Lack of a pump

[tony84]

Hey everybody i just did my first iso routine. I noticed i didnt get much of a pump and im wondering if that is normal for isos or im doing something wrong? I was wondering if i wasnt tenseing hard enough but i guess its better to start slow and work up the tension. Anyway, i just wanted to know if anyone had experienced the same thing? Thanks guys.

Tony

[Royce]

Hey everybody i just did my first iso routine. I noticed i didnt get much of a pump and im wondering if that is normal for isos or im doing something wrong? I was wondering if i wasnt tenseing hard enough but i guess its better to start slow and work up the tension. Anyway, i just wanted to know if anyone had experienced the same thing? Thanks guys.

Tony




Isometrics done for short durations --5 to 10 seconds--have never given me much of a pump. Now…..if you choose to do aerobic isometrics for thirty to sixty seconds at sub maximal levels, you can, indeed, get a good pump.

As a high intensity training advocate, I usually don’t make aerobic isometrics a cornerstone of my training, but I do have such moves worked into various Qi Gong routines. And they have proved productive.

[Hank_Z]

Hey everybody i just did my first iso routine. I noticed i didnt get much of a pump and im wondering if that is normal for isos or im doing something wrong? I was wondering if i wasnt tenseing hard enough but i guess its better to start slow and work up the tension. Anyway, i just wanted to know if anyone had experienced the same thing? Thanks guys.

Tony

Tony, you'll get the pump if you simply keep doing the routine that you selected. It will take awhile for you to learn. It's totally natural. And the stronger you from doing the ISOs daily, the more effective they will be.

So my advice is to simply keep on doing the routine you selected. Commit yourself to a plan for at least two months and just do them. The more questions you ask, the more different options you'll likely to hear. And, in my opinion, that will encourage you to change from one routine to another. You'd miss out on much of the results that await you if you keep it simple and just do.

Hank

[tony84]

Thanks Royce and Hank. I definitly see where your coming from with the different opinions. I will stick with it believe me. Like you said i figure you have to give a routine at least a couple months to see the benefits. I think ill go for 5 times a week and then take the weekend off and do some walking. Thanks for your help guys your the best.

Tony

[Hank_Z]

Thanks Royce and Hank. I definitly see where your coming from with the different opinions. I will stick with it believe me. Like you said i figure you have to give a routine at least a couple months to see the benefits. I think ill go for 5 times a week and then take the weekend off and do some walking. Thanks for your help guys your the best.

Tony

You're welcome. And the results of doing your plan consistently will more than please you!

Hank

[tom]

A pump is only important if you have some specific reason to want one.

For example, olympic lifters, power lifters, and gymnasts, to name a few, do not want a pump. They just want to get stronger (and skilled), not bigger or more pumped. A pump or size may get in the way of strength demonstration.

Bodybuilders want a pump and size. That's their thing.

Others feel a pump flushes, circulates, nourishes, etc. It also will give size, but not necessarily any more strength than if you were un-pumped.

As Royce points out, a short hold will not give you a pump. However, it can make you stronger. The longer the hold, by definition the "lighter the weight."

Tom

[JoeJustice]

I’ve said this before and I’ll continue to beat the dead horse. There is no need to specialize in doing only one type of exercise protocol. In the Transformetrics training system John has laid out four training protocols that protect joins and tendons while at the same time strengthen and sculpt muscle. These are Power Calisthenics, DVRs, DSRs and Isometrics. Within each of these protocols are endless variations, so I don’t see the need to “specialize” in one of them. I believe you should work with a combination of several, personally I use all four.

I’m not trying to lecture or anything. I’m just saying there’s no need to do only one. I know you’re probably excited about trying isometrics out the way John lays them out in IPR but don’t feel like you have to do only those exercises just because you got a new book.

With that said, if you want a pump you have to do an exercise that produces a pump! And isometrics don’t do that. As Tom mentioned, not every exercise causes a pump. Isometrics are a strength building exercise similar to powerlifting where you do one brief but powerful contraction.

So I’d recommend you incorporate other exercises into your workout. Maybe do some push-ups first, then the isometrics routine once you get a decent pump. Or Do two or three isometrics, then a set of push-ups, then two or three isometrics. You could do DVRs or DSRs in between but I find I get burnout from trying to combine DVRs, DSRs and isometrics all together. PCs seem to make for a good mental break. But others could have different experiences; I know Royce focuses almost exclusively on DVRs and isometrics with good results.

-Joe

[Nathan]

Hey Tony,

John suggested me to do something with my Isometrics a little bit ago. He told me to do light DVRs in between the positions with my deep breathing. This will get the blood flowing to the muscles and help you get the most out of you Isometrics. Try this and see what it does for you. All the best.


---Nathan

P.S. But like I said in my post do LIGHT DVRs. Good luck.