Rock Iron Steel I recall he had some interesting approaches to isometrics. One of them was the pairing of lower leg overcoming isometrics and sprinting workout fusion. So, after going through Bobb Hoffman’s “Functional Isometric Contraction” I decided to buy his book on isometrics to see if he had any more interesting ideas.
He did.
There’s a great deal I can cover in the first post but I’ll cover what I believe are the most significant parts that will get us out of a one-dimensional approach to overcoming isometrics.
How To Gauge Your Progress Section
I can summarize this section in that you will feel yourself improving. As I’ve talked about elsewhere if you train consistently and effectively with overcoming isometrics you will feel yourself getting lighter. This feeling of getting lighter will not be as consistent throughout your years of training. All forms of training have their diminishing returns. But it still comes back if I mix up my overcoming isometric training with more rest days or integrating just a handful of burst isometrics reps throughout the day to keep that proper build-up of energy going.
I can attest to the effects that overcoming isometrics will have on your body and movements. However, this may be a tough thing for people to reconcile with given that there is no sure way to quantify your strength improvements. You can gauge it by testing your improvements in your calisthenics movements or by testing weight on the bar. But time will need to be set aside in order to do this. I’m mostly fine with this. After all, not every improvement in our lives can be quantified.
He also said that one could gauge their progress by how quickly they recover between workouts. If you find yourself not being sore and your energy increasing between workouts you can try and turn it up a notch. Stay there for a bit till your get used to it an turn it up another notch.
Application/Example
Currently, when I do my overcoming isometrics I incorporate multiple force generation phases with each position. I start out with three phases and do that for about a week then jump to four. Each week or two I’ll increase that ensuring that I’m performing quality phases of force generation. If I feel lethargic I space out my workouts a little more or take a day off and do something lighter and then I jump right back in. Increase your capacity as you get stronger.
Rep Training High Reps/Medium Reps Section
The rep ranges for generating force that Steve has trained with are off the charts. Keep in mind not all of these reps are of the 8 to 12s generation timeframe.
Some studies just look at a handful of contractions most just measure one. However, I have believed for a little that there needs to be more thinking outside the box when it comes to our training. Although one might run the risk of central nervous system(cns) fatigue there is very little muscle damage and a need for repair with overcoming isometrics. With a form of training that is at the highest level of the force-velocity curve
and has many benefits for your cardiovascular system, If programmed correctly you can turn yourself into an unstoppable working machine.
Steve also talked about having no set routine. If you’re not familiar with it this is called, “Intuitive training” and you go off what you’re feeling that day. If you just wish to be consistent every day then this should work for you. But I would still recommend keeping a log to track what changes occur over time. I’m still not set on intuitive style training I need some type of schedule.
Training For Maximum Strength Section
I covered this in an old post Way back when. But in order to get benefit out of overcoming isometrics there needs to be a decent level of energy and attention. I explain a little bit in this video as to why I place my overcoming isometrics at the beginning of my workout.
Surge reps are a great way to do this as it calls upon a greater amount of focus, force, and mental toughness as the force-generation phase nears its end. But, given that it requires a great deal of output Steve would recommend doing this or any other type of overcoming isometrics with maximum strength as the focus, once or twice a which which I agree with. No need to completely deplete yourself of energy we have other things to do during the week.
Holding For Time
I’ve never experimented with overcoming isometrics over 40 seconds, maybe I should. Overcoming isometrics is a time-efficient way to improve one’s stamina and strength. Why not endurance? Instead of the infrequent tension of a cardio exercise that takes you over an hour to complete. Generating lower levels of tension consistently for minutes will, I think, produce results that are just as good. To make it more exciting one could incorporate a few surge reps within the time that they are generating force.
I’ve practiced something like this on a smaller scale but with burst reps. I’ll be engaged in a 20 to 30-second force generation phase and I’ll try to increase my output ever so slightly every second of that phase.
20 seconds of force generation with 20 burst reps
30 with 30
40 with 20
The possibilities are limitless.
It provides one with a neat way of keeping time without a clock too.
Wrap Up
Overcoming isometrics can be extremely versatile if you use your imagination.
In the next part, I’ll cover
Angles And Positions
Philosophy Of Nerve Power
Building Energy Through Isometrics
Training The Mind
Thank you for making it to the end and let me know your thoughts below.
Until next time.