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How Isometrics Tightens and Tones

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Using isometrics is a great way to tighten and tone the muscles in your body. Rather than working hard to pump a ton of iron or implementing cardio to work your muscles hard, isometrics is a way to work your muscles slowly and efficiently in order to make them tighter and more toned. Though there is still some pain associated with isometrics, you may prefer to do these workouts if you do not want to go to the gym or you simply don't have a lot of time to work off your fat and tone your muscles. When used alongside a healthy diet and plenty of rest, isometrics can help you to tighten and tone everything from your abdominal muscles to your biceps.

How Isometrics Work

Isometrics can best be described as strength training exercises where the joints and muscles don't actually move during the contraction of the muscle. Rather, many isometrics exercises force you to hold a particular muscle contraction and slowly release it. This tightens the muscle and robs the muscle of oxygen in order to get it nice and tight. For example, in order to do an isometrics exercise to work your abdominal muscles, sit down in a chair with your feet flat on the floor and your back straightened against the back of the chair. Breathe in as hard as you can until you feel your abs tighten and feel slightly uncomfortably. Then, slowly breathe out and you will continue to feel your abdominal muscles tighten. If you noticed, you hardly moved any part of your body except your abs. This is basically how isometrics work to help you get tightened and toned over time.

The Origin of Isometrics

If you can believe it, there was a time when you couldn't just hit the gym to lift weights. Rather, you had to find ways to work out your body at home. This is how isometrics developed centuries ago when they were first used in China. While isometrics may seem too simple to help you get a good workout, the truth is that holding your muscles in certain positions (to do a biceps isometrics workout, for instance, you can use a low weight to curl once and then hold it before releasing slowly), actually puts a lot of strain on your muscles and really helps them to get tighter and more toned. There's a reason isometrics have been used for so long now.

Learning to Do Isometrics Workouts Properly

While isometrics workouts sound easy enough, you need to have a trainer show you how to work out properly. If you do the isometrics exercises improperly, you may not end up with the tightened and toned results you're looking for. But once you learn how to do some isometrics exercises, you should quickly see the results of your hard work. Isometrics are great for tightening your muscles and getting them looking toned. Try them if you are bored with your usual gym routine and see the results for yourself.

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