Isometric exercises at home. The system of isometric and static exercises for muscles
Isometric exercises have been known to people for over a thousand years. Oriental yogis have long used static postures in their practice. The modern history of this gymnastics began at the dawn of the 20th century. Its ancestor is Alexander Zass. Isometric exercises have made the Russian athlete the strongest man in the world.
How it works
The secret of real strongmen is not in the volume of muscle mass, but in strong tendons, for the development of which a set of isometric exercises is used. A big bicep is just a big bicep. In order for a muscle to have strength, it must be supported by bone tissue. This happens only thanks to a strong tendon that makes it move. Tendons grow much more slowly than muscles and only under conditions of static stress.
During the exercise, the muscle tissue is tensed, but not stretched. This is one of the basic principles of muscle growth and strength. During the exercise, the vessels are compressed, and the cells are in a situation of oxygen starvation. As a result, they begin to work hard. As a result, muscles grow and gain strength more intensively than with dynamic exercises.
Advantages
- One of the main advantages is the short training time. Ten to fifteen minutes a day will be enough.
- You do not need special and expensive equipment. You can get by with hand tools.
- With the help of this gymnastics, you can strengthen all muscle groups and tendons, as well as develop flexibility.
- Each isometric exercise is available to perform anywhere and anytime.
- Training does not increase volume, but strength in the body.
- Isometric gymnastics is useful for everyone - from a person in need of rehabilitation to a high-class athlete.
- Isometric exercises do not cause fatigue. They can be done daily, since muscle tissue does not need to recover after an exhausting workout.
Flaws
- At the initial stage, you will need the support of a trainer. It is important to learn how to perform the exercises correctly and not expose yourself to the risk of injury.
- Isometric exercises require not only control over the position of the body, but also over breathing, mood, and the body as a whole.
- The complex of these exercises cannot be independent. To achieve a real result, you must definitely engage in dynamic training.
- The isometric exercise program does not develop coordination.
- In contrast to dynamic training, the cells are less supplied with blood.
- After this gymnastics, the muscles shorten.
- People prone to high blood pressure should be extremely careful with this set of exercises.
Types of exercises and equipment
The system of isometric exercises is conditionally divided into three main complexes: using a bench press, traction and squats. They can also be supplemented by lifting on toes and raising the shoulders.
Isometric exercise becomes most effective when performed on an iron frame. A turret will do too. The main thing is that it should be about 1.2 m wide and 2.3 m high. This device is often available to those who are seriously involved in sports. For the rest, in the form of shells, a doorway frame, a window sill, a wall, a table and a chair, a belt or a rope are suitable.
Technique and safety rules
- Before training, you need to stretch.
- Watch your breathing carefully. Start the exercise only while inhaling. Breathing should be deep and calm.
- Attention should be focused on the whole body.
- Build strength as you do the exercise.
- For beginners, it will be enough to linger in a static position for 3-5 seconds. For advanced - no more than 2-3 minutes.
- Strive to do the exercise correctly from the very first workout. Retraining will take much longer than the initial setting of the technique.
- If you feel a sharp pain, the exercise must be stopped. After a short pause, you can try to do the exercise again, but more smoothly and with less pressure.
Alexander Zass was recognized as the most powerful man in the world, and so far no one has surpassed him. He was not a hero in the usual sense for us - 160 cm tall and no more than 80 kg of weight. The strongman built up muscle mass solely for the sake of the audience, which demanded entertainment.
The Americans called Alexander the Great Samson for his strength and began to adopt his system of exercises. The basic principles that the athlete adhered to in his training are proper breathing, muscle control, willpower and, as a result, tendon strength.
Samson's isometric exercises still underlie almost every complex of this gymnastics, and especially exercises with a chain (belt).
Bruce Lee system
Bruce Lee became a legend of his time and a role model for street boys and professional athletes. The extraordinary abilities of the actor were not achieved by training in the gym, but by using the power of static.
At the dawn of his career, Bruce Lee experienced, in his opinion, a lack of strength and endurance. He began to look for a way to fix it - he read a lot, talked with professionals, turned to bodybuilding. There are suggestions that he took Zass's isometric exercises as a basis, but this fact remains unproven. As a result, he created his own concept of training for the development of strength.
Bruce Lee's isometric exercises are available even for a beginner. Everyone is familiar with exercises such as lunges, squats, scissors, pull-ups, push-ups from the floor and walls. It is worth starting to perform them according to the rules of isometric gymnastics, and you are engaged in the Bruce Lee system.
- Exercises should be performed early in the morning, because they charge you with energy for the whole day. Performed in the evening, they will not let you fall asleep.
- Ventilate the room first. Deep breathing plays a significant role and accompanies every isometric exercise. Therefore, it is better if the air is clean and fresh.
- During the execution of the complex, imagine that you are breathing with your skin, with every cell.
- After gymnastics, take a contrast shower.
Universal set of exercises
The basis of this complex was the isometric exercises of Bruce Lee. Beginners are not recommended to stay in a static position for more than 5 seconds. Gradually, the tension time increases. After each exercise, a break of one minute is required. The minimum number of approaches is 2-3 times. Maximum - 6 times. The duration of the workout should not exceed 20 minutes.
- Standing position, legs straight, head looking straight, elbows slightly bent. Hands are raised up and put pressure on the frame of the doorway.
- We squat and keep the resistance with our hands to the frame. Thus, the arms are stretched upwards and seem to be repelled, and the whole body is directed downwards.
- We rise on our toes. The exercise strengthens the calves, thigh muscles and buttocks.
- We strengthen the neck. To do this, stand with your back to the wall, hands on the belt. Press the back of the head on a previously placed small pillow.
- Repeat the previous exercise, resisting the wall with your forehead.
- The elbows of the hands rest on a hard surface. The palms are connected as if for prayer and press one on the other.
- Repeat the previous exercise, but the fingers provide resistance.
- Hands to the sides, rest against the door frame.
- Pressure on the top of the frame with one hand, then with the other. The arm is bent at the elbow.
- Hands are straight. Resistance with two hands on the top of the frame.
- Attach the object to the frame and pull it down with both hands.
- Sitting position on the floor. The legs are slightly bent at the knees and resist the wall or door frame.
Isometric exercises at home and at work
For urban residents, a sedentary lifestyle today is a sad reality. The blessings of civilization provide us with a minimum number of movements, and the busy rhythm of life often leaves no time and energy to visit the gym.
However, there is a way out. Isometric exercise - easy to perform even at your desk. The complex below will allow not only to stretch the muscles without leaving the computer, but also to develop and strengthen them. Calculate your strength when doing gymnastics - treat your office furniture with care!
- The arms are extended and gently press with bent fingers on the table.
- The arms are bent at the elbows, the palms are clenched into fists. The knuckles press down on the table.
- With your palms, press on the table top from below, as if trying to tear it off.
- Cross your legs. Now try to raise the tabletop with your knee.
- Hands behind your back. Hugging the back of the chair, lean forward.
- Bend over. Hands firmly hold the legs of the chair. Brace yourself and try to lift yourself up in the chair.
- Elbows on the table, palms rest on the forehead. Press your head into your hands, trying to overcome the resistance.
- Elbows in the same position, palms rest on the chin. Try to keep your head down.
- Clasp your hands and place them on the back of your neck. Hands tilt the head forward, the head resists.
Gymnastics for women
Many of the fair sex take up one or another set of exercises in the hope of losing weight. Isometric gymnastics can be a good helper in this matter. During muscle work, calories are actively burned. For the female body, this type of exercise is ideal. The body does not pump, the veins do not protrude. But the figure looks taut, elastic.
- Starting position - standing. Put the straightened leg back, bend the other leg 90 degrees. Hands on the supporting limb. Repeat the same for the other leg.
- Lie on your back, stretch your arms up. As you exhale, pull your chest up to the ceiling.
- In the supine position, put the right foot on the left knee. Grab your left thigh with both hands and pull up.
- Lying on the right side, raise the left leg by 10-15 centimeters and hold in this position. Repeat on the other leg.
- Standing, legs apart as wide as possible. Bend your knees at a 90 degree angle and hold this pose.
Most often, isometric exercises for women are used in order to improve or maintain the shape of the breasts. However, don't expect quick results. Stock up on patience. Patience, regularity and hard work are the keys to success.
- Hands in front of the chest, bent at the elbows. The palms are folded as if for prayer and press each other with maximum force.
- Hands in front of you, pull them forward.
- Hands hold on to opposite edges of the tabletop. We are trying to bring one hand closer to the other.
- Hands are clasped behind the back. You should try to raise them as high as possible.
- The arms are outstretched to the sides, slightly behind the shoulders. We are trying to reduce the shoulder blades, pull the chest forward.
- The chair is behind you with your legs at a ninety degree angle. With your arms bent at the elbows, lean on a chair.
Isometric exercises with a belt
To perform this set of exercises developed by Zass, you will need a strong medium-width belt. Its ideal length for training is two meters. You can also use rope, but it should be strong and thick enough not to slip off or dig into your palms. When using a chain, the risk of injury is also high.
- Hold one end of the belt firmly with your foot. The arm is bent at the elbow and holds the other end. We pull our hand up. Repeat the same for the other hand.
- Place your feet in the middle of the belt. The arms are bent at an angle of 45 degrees and hold onto the ends of the projectile. We try our best to bend our arms as much as possible.
- Legs on a belt, half-bent at the knees. Hands are raised above the head and stretch up as much as possible.
- Feet on the belt, arms extended in front of you. We raise our hands up.
- Throw the belt over the crossbar, hands firmly holding its ends. Hands to the sides, lowered slightly below the shoulders. We pull our hands down.
Spiritual aspect of gymnastics
Body and spirit are one. Even the ancient yogis had no doubts about this. This truth has now been scientifically proven. Bringing into tone our own body, we fill the spirit with energy. By focusing attention on the bodily aspect of existence, the mind is freed and purified. Balance in the body harmonizes the psychological state. Receptivity to our body makes us receptive to the world.
For those who are far from yoga, isometric gymnastics is perfect as a practice to strengthen the body and spirit.
Spine without pain Igor Anatolyevich Borshchenko
Isometric gymnastics for the thoracic spine
Exercises that are performed while standing or sitting
In the thoracic spine, small deep back muscles, which are easily subject to muscle spasm, are of particular importance in the appearance of pain. In addition, most of these muscles cause rotational movements of the vertebrae relative to each other. That is why in scoliosis, when there is a pathological reversal of the vertebrae, so often pain occurs in the muscles of the thoracic spine. The following exercises: "Karate", "Ballerina - turn in different directions" and "Ballerina - turn in one direction" - cause isometric tension and stretching of the deep muscles of the back in the position of rotation of the spine. This rotation is slow, therefore absolutely safe for the ligaments and joints of the spine. The easiest exercise for the spine is "Karate", the most difficult is "Ballerina - turn in one direction."
Exercise "Karate"
Starting position - standing or sitting on a chair. The hands are clenched into fists and bent at the elbow joints at a right angle, the posture resembles the position of a karate wrestler before a strike. The head is straight, the gaze is directed forward and slightly up. The muscles of the abdomen and back are slightly tense, supporting the lumbar curve.
Slowly straighten one arm forward, the movement is similar to a karate strike. At the same time, take the other hand back. The head and lumbar spine remain motionless. Hold this position of isometric tension for 5-20 seconds. Then slowly reverse the position of your hands and hold the position for 5-20 seconds. Repeat this exercise 1-3 times.
Exercise "Ballerina - turn in different directions"
Slowly turn your closed hands to one side, the head remains in place. Hold this position for 5 seconds, after which, without changing the position of your hands, slowly turn your head in the opposite direction. Also hold this position for 5 seconds. Finally, take a neutral starting position, and then repeat the exercise in the opposite direction. The total number of repetitions is 1-3.
Exercise "Ballerina - turn in one direction"
Starting position - standing or sitting. Hands are locked in front of you at chest level. The gaze is directed forward.
Slowly turn your closed hands to one side, the head remains in place. Hold this position for 5 seconds, after which, without changing the position of the hands, slowly turn your head in the same direction. Also hold this position for 5 seconds. Finally, take a neutral starting position, and then repeat the exercise in the opposite direction. The total number of repetitions is 1-3.
When performing these three exercises, not only the thoracic, but also the cervical and lumbar vertebrae are involved. Therefore, you can safely include these exercises in the complex of cervical and lumbar gymnastics. We especially recommend these exercises for workers in sedentary professions.
Exercise "Japanese greeting"
Starting position - standing or sitting. You have probably seen how people in Southeast Asia greet each other. They fold their palms in front of them at chest level. Do the same.
press your palms against each other for 10-30 seconds. So you create resistance, and the pectoral muscles tense up. Pressure should not be started and ended abruptly.
The second phase of the exercise - stretching of the muscles at the end of the pressure. For this you need a doorway. Put your hands on the edges of the doorway, hold on to them. Without pressing on the opening, move your torso forward. Stretch your chest muscles in this position for 10-30 seconds. Pain during the exercise is not allowed - if you feel pain, stop the exercise.
Exercise "Castle"
Starting position - standing or sitting. Join the palms in the lock at chest level, while the hands are at a distance of about 10 cm from the chest.
Isometric tension phase: stretch your arms for 10-30 seconds, holding with your fingers interlocked. Pay attention to how the back muscles tense up, especially between the shoulder blades.
The second phase of the exercise - Crick. Grab the elbow of the other with one hand and pull your arm towards you for 10-30 seconds. You will feel how the muscles of the shoulder, shoulder joint, shoulder blades and back are stretched in this position. Pain during the exercise is not allowed - if you feel pain, stop the exercise. Repeat the stretch on the other side, grabbing the elbow of the opposite arm.
Exercise "Wings"
The exercise is performed in three phases. This is a very useful exercise for patients with diseases of the respiratory system (they definitely need a preliminary consultation with a pulmonologist), since the muscles of the chest are directly involved in the act of breathing. When performing the exercise, it is necessary to coordinate movements and phases of breathing.
Starting position - standing.
The first phase of the exercise- Slow inhalation while raising hands. At the highest point, when the breath reaches its greatest depth, and the arms are raised to the maximum, hold your breath for 2-3 seconds.
The second phase of the exercise- Slow lowering of the arms while continuing to hold the breath while inhaling. Try to hold the air in your chest with your arms down for 2-3 seconds.
The third phase of the exercise– exhale slowly with complete relaxation.
The Wings exercise is mostly dynamic, the static part is just holding the breath. At this moment, the lung tissue is stretched, which favorably affects respiration and oxygen exchange. The total number of repetitions of the exercise is from 3 to 5 times. The exercise should be performed smoothly, without pronounced tension, enjoying the breath. You can not do this exercise daily, so as not to overstretch the lung tissue.
Sedentary workers can perform the Wings exercise while sitting on a chair.
Exercise "Door"
Another exercise with the door. It will help you strengthen the lateral muscles of the back, including the largest - the latissimus dorsi. The exercise is performed in two phases. It resembles the movement when opening a door.
Starting position - standing.
The first phase of the exercise lateral muscle tension. You will need a sturdy, stable object to pull on, such as a wall bar or the handle of a locked door. If there is nothing suitable around, pull yourself by the opposite knee - in this case, the exercise is performed in a sitting position. The essence of the exercise is the tension of the lateral muscles of the back. You will feel it the moment you do it. Pull towards you for 10-20 seconds.
The second phase of the exercise is stretching the lateral muscles. Stand up straight, raise your arms and in this position, tilt to the side. In this way, you will stretch the lateral muscles of the back, which were involved in the first part of the exercise. Stretch while inhaling. To increase the amount of stretching, you can take the hand that “opened” the door in the first phase of the exercise with the other hand by the wrist and pull it towards you, thus creating an additional stretching of the lateral muscles of the back. Stretch your muscles for 5-10 seconds. Do the exercise on the other side. The total number of repetitions is up to 3.
Complicated version of the exercise
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If you don't run while you're healthy,
you have to run when you get sick.
Do no harm!
Latin saying
Author's introduction
How often do we hear from doctors: "It is necessary to strengthen the spine ... We need to do gymnastics and exercises ... Now strengthen the back!" Patients echo them: “I am ready to practice. Show me what exercises to do. Tomorrow I will sign up for a fitness club!”
Indeed, most people intuitively understand that health is associated with a certain physical activity, and it is desirable to receive it during special classes. It is at this point that many questions arise that can become an insurmountable obstacle to health.
How to practice? Go to the gym or start exercising at home? The last question is by no means idle: yoga, Pilates, callanetics, aerobics, water aerobics, fitness with an instructor, training on simulators, or, finally, just physical therapy in a clinic. Here is a far from complete list of the various recreational activities that life offers. And there is also a favorite job that takes up the lion's share of time, and morning laziness, when you just want to soak up in bed ...
As a result, the choice falls on the section of exotic classes according to the Indian guru system with an unpronounceable name. And it's good when these classes will be useful. And if after a week there is pain and a sharp exacerbation of diseases, most people stop training, and the myth of a healthy lifestyle is dispelled like the smell of a cold dinner.
The other extreme is a complete unwillingness to engage. “I run like crazy at work, that’s enough…” or “I’m busy with physical labor, physical education is superfluous.” Such arguments, of course, can be understood, but we should not forget that the physical and emotional stress from the main job - unless, of course, you are a fitness trainer - is the wrong load.
The daily work of a storekeeper, or a worker, or a cook gives a load only to individual muscle groups, wearing out overloaded joints and cartilage! The spine, your muscles, all joints need, they just require a special correct load, safe movements and a cyclical rhythm of classes.
Among the conscious part of the population, there is another group of eager occupations, who believe that the more the better. How often do I have to listen to the stories of ardent connoisseurs of sports that someone worked out too hard and broke his back. Either after another workout, a herniated disc appeared, or after the operation everything was fine, but I began to work out - and the pain returned. These are stories about those who practiced, but used the wrong load, that is, they were engaged in exercises that did harm, not benefit. And here, by the way, the well-known advertisement is recalled, paraphrasing the slogan of which we can say: not all exercises are equally useful, and some are harmful, and even forbidden for you.
Imagine the crossroads that a patient stands at after spinal surgery, or a person who was diagnosed with a herniated disc, but, fortunately, the operation was not required. On the one hand, there is a need and desire to exercise, on the other hand, there is a fear that physical education can worsen an already precarious state of health.
And what do the eyes of these anxious people see? Both the shelves of bookstores and Internet sites are filled with literature where exercises are performed by healthy young people who do not need physiotherapy exercises at all, and only athletes can do the exercises themselves.
What exercises to choose for classes? In what mode should they be performed? What exercises will give an effect in the pathology of a certain part of the spine?
This book contains answers to your questions and a detailed course of unique isometric gymnastics for people suffering from diseases of the spine.
The situation is extremely reminiscent of cosmetics advertising, when a young model shows off wrinkle cream, which she never had. And if a person who has arthrosis, or severe osteochondrosis of the spine, or even more so a herniated disc, imitates these models and follows programs that are clearly sports-oriented, no matter how sad it is to admit, such classes will not bring success, but will bring a result opposite to the expected , - the rejection of an active lifestyle. Next comes weight gain, a comfortable sofa, an increase in well-being, a more comfortable car, and the vicious circle closes: immobility causes diseases that support physical inactivity.
This book is addressed to those who already have problems with the spine and joints. Those patients who have undergone surgery in the area of the musculoskeletal system, those who feel the need for classes with age, but do not know where to start. The epigraph to this book was the well-known Latin saying: Non nocere! Do no harm! Physical education can be not only a pleasure, but also a medicine, which, as you know, has a certain dose.
After reading this book, you will begin to better understand the most common diseases of the spine and joints, which will allow you to navigate the modern flow of medical information and not drown in advertising.
I sincerely wish the readers health and success!
Igor Borshchenko
Why isometric
To understand the essence of the isometric gymnastics method, I suggest you plunge into the interesting world of the physiology of muscle contraction, that is, find out how the muscles of our body work with you. Carry out the simplest experiment: expose your shoulder so that your biceps are visible, and put your other hand on it. Begin to slowly bend your bare arm at the elbow - you will feel a contraction of the biceps. The weight of the arm remains the same, so the muscle is tensed more or less evenly during movement.
This muscle contraction is called isotonic Greek isos - equal). This mode of operation leads to movement - in fact, for which the muscle is intended. But note that not only the muscle moves, but also the bones and joints. They are the weak link that wears out the fastest. Joint cartilage is one of the most vulnerable tissues in the body. There are no blood vessels in it, so cartilage is fed very slowly due to diffusion - “soaking” nutrients from neighboring bones and, unfortunately, for this reason, it is practically not restored.
Active movements, and even with a load, seriously load the articular cartilage. Everyone knows how joints hurt in people of hard physical labor: exorbitant work overloads the joints, and the cartilage layer becomes thinner, “erased”, causing the bones to literally creak. Osteoarthritis is the name of a joint disease associated with the aging of articular cartilage. Each movement in such a joint can cause pain, so the movement is limited, and you have to say goodbye to gymnastics.
Is there really no way out? Fortunately, this is not the case. Let's try to continue our simple physiological experiments. Try to tighten the biceps of the shoulder so that the forearm and shoulder remain motionless. Do you feel muscle tension? Of course, but at the same time the hand is motionless, there is no movement in the joint. This mode of operation is called isometric. A regimen that both saves your joints and trains muscle fibers, leaving the joy of movement for years to come!
Isometric contraction is the tension of a muscle without its movement.
Every movement, like a shadow, is followed by fatigue and fatigue, and the desire for relaxation and rest invariably leads to the cessation of classes. Here you are after our experiments, relax your shoulder and let your arm hang down freely, like a tree branch - feel the degree of muscle relaxation and remember this feeling. Let's move on to the last experiment.
Start bending the elbow joint of one arm, and try to keep it from moving with the other - this is the isometric bicep tension you already know. Hold this position for twenty seconds. Now quickly come back to the wall, place the palm of your working hand on the wall with your fingers down and slowly squat, keeping your arm straight. Do you feel a stretch in your biceps? Yes, it is a strong and even a little painful, but a pleasant feeling.
Stretch your arm for no more than 10 seconds. Now relax and lower your hand down. I am sure that now you feel the relaxation of the biceps much more than after normal bending. This condition has received a special name - post-isometric relaxation which you have just learned how to do on your own. I think it becomes clear to you that stretching and relaxing muscles after isometric tension is much more effective than regular sipping.
So, isometric gymnastics is based on muscle tension WITHOUT MOVEMENT. It preserves the joints, prevents wear of the articular cartilage and the progression of arthrosis. In many exercises, the isometric contraction phase is followed by the stretch phase. This is an effective technique that relaxes the muscle, relieves muscle spasm and has a pronounced analgesic effect. Remember how pleasant it is to stretch after a long sitting - isometric gymnastics will both train and relax the target muscle - the one that needs to be loaded precisely with your pathology or problem.
Conclusions:
Isometric contraction of a muscle is its tension without movement in the joint.
Isometric gymnastics, strengthening muscles, spares joints and cartilage.
Muscle stretching after isometric tension (post-isometric relaxation) is an effective method of muscle relaxation and pain relief.
Isometric gymnastics for the spine
Proud camp, divine bend
A proud camp, a divine bend - these are the epithets that poets reward beauties and handsome men. With these words, everyone imagines their own ideal, which has smooth curves of the body, and above all of the spine. We evaluate the concept of "beauty" mainly by the subconscious, which connects it with physiological expediency.
That is why a person who has smooth curves of the spine seems beautiful to us, while at the same time an excessive chest curve - a hump - seems ugly. A smoothly defined curve of the lower back, turning into developed buttocks, attracts the opposite sex, and vice versa - flat backs and everything below do not pay attention to themselves.
A person is so arranged that the smooth curves of the spine support the normal functioning of the body. By the end of the first year of life, the baby begins to walk, and gravity forms three natural bends: cervical and lumbar lordosis - forward bends; thoracic curve backwards - kyphosis. It is these bends that absorb and soften the vertical loads transmitted to the spine with each step.
Imagine what concussions would be transmitted to the spinal cord in a straight spine when walking! It is only thanks to the vertebral bends that we do not feel the vibration of each step in our head. The curvature of the spine is also important for the normal functioning of the intervertebral discs. You can read about how the intervertebral disc is arranged and what diseases develop in it in my book “Smart Spine System”. Here we note that a healthy intervertebral disc is very elastic, and it can be compressed from different sides, like a tennis ball. Thus, adjacent vertebrae act on the disc.
If you squeeze the ball evenly, then it springs perfectly - this is exactly what happens if the curves of the spine are preserved. But as soon as the back bend becomes much larger or smaller than normal, the disc begins to shrink unevenly, one of its parts is overloaded and literally bursts - this is how osteochondrosis of the spine or disc herniation begins. I think you yourself can now explain why, after sleeping on a hard bed or on the floor, the back starts to hurt - the natural curves of the spine are aligned, the intervertebral joints and ligaments are overloaded, and as a result, a “broken” back in the morning ...
That is why in isometric gymnastics we pay great attention to maintaining the natural curves of the spine. On the other hand, we avoid excessive, unnatural flexion or extension of the spine. Excessive notorious flexibility - the so-called gutta-percha - is not needed for a healthy spine. And senile changes in the spines of young gymnasts are proof of this.
Move to the edge of the seat periodically. By moving forward, you change position and do small but physical work. Also, when you sit on the edge of the seat, it forces you to maintain proper posture.
How to maintain the natural curves of the spine
To maintain the natural curves of the spine during isometric gymnastics, special starting positions are used. In particular, in a horizontal position lying on the back under the neck or under the lower back, one's own hand is often placed as an emphasis for the spine. Starting positions such as "Corset" or "Control" (see the description of the exercises) are also necessary to maintain the lumbar curve.
In cases where the hands are involved in the exercise, rollers from a small towel are used to maintain the bends, which is easy to have on hand. By the way, you can use the same roll to support your lower back during a long journey in a car or plane, with this simple technique to avoid back pain at your destination.
It is important to say that many exercises in the isometric gymnastics system are aimed at developing and strengthening natural curves and developing spinal stabilizers. Which ones, you will learn in the next chapter.
Conclusions:
Smooth curves of the cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine are necessary conditions for maintaining a healthy back and neck.
Isometric gymnastics shapes and maintains the natural curves of the spine.
Lumbar stabilizers. What is common between the spine and the Ostankino tower
Even the most beautiful tower without a strong foundation or external support will be at your feet. We all remember how the Ostankino television tower fell a few years ago, and only the restoration of powerful steel stabilizer cables saved it from destruction.
The spine is also a tower that needs support. And if the thoracic spine is reinforced with a rib cage, the neck only supports the head, then the weight of the whole body, including the arms, is transferred to the mobile and therefore vulnerable lumbar spine. The pyramid of the lumbar vertebrae would easily “spread” in different directions if it didn’t have powerful stabilizers – namely, the back muscles that pull the spine back and the abdominal muscles that pull the spine forward. The balance of these forces, like on a pharmacy scale, keeps the spine in a stable, upright position.
Leg exercises are one of the most important exercises for fitness training. This is because the leg muscles are the largest and strongest muscles in our body.
And also characteristic... Without seeing the face of a person walking in the distance, someone close or familiar can be identified by their gait - a special manner of moving on their own two feet.
Women who want to attract interested male looks and the envious gaze of potential rivals wear high heels that visually lengthen and keep the leg muscles in tension.
Ladies of any age are not indifferent to muscular male legs. How can you rely on a male if he stands uncertainly on his own two?
Therefore, both men who dream of a sports figure and success with beauties, and women who want to awaken macho dreams, simply cannot do without increased attention to leg muscles.
They have not yet come up with more effective movements for them than various types of squats. But it’s great to keep fit, supplement dynamic workouts, and isometric exercises for leg muscles can act as full-fledged “independent players” of fitness.
The benefits have already been described many times, so let's get straight to the point.
1) Starting position - standing on straight limbs. Try to tighten all the muscles. Do not overdo it with your knees (you can feel discomfort, or even get injured if there are certain problems).
2) Standing, legs - shoulder width apart, slightly bent. Try to spread the lower limbs to the sides due to the tension of the quadriceps and biceps of the thigh.
3) The position is similar to the previous one, only the feet are slightly wider than the shoulders. The opposite movement is an attempt to move them.
4) In a standing position, the left leg is slightly forward and to the left, the right leg is back and to the right. Try to move the left foot forward-left, the right foot back-right. Then change the starting position - the right leg is slightly extended, and the left, respectively, behind.
5) Standing, left foot - one foot in front of the right, between them - the distance of half a foot. Try to move the left forward, the right back. Then change legs.
6) A variation of the previous posture. The foot, which is behind, rests against the wall. Push it into an obstacle. Then a change in the position of the limbs.
7) The position is similar to pose 5. An attempt to move the leg that is in front backwards and forward - which is behind.
8) Sitting on a chair or in an armchair, due to the tension of the quadriceps, straighten the lower limbs.
9) Also sitting, but the feet rest against an obstacle, for example, a table. Tighten your quadriceps in an attempt to straighten your knees.
10) Sitting on a chair, rest your heels on his legs. Press on the obstacle by contracting the hamstrings.
11) Stand on tiptoe. Tighten your calf muscles as much as possible.
12) Get on your heels. Keeping your hand on the chair to maintain balance, raise your socks as high as possible.
When doing the proposed exercises, carefully monitor your knees, especially if, straining, you are trying to straighten your limbs as much as possible.
The muscles of the legs, until you gain sufficient experience, try to strain not due to the application of efforts to external obstacles, but due to arbitrary tension. The obstacle should serve only as a kind of "boiling point" that helps to feel the muscles.
Current page: 1 (total book has 6 pages) [accessible reading passage: 2 pages]
Igor Borshchenko
Spine without pain. Isometric gymnastics course
If you don't run while you're healthy,
you have to run when you get sick.
Horace
Do no harm!
Latin saying
Author's introduction
How often do we hear from doctors: "It is necessary to strengthen the spine ... We need to do gymnastics and exercises ... Now strengthen the back!" Patients echo them: “I am ready to practice. Show me what exercises to do. Tomorrow I will sign up for a fitness club!”
Indeed, most people intuitively understand that health is associated with a certain physical activity, and it is desirable to receive it during special classes. It is at this point that many questions arise that can become an insurmountable obstacle to health.
How to practice? Go to the gym or start exercising at home? The last question is by no means idle: yoga, Pilates, callanetics, aerobics, water aerobics, fitness with an instructor, training on simulators, or, finally, just physical therapy in a clinic. Here is a far from complete list of the various recreational activities that life offers. And there is also a favorite job that takes up the lion's share of time, and morning laziness, when you just want to soak up in bed ...
As a result, the choice falls on the section of exotic classes according to the Indian guru system with an unpronounceable name. And it's good when these classes will be useful. And if after a week there is pain and a sharp exacerbation of diseases, most people stop training, and the myth of a healthy lifestyle is dispelled like the smell of a cold dinner.
The other extreme is a complete unwillingness to engage. “I run like crazy at work, that’s enough…” or “I’m busy with physical labor, physical education is superfluous.” Such arguments, of course, can be understood, but we should not forget that the physical and emotional stress from the main job - unless, of course, you are a fitness trainer - is the wrong load.
The daily work of a storekeeper, or a worker, or a cook gives a load only to individual muscle groups, wearing out overloaded joints and cartilage! The spine, your muscles, all joints need, they just require a special correct load, safe movements and a cyclical rhythm of classes.
Among the conscious part of the population, there is another group of eager occupations, who believe that the more the better. How often do I have to listen to the stories of ardent connoisseurs of sports that someone worked out too hard and broke his back. Either after another workout, a herniated disc appeared, or after the operation everything was fine, but I began to work out - and the pain returned. These are stories about those who practiced, but used the wrong load, that is, they were engaged in exercises that did harm, not benefit. And here, by the way, the well-known advertisement is recalled, paraphrasing the slogan of which we can say: not all exercises are equally useful, and some are harmful, and even forbidden for you.
Imagine the crossroads that a patient stands at after spinal surgery, or a person who was diagnosed with a herniated disc, but, fortunately, the operation was not required. On the one hand, there is a need and desire to exercise, on the other hand, there is a fear that physical education can worsen an already precarious state of health.
And what do the eyes of these anxious people see? Both the shelves of bookstores and Internet sites are filled with literature where exercises are performed by healthy young people who do not need physiotherapy exercises at all, and only athletes can do the exercises themselves.
What exercises to choose for classes? In what mode should they be performed? What exercises will give an effect in the pathology of a certain part of the spine?
This book contains answers to your questions and a detailed course of unique isometric gymnastics for people suffering from diseases of the spine.
The situation is extremely reminiscent of cosmetics advertising, when a young model shows off wrinkle cream, which she never had. And if a person who has arthrosis, or severe osteochondrosis of the spine, or even more so a herniated disc, imitates these models and follows programs that are clearly sports-oriented, no matter how sad it is to admit, such classes will not bring success, but will bring a result opposite to the expected , - the rejection of an active lifestyle. Next comes weight gain, a comfortable sofa, an increase in well-being, a more comfortable car, and the vicious circle closes: immobility causes diseases that support physical inactivity.
This book is addressed to those who already have problems with the spine and joints. Those patients who have undergone surgery in the area of the musculoskeletal system, those who feel the need for classes with age, but do not know where to start. The epigraph to this book was the well-known Latin saying: Non nocere! Do no harm! Physical education can be not only a pleasure, but also a medicine, which, as you know, has a certain dose.
After reading this book, you will begin to better understand the most common diseases of the spine and joints, which will allow you to navigate the modern flow of medical information and not drown in advertising.
I sincerely wish the readers health and success!
Igor Borshchenko
Why isometric
To understand the essence of the isometric gymnastics method, I suggest you plunge into the interesting world of the physiology of muscle contraction, that is, find out how the muscles of our body work with you. Carry out the simplest experiment: expose your shoulder so that your biceps are visible, and put your other hand on it. Begin to slowly bend your bare arm at the elbow - you will feel a contraction of the biceps. The weight of the arm remains the same, so the muscle is tensed more or less evenly during movement.
This muscle contraction is called isotonic Greek isos - equal). This mode of operation leads to movement - in fact, for which the muscle is intended. But note that not only the muscle moves, but also the bones and joints. They are the weak link that wears out the fastest. Joint cartilage is one of the most vulnerable tissues in the body. There are no blood vessels in it, so cartilage is fed very slowly due to diffusion - “soaking” nutrients from neighboring bones and, unfortunately, for this reason, it is practically not restored.
Active movements, and even with a load, seriously load the articular cartilage. Everyone knows how joints hurt in people of hard physical labor: exorbitant work overloads the joints, and the cartilage layer becomes thinner, “erased”, causing the bones to literally creak. Osteoarthritis is the name of a joint disease associated with the aging of articular cartilage. Each movement in such a joint can cause pain, so the movement is limited, and you have to say goodbye to gymnastics.
Is there really no way out? Fortunately, this is not the case. Let's try to continue our simple physiological experiments. Try to tighten the biceps of the shoulder so that the forearm and shoulder remain motionless. Do you feel muscle tension? Of course, but at the same time the hand is motionless, there is no movement in the joint. This mode of operation is called isometric. A regimen that both saves your joints and trains muscle fibers, leaving the joy of movement for years to come!
Isometric contraction is the tension of a muscle without its movement.
Every movement, like a shadow, is followed by fatigue and fatigue, and the desire for relaxation and rest invariably leads to the cessation of classes. Here you are after our experiments, relax your shoulder and let your arm hang down freely, like a tree branch - feel the degree of muscle relaxation and remember this feeling. Let's move on to the last experiment.
Start bending the elbow joint of one arm, and try to keep it from moving with the other - this is the isometric bicep tension you already know. Hold this position for twenty seconds. Now quickly come back to the wall, place the palm of your working hand on the wall with your fingers down and slowly squat, keeping your arm straight. Do you feel a stretch in your biceps? Yes, it is a strong and even a little painful, but a pleasant feeling.
Stretch your arm for no more than 10 seconds. Now relax and lower your hand down. I am sure that now you feel the relaxation of the biceps much more than after normal bending. This condition has received a special name - post-isometric relaxation which you have just learned how to do on your own. I think it becomes clear to you that stretching and relaxing muscles after isometric tension is much more effective than regular sipping.
So, isometric gymnastics is based on muscle tension WITHOUT MOVEMENT. It preserves the joints, prevents wear of the articular cartilage and the progression of arthrosis. In many exercises, the isometric contraction phase is followed by the stretch phase. This is an effective technique that relaxes the muscle, relieves muscle spasm and has a pronounced analgesic effect. Remember how pleasant it is to stretch after a long sitting - isometric gymnastics will both train and relax the target muscle - the one that needs to be loaded precisely with your pathology or problem.
Conclusions:
Isometric contraction of a muscle is its tension without movement in the joint.
Isometric gymnastics, strengthening muscles, spares joints and cartilage.
Muscle stretching after isometric tension (post-isometric relaxation) is an effective method of muscle relaxation and pain relief.
Isometric gymnastics for the spine
Proud camp, divine bend
A proud camp, a divine bend - these are the epithets that poets reward beauties and handsome men. With these words, everyone imagines their own ideal, which has smooth curves of the body, and above all of the spine. We evaluate the concept of "beauty" mainly by the subconscious, which connects it with physiological expediency.
That is why a person who has smooth curves of the spine seems beautiful to us, while at the same time an excessive chest curve - a hump - seems ugly. A smoothly defined curve of the lower back, turning into developed buttocks, attracts the opposite sex, and vice versa - flat backs and everything below do not pay attention to themselves.
A person is so arranged that the smooth curves of the spine support the normal functioning of the body. By the end of the first year of life, the baby begins to walk, and gravity forms three natural bends: cervical and lumbar lordosis - forward bends; thoracic curve backwards - kyphosis. It is these bends that absorb and soften the vertical loads transmitted to the spine with each step.
Imagine what concussions would be transmitted to the spinal cord in a straight spine when walking! It is only thanks to the vertebral bends that we do not feel the vibration of each step in our head. The curvature of the spine is also important for the normal functioning of the intervertebral discs. You can read about how the intervertebral disc is arranged and what diseases develop in it in my book “Smart Spine System”. Here we note that a healthy intervertebral disc is very elastic, and it can be compressed from different sides, like a tennis ball. Thus, adjacent vertebrae act on the disc.
If you squeeze the ball evenly, then it springs perfectly - this is exactly what happens if the curves of the spine are preserved. But as soon as the back bend becomes much larger or smaller than normal, the disc begins to shrink unevenly, one of its parts is overloaded and literally bursts - this is how osteochondrosis of the spine or disc herniation begins. I think you yourself can now explain why, after sleeping on a hard bed or on the floor, the back starts to hurt - the natural curves of the spine are aligned, the intervertebral joints and ligaments are overloaded, and as a result, a “broken” back in the morning ...
That is why in isometric gymnastics we pay great attention to maintaining the natural curves of the spine. On the other hand, we avoid excessive, unnatural flexion or extension of the spine. Excessive notorious flexibility - the so-called gutta-percha - is not needed for a healthy spine. And senile changes in the spines of young gymnasts are proof of this.
Move to the edge of the seat periodically. By moving forward, you change position and do small but physical work. Also, when you sit on the edge of the seat, it forces you to maintain proper posture.
How to maintain the natural curves of the spine
To maintain the natural curves of the spine during isometric gymnastics, special starting positions are used. In particular, in a horizontal position lying on the back under the neck or under the lower back, one's own hand is often placed as an emphasis for the spine. Starting positions such as "Corset" or "Control" (see the description of the exercises) are also necessary to maintain the lumbar curve.
In cases where the hands are involved in the exercise, rollers from a small towel are used to maintain the bends, which is easy to have on hand. By the way, you can use the same roll to support your lower back during a long journey in a car or plane, with this simple technique to avoid back pain at your destination.
It is important to say that many exercises in the isometric gymnastics system are aimed at developing and strengthening natural curves and developing spinal stabilizers. Which ones, you will learn in the next chapter.
Conclusions:
Smooth curves of the cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine are necessary conditions for maintaining a healthy back and neck.
Isometric gymnastics shapes and maintains the natural curves of the spine.
Lumbar stabilizers. What is common between the spine and the Ostankino tower
Even the most beautiful tower without a strong foundation or external support will be at your feet. We all remember how the Ostankino television tower fell a few years ago, and only the restoration of powerful steel stabilizer cables saved it from destruction.
The spine is also a tower that needs support. And if the thoracic spine is reinforced with a rib cage, the neck only supports the head, then the weight of the whole body, including the arms, is transferred to the mobile and therefore vulnerable lumbar spine. The pyramid of the lumbar vertebrae would easily “spread” in different directions if it didn’t have powerful stabilizers – namely, the back muscles that pull the spine back and the abdominal muscles that pull the spine forward. The balance of these forces, like on a pharmacy scale, keeps the spine in a stable, upright position.
Micromovements for deep back muscles
Very important for the movement and maintenance of the spine are the muscles of the back, which are long and short. The long muscles of the back, especially in thin people, are easy to see: these are thick ridges of muscles located on the sides of the spine. Due to the fact that some parts of these muscles begin on one vertebra and spread through several vertebrae, or even through the entire spine, they are called the longest muscles of the back. You can feel these muscles even in yourself.
However, there are muscles that cannot be “reached” even with the deepest massage - these are the deep muscles of the back. They are thin muscle strips that run from one vertebra to the next or spread over the vertebra. Many of them go in an oblique direction, therefore they are involved in the rotation of the spine.
It is the deep muscles of the back that send signals to the brain about the position of the spine in space. The proximity of the muscles to the spinal column explains their frequent spasm and pain with any problems in the spine. These muscles are located deep, under a thick layer of superficial muscles, therefore, as they say, "the elbow is close, but you will not bite."
To influence them, a special approach is required. On the one hand, each such muscle contracts very slightly, so traditional exercises, say, known to everyone from the school of flexion and extension of the spine, will load mainly the superficial muscles of the back. And in the thoracic spine, because of the chest, the movements will be even less.
At the same time, isometric loading requires maintaining a certain posture, for which almost all the muscles of the spine, both superficial and deep, are included in the work. As we have already said, the small deep muscles of the spine easily give in to spasm, causing pain. In isometric gymnastics, there are a number of exercises to relax the deep muscles of the back and spine. Their implementation creates a wave of micro-movements that are transmitted from vertebra to vertebra, relaxing exactly the deep muscles of the spine (see the description of exercises for the deep muscles of the back).
These dangerous crunches
Abdominal - these six-packs are the second lumbar stabilizer. Two rectus, two transverse and four oblique abdominal muscles form a complex of the abdominal press, which can be not only an assistant to the back, but also a burden if your social savings are represented by a thick layer of subcutaneous fat, which can no longer be justified by “cellulite”.
Not everyone understands why the abdominal muscles affect the spine, although they do not directly contact it. The fact is that the contraction of the abdominal muscles leads to an increase in intra-abdominal pressure, which in turn, according to the principle of a chain reaction, equalizes the pressure inside the intervertebral disc. Thanks to this, the core of the disk takes a neutral position and the balance of forces is restored. By the way, you can use this simple technique in everyday life.
If your lower back suddenly hurts, take a flat position and tighten your stomach, slightly straining your abdominals. You will immediately feel a reduction in back pain, or even its disappearance.
Tighten your abs!
Actually, one of the mechanisms of action of the lumbar corset is based on this. The abdominal muscles are the main stabilizers of the lower back. At the moment of their tension, intra-abdominal pressure increases, leading to an improvement in the condition of the intervertebral discs. This causes a reduction in pain. Don't let your belly hang passively all the time. Tighten your abdominal muscles and sharp back pain will decrease or disappear!
The greatest contraction of the abdominal muscles is made when you bend as much as possible in the lower back. However, this causes severe stress on the discs, ligaments and joints of the spine.
At the moment of maximum flexion in the lower back, you literally tear the discs, injure the ligaments and joints. Therefore, traditional flexion of the spine, or crunches, as they are called in the English manner, to strengthen the abdominal press is strictly prohibited, especially for a sick spine.
Only exercises in a neutral position, without significant flexion in the lower back, should be used to strengthen the abdominal muscles. In the isometric gymnastics system, you will find many exercises that work directly on the abdominal muscles. In addition, in many exercises that are not related to the lumbar region, the abdominals are also involved as an assistant to the main movement, and you will feel it.
Conclusions:
The stabilizers of the lumbar spine are the back and abdominal muscles.
Isometric gymnastics strengthens the abdominal and back muscles in a physiologically safe position in relation to the spine.
Relaxation of the deep muscles of the spine according to the isometric gymnastics system relieves pain.
Strengthening the abdominals reduces chronic low back pain.
Diagnostic gymnastics
We suggest that you pass an original test in the form of simple exercises before starting isometric gymnastics. This gymnastics will help draw your attention to the presence of certain problems in different parts of the spine and joints. This will help you to correctly draw up an individual course of isometric training.
Mobility test in the cervical spineStanding in front of a mirror, check the volume and freedom of movement in the cervical spine. Tilt your head forward so that your chin touches your chest. If this is difficult, then there is a restriction of flexion of the cervical spine.
Turn your head first in one direction and then in the other direction so that the nose is on the same level with the shoulder. Difficulty in this movement reveals rotational limitations in the cervical spine.
Look at yourself in the mirror and use your index finger to mark the level of your nose. Hold your finger at this level. Then tilt your head back, looking up. If your chin rises to the level of the finger and above it, you are all right with the extension of the cervical spine.
Restrictions in flexion, extension or rotation in the cervical spine may be associated with osteochondrosis of the spine, the appearance of a herniated disc, arthrosis of the joints of the spine, or rheumatic inflammation in the spine. In each of these cases, specialist advice is required.
