Have you been suffering from joint pain lately? Well, I got good news for you! Only three minutes of static exercise can help significantly decrease your pain levels. Try it out for yourself. But how can isometric exercises relieve joint pain in such a short time?
Isometric exercises are exercises that involve static contractions of your muscles (e.g. a plank or a wall-sit). They help reduce pain through the mechanism of cortical inhibition in the brain and improving joint stability.
- What are Isometric Exercises?
- Isometric Exercises to Relieve Shoulder Joint Pain
- Isometric Exercises to Relieve Low Back Pain
- Isometric Exercises to Relieve Lower Extremity Joint Pain
- How Can Isometric Exercises Help Manage Joint Pain?
- Can Isometric Exercises Help Increase Muscle Strength?
- Is it Safe to Perform Isometric Exercises Regularly?
- Can Isometric Exercises Worsen Your Joint Pain?
- Conclusion
What are Isometric Exercises?
Isometrics are exercises that involve static contractions of a muscle group (much like a wall-sit or a plank). Performing isometrics is a safe way to strengthen your muscles if you are suffering from musculoskeletal pain and have an almost immediate pain-relieving effect! In addition to cortical inhibition, isometrics can increase the stability of your joint. Below I developed a list of isometric exercises for your shoulders, low back, as well as your lower extremity.
Isometric Exercises to Relieve Shoulder Joint Pain
- Forward Raises: Start by standing about 5 inches away from a wall that you are facing. Bend your elbows to 90 degrees, make a fist and push into the wall at ~70% of your maximum effort. Hold for 5 seconds and repeat 8x.
- Lateral Raises: This one is similar to the previous one. Stand ~5 inches away from a wall, perpendicular to it. Bend your elbows to 90 degrees and push into the wall at ~70% of your maximum effort. Hold for 5 seconds and repeat 8x
- Rotational Strengthening: Stand close to a wall with your arm touching it and bend your elbows to 90 degrees. Make a fist and push into the wall with your fist at ~70% of your maximum effort.Are you suffering from pinching shoulder pain and are you unable to lift your arm past horizontal or lower it down without discomfort? Then check out this article on shoulder impingement.
If you are experiencing pain during these exercises, try your best to push into the wall with less intensity. Start over by pushing with ~30% intensity and then slowly work your way up as you can tolerate. These exercises below will cover all of the muscle groups of your shoulder.
Isometric Exercises to Relieve Low Back Pain
A strong core will protect your low back from injuries and can increase the stability of your lumbar spine. It is the base for most movement and a strong core can have a positive effect on our balance. If you are suffering from regular low back pain, you should seek a doctor or physical therapist to evaluate the cause of your signs and symptoms.
- Deep Core Activation: Sit upright in a chair. Suck your belly button towards your spine gently and hold for 5-10 seconds. Repeat 6x. This exercise may help alleviate your low back pain.
- Plank: You may have done this one before. You can perform the plank from your knees or your feet, with the latter one being more challenging. Go on your elbows and have either your knees and/or feet touch the ground. Now lower your hips so that your shoulders and hips/ankles create one straight line. Hold for 20-30 seconds and repeat.
- Laying Wall-Push: Lay on your back, about ½ of your leg’s length away from your wall facing it. Bend your knees and hips to 90 degrees so that your feet touch the wall. Gently push your heels into the wall for ~10 seconds. You can go as hard as you feel comfortable. Repeat 6x.If you are experiencing additional pain with these exercises, you should seek help at your local physical therapy clinic to modify your exercise program accordingly.
Isometric Exercises to Relieve Lower Extremity Joint Pain
Your lower extremity musculature makes up the largest muscle groups of your body. It is essential to have strong quadriceps, glutes and hamstring, particularly with older age. A strong lower extremity can help maintain your independence, make activities of daily living easier and more tolerable, improve your walking speed as well as keep you moving with greater quality. Decreased lower extremity strength can cause hip, knee and ankle joint issues as a result of your joint being less stable (due to lack of muscular support), as well as functional deficits such as decreased walking speed, difficulty with stair climbing, squatting, etc.
- Wall sit: Lean your back against the wall and take a few small steps forward. Bend your hips and knees and slowly slide down to a level that is challenging, but you are able to hold for 30 seconds. Perform 2-3x.
- Glute Squeezes: You can perform this one in any position. Simply squeeze your buttcheeks together for 5 seconds and relax. Go for ~70% of your maximum and perform 8x.
- Ball Squeezes: Take a medium-sized ball and put it in between your knees in a seated position. Squeeze into the ball with both knees at approximately 70% of your maximum intensity. You should perform these exercises for about 5 minutes until you feel an improvement in your symptoms. You can repeat them as often as you like. Talk to your doctor or physical therapist if your condition does not improve or worsens.
How Can Isometric Exercises Help Manage Joint Pain?
Isometric exercises can help manage your joint pain through a neurophysiological process called cortical inhibition. Cortical inhibition refers to neural processes, in which GABA (a neurotransmitter that blocks nerve impulses between neurons in the brain) decreases the activity of cortical neurons that are involved with the experience of pain. Persistent pain can decrease the activation of a muscle temporarily. If the muscle’s function is to provide additional stability to the joint, this decreased muscular activation can leave the joint less stable. Isometrics can counteract this decrease in activation and enhance the stability of your joints by working out your joint’s supportive musculature. The increase in activation of your stabilizing musculature will result in less movement within the joint, in turn leading to less pain.
Can Isometric Exercises Help Increase Muscle Strength?
The short answer to this question is yes – they can. Unfortunately, however, strength gains are mostly seen in the position that you perform the exercise in. There is only a little-moderate crossover to other ranges of the exercise (i.e. by performing a wall sit at 90 degrees you likely won’t become much better at performing dynamic lower extremity exercises such as a squat), depending on the exercise you are performing. Therefore, it is a good idea to perform isometric exercises at different angles if you are following an isometric strength training plan. Isometric exercise programs have also shown to be able to effective in reducing blood pressure [1].
Is it Safe to Perform Isometric Exercises Regularly?
Yes it is! Your physical therapist may even suggest that an isometric exercise program is the right choice for you, depending on your condition. The primary thing you will want to watch out for is the intensity of your muscle contraction. Start to ease yourself into the exercise with ~30-50% of your perceived maximum intensity. If this is no problem for you, increase your exercise intensity to 50-70%. Once your pain levels improve as a result of your new exercises, try your best to switch to a more functional and dynamic exercise program. This will help to further increase your strength and also decrease your future risk of injury and the return of your pain.
Can Isometric Exercises Worsen Your Joint Pain?
If you are suffering from a grade I or grade II muscle strain, isometric exercises may cause your pain to worsen. It is always best to talk to a physical therapist about your condition to discuss the best treatment options going forward. So, if your pain worsens as you are performing your isometric exercises, stop immediately and seek out a local physical therapist. Your physical therapist will be able to perform a thorough assessment for you to identify your injury and how you can properly rehabilitate from it.
Conclusion
Isometrics are a great way to strengthen your musculature if you are suffering from joint-related pain. It is safe to perform isometrics regularly, however once you are able to move through your joint’s full available range of motion, you should try to change up your exercise program. If for whatever reason, you are experiencing more pain, contact your doctor or local physical therapist to identify the true cause of your pain.
*DISCLAIMER*
Prior to starting any vigorous exercise regimen, make sure to talk to your doctor and physical therapist.