Build Muscle Without Weights: The Complete Book Of Dynamic Self-Resistance Isotonic Exercises

Joe Lois did them. So did Joe Dimaggio. Charles Atlas, The Worlds Most Perfectly Developed Man, put out a famous mail order course on them (although he called them Dynamic Tension). What are they? Isotonic exercises. This proven form of self-resistance training will allow you to burn fat, build muscle and sculpt your body in record time. What’s more all this can be done anywhere at anytime and requires no special weights, gym or equipment. How is this possible? Because isotonic exercises allow you to build muscle using only your own body. That’s right, your body IS the gym. Let me explain.

Strictly defined, an isotonic exercise is a form of self-resistance exercise which involves controlled contraction and extension of the muscles and mobilization of the joints around those muscles. For an exercise to be isotonic the joints do move and the muscles do elongate (or contract) but the tension causing this remains the same. What this means is that an exercise like weight lifting is in fact an isotonic exercise. Weightlifting, however, is the road most commonly travelled. You can achieve muscle growth this way, but it’s not the only way. It may not even be the best way.

Isotonics exercises are the other, less well travelled path to optimum physical fitness. With the exercises that follow you will either be using your own bodyweight or making use of self-resistance (pitting one limb against the other) in order to achieve muscle growth. However there are three big advantages to this form of self-resitance training over traditional weightlifting. They are:

Safety – Isotonic exercises are much safer than traditional bodybuilding exercises with weights. The reason for this is that one’s own muscles provide the resistance. It’s almost impossible to overtrain due to the fact that when your muscles tire the resistance will naturally decrease as well. I’ve known of bodybuilders who have torn their pectoral muscles clear from the bone in an effort to build a powerful chest. This is literally impossible with resistance training.

Convenience - Because your body IS your gym, you can literally work out anywhere at anytime. I’ve known some people (myself included) who will take a break from the computer and do a few isotonic exercises throughout the day. Not only does this help keep you alert during the day (and it’s much healthier than grabbing a cup of coffee) but it saves you time as well.

Effectiveness - So long as you concentrate and put all of your energies into them these exercises are incredibly effective and you will build muscle. One of the main reasons for this is related to why they are so safe in the first place. On the one hand when you get tired the force you are using will naturally decrease. On the other hand as you get stronger the exercises will naturally become more intense. Unlike traditional bodybuilding exercises you will never have to guess exactly how much weight to use to progress.