There are so many ways you can workout and train from home. I do half my training plan from home usually but that’s because I’m seeking a particular stimulus on these days. I train to gain more power and explosiveness for when I play basketball. Therefore, there’s a lot of plyometrics and incorporating tempo movements on the eccentric phase to produce tension.

However, if you are used to the gym and you want to gain more strength or hypertrophy of a muscle. This is going to be very hard to do at home without any weight or resistance to push against. So, your stimulus might change a little for the time being but it also gives you time to focus on your weaknesses.

Tempo movements, What is it?

A tempo movement is all about slowing the movement down and creating more tension through the time that the muscle has to hold your weight. This can be done as a body weight movement of a weighted movement. Therefore, if you have some weights at home but they aren’t your usual weight. You can make the movement harder by slowing it down to stimulate your muscles in a similar  way.

Examples or tempo movement:

Squat 3-1-3 (3 seconds on the eccentric phase, 1 second at the end of the movement and 3 seconds on the concentric phase)

Push up 2-2-2 (2 second on the eccentric phase, 2 second hold and 2 seconds on the concentric phase)

You can change the seconds in a tempo movement to suit you as an individual. You might not be able to perform the movement using 3 seconds or you might need more seconds. It all depends on you and your training ability.

isometric holds with David Thomas from Future Health Training

Isometric holds and what they are

The one isometric hold that you will know is the plank. However, you can perform many movements as isometric holds to increase tension in certain muscles groups. For example, if you have a weight that you aren’t used to lifting because it’s to light you can still use it to your advantage. You will want to   do some repetitions with that weight to activate the muscle group and then hold it at the highest point of tension.

In a dumbbell single arm row you will be able to do this and then hold at the top of the movement. You will find that it will engage more muscles that you are used to feeling in a general rowing movement. This is because you will be using your core muscles to hold yourself in a position for a length of time.

How they help you with your at home fitness

Isometric holds and tempo movements will help you to build up the tension in each movement or hold with the muscles you are working on that day. There are so many holds and movements you can incorporate these training techniques into. You will be able to stimulate your body better than if you are just doing normal repetitions. Trying to chase the same results that you want to get in the gym.

At this time you need to change as the times flow with you. If you need more help with technique of how to incorporate these into your workouts. Look for a remote personal trainer in Ascot to give you some peace of mind.

Use of strength bands with this sort of training

An extra way to increase these training techniques. Is to incoperate the changing of tension of a strength band to do a movement. As you pull or push the tension gets greater. You can also incorporate a isometric hold and tempo movements with a band.

For example, wrap a band around a poll and you have the ability to do a  rowing motion. Pull the band out to a point of tension that you can perform movement. Then you can slow the movement down to make it a tempo of 3- iso hold -3. The isometric hold is now in the middle and you can hold for 5 seconds and then release for 3. Making the movement harder and more progressive to what your goals are.