Isometric exercises are an easy and effective way to increase strength and mobility without moving your muscles or changing their length.
There are myriad isometric exercises you can do to bolster your entire body at home without putting stress on your heart and lungs.
In this article, I’ve shared various upper body isometric exercises to strengthen the back, chest, shoulder, arms, and core and help you build a firm torso.
These exercises also fix poor posture and help you sit and stand tall.
Whether you’re a male or female, beginner or intermediate, you can include them in your dynamic strength workout routine to increase overall strength and balance.
Who Can Do Isometric Upper Body Workout Training?
The isometric exercises primarily use for strength, mobility, and rehabilitation purposes. They are less intense and do not put stress on the heart and lungs.
They are suitable for all fitness enthusiasts, from beginners to intermediate, males to females, and teenage to old-age people.
People recovering from injuries and want to regain strength can also perform isometric exercises.
Please note: If you have any injuries, please consult a qualified professional for any medical attention.
Well, doing isometric training has several benefits; for example, it
- Lowers Systolic Blood Pressure
- Strengthen injured muscle
- Reduce the risk of injuries
- Increase bone density, and many more.
Upper Body Isometric Exercises for Chest
1. Wall Press Hold
If you have an issue with doing push up on your toes, then wall push holds can be useful for you and help you scale up for regular push up.
To perform this move,
- Stand against the wall and place your hands on it, shoulder-width apart.
- Bend your elbows and lean forward and hold for 5-10 seconds.
- Repeat as many times as you like.
2. Isometric Push Down Hold
Once you are able to do a wall press hold, you can try a push-down hold on your knees or toes, depending on your strength.
How to do it:
- Get into the “up” position of a pushup.
- Lower your chest halfway and hold instead of going down close to the floor.
- Hold for as long as you can and repeat for the desired number of times.
3. Isometric Dumbbell Squeeze Press
The isometric squeeze press keeps your pecs under constant tension throughout the hold and helps increase strength and mass.
Steps to do:
- Holding one dumbbell in each hand with a neutral grip, lie on the floor, and keep your hands above your chest with your palms facing each other.
- Press the weights up until your arms are fully straight.
- Squeezing your pecs, hold for 5 to 10 seconds, then return to the start.
- Do it as many times as you like.
You can perform the isometric squeeze press when you train your pecs with dumbbells.
4. Cable Fly Hold
The cable fly is a popular strength training that highly activates pectoral muscles and builds up a defined chest.
You can also add this movement to your cable machine exercises for training the upper body.
Steps to perform an isometric cable fly:
- Attach the handles to an appropriate height, grab them firmly with your hands, and take a couple of steps forward.
- Standing in the split stance, bend your front knee slightly, lean forward, and bring the handles toward each other until they are in front of your belly.
- Squeezing your chest, hold for 5 to 10 seconds, and repeat a few times.
Isometric Upper Body Exercises for Shoulder Exercise
If you have just recovered from a shoulder injury, try the below isometric exercises for shoulder rehab.
5. Isometric Shoulder Flexion at Wall
- Stand in front of the wall, take a folded towel, make a fist in your right hand, and place it over a towel on the wall at your oblique height on the side of the right shoulder.
- Gently press your fist into the wall to activate your shoulder muscles.
- Do it 5 to 10 times for five to 10 seconds each time.
6. Isometric Shoulder Extension at Wall
- Stand upright a few inches against the wall (back facing the wall) with your arms straight at your sides.
- Make a fist and softly press into the wall for five to ten seconds.
- You’ll feel slight activation in your shoulder.
7. Standing Shoulder External Rotation
- Stand beside the wall with your right shoulder facing the wall (perpendicular position).
- Take a folded towel, make a fist, bend your right elbow to 90 degrees, so your forearm is at oblique level, and place your right fist on it.
- Smoothly press into the wall for the desired amount of time.
- Repeat as many times as you like.
8. Isometric Shoulder Internal Rotation
To do this move,
- Start with standing in front of the wall.
- Bend your elbow on the side of the shoulder you want to activate.
- Make a fist in your working hand, and place it on the corner of the wall.
- You can use a soft towel under your fist for support.
- Softly press into the wall for five to ten seconds.
Once you feel confident about your shoulder strength, you can even do isometric exercises with a resistance band and dumbbells.
Try the below exercises:
- Resistance Band and DB Front Deltoid Extension
- Band and DB Lateral Deltoid Extension
- Upright Row Hold
- Shrug Hold
Isometric Trunk Exercises for Biceps
Whether you want to reduce pain or increase strength, you can do isometric biceps exercises from the list below according to your strength.
These exercises will increase biceps strength and make your arms stronger.
9. Single-Arm Isometric Bicep Curl (Down and up method)
- Sit comfortably on a chair with your feet flat on the floor.
- Bend your right arm until your forearm is in line with your elbow.
- Place your left hand on your right-hand palm.
- Gently press down with your left hand, hold for a couple of seconds, and then press upward with your right hand.
- Do it several times.
10. Isometric Towel Curl
- Stand in the split squat stance, slightly bend your front knee and place your foot on one end of the towel while grabbing the other end with an underhand grip (with your right hand).
- Curl your arm until your forearm is in line with your elbow.
- Squeezing your biceps, hold for 5 to 10 seconds, and repeat for a couple of times.
11. Isometric Leg Curl Hold
- Standing in the normal stance, lift your right leg and bend your knee so you can hold your feet with your left hand.
- Curl your arm until your biceps muscles are activated.
- Pause for five to ten seconds and repeat twice with both arms.
12. Isometric Concentration Curl
- Holding one dumbbell in your right hand, sit on the edge of a bench.
- Place your elbows inside your right thigh.
- Curl your arm until you feel the contraction in your bicep, and hold it there for five to 10 seconds.
- Do for a couple of times.
- Use dumbbells according to your strength.
13. Barbell Isometric Curl
The dumbbells allow you to perform unilateral movements, while the barbell is excellent for lifting heavier weights.
So it would be great to have a combination of dumbbell and barbell exercises to train your biceps.
Steps to perform an isometric barbell curl:
- Standing in the shoulder-width stance, grab an empty bar with an underhand grip.
- Keep your arms straight in front of you.
- Curl your arm until your forearms are in line with your elbows.
- Hold for five to 10 seconds, and then extend your arms.
- Do it as many times as you want.
Isometric Exercises for Upper Body – Back
You can do isometric back exercises to bolster your lats, traps, rhomboid, and spine without putting much stress on your lower back.
They are suitable for all fitness enthusiasts, especially seniors or newbies.
Here are the top isometric exercises you can do to reinforce your back muscles, improve your torso strength and develop a better posture.
14. Isometric Y Raise
- Lie on your stomach, arms straight before you and legs extended behind.
- Raise your arms slightly in a “Y” shape.
- Contract your muscles and hold in this position for five to 10 seconds.
- Repeat four to six times.
15. Isometric T Raise
- Lie on your stomach with your arms straight out to the sides.
- Raise your arms slightly outward in a “T” shape.
- Hold in this position for five to 10 seconds.
- Repeat for six to eight reps.
16. Isometric W Pull
- Lie prone on the floor with your arms straight in front of you.
- Slightly lift your chest off the floor and pull your arms inside so they together form a “W” shape.
- Hold in that position for five to 10 seconds.
- Repeat for six to eight reps.
17. Isometric O Raise
- Lie prone on the floor with your arms straight in front of you.
- Lift your chest a few inches off the floor and bring your arms all the way behind you until they meet each other on your lower back and form an O shape.
- Hold in that position for five to 10 seconds.
- Repeat for four to six reps.
18. Towel Row Hold
- Lie on your stomach with your arms straight in front of you, holding the towel with your hands (slightly wider than shoulder-width apart).
- Slightly lift your chest off the floor and pull your arms inside until the towel nearly touches your chest.
- Hold in this position for five to 10 seconds.
- Repeat for six to eight reps.
Isometric Upper Body Workouts for Triceps
You can combine isometric and dynamic strength exercises to forge your triceps and build up burly arms.
Isometric tricep exercises help increase muscular endurance and enhance dynamic exercise performance.
19. Isometric Extension Hold with Towel
- Sit on the bench or chair, and grab the towel (hold one end with your right hand behind your head and another end with your left hand behind your back).
- Extend your right arm fully and then hold for five to 10 seconds.
- Repeat a couple of times for each arm.
20. Isometric Tricep Dips
- Sit tall on a chair with your arms straight at your sides, gripping the edge of the chair firmly.
- Lift your butt off the floor, and keep your legs straight in front of you with your toes pointing outward.
- Push into the floor until your arms are fully extended.
- Hold in that position for 10 to 15 seconds.
- Do four to five times.
21. Isometric Tricep Kickback
- Holding one dumbbell in each hand, stand straight with your arms straight at your sides.
- Slightly bend your knees, lean your torso forward, pull your shoulder blades, and keep your elbows fixed.
- Kick your arms back until your triceps are engaged.
- Hold for five to 10 seconds and repeat three to four times on both sides.
- Keep your back straight throughout the movement.
22. Isometric Rope Pushdown
- Anchor the rope to the attachment and set it to an appropriate height for the cable machine.
- Take a few steps back and stand upright with your face facing the machine.
- Slightly bend your knees, lean your torso forward, and grab the rope firmly.
- Push the weight down until your arms are straight.
- Hold there for 5 to 10 seconds and repeat four to six times.
- Maintain a flat back during the movement.
Best Static Upper Body Exercises for Core
The core is the midsection of the body that provides stability to the torso and spine.
A solid core also reduces the risk of low back injuries and helps you maintain an upright posture.
You can do various isometric abs and oblique exercises to forge your core muscles at home.
Here are the best exercises you can incorporate into your isometric trunk workout routine to sculpt your rectus abdominish, transverse abdominish, and external and internal obliques.
23. Plank
- Place your forearms on the floor with your elbows underneath your shoulders.
- Keep the weight of your body on your forearms and toes, keep your face looking downward, and maintain a straight torso.
- Engage your abdominal muscle and hold in this position for 25 to 30 seconds.
24. Side Plank Hold
- Lie on your right side on your forearm, elbow below your shoulder.
- Keep your legs straight and stacked from hip to feet.
- Brace your core and lift your hips and knees off the floor.
- Hold for 15 to 20 seconds, then switch on the other side.
25. Isometric Hollow Crunch
- Lie on your back with your arms straight at your sides and legs in front of you.
- Slightly lift your torso off the ground and bring your knees toward your chest until they are in line with your hips.
- Keep your arms straight off the floor beside your hips.
- Engaging your core, hold in this position for 10 to 15 seconds.
- You’ll feel greater activation in your abdominal muscle.
26. Isometric L-Sit
- Grab the pull-up bar with an overhand grip with your hands shoulder-width apart.
- Hang onto the bar and raise your legs together until they are parallel to the ground, forming an “L” shape.
- Engaging your core, hold in that position for 10 seconds, and then lower your legs.
- Repeat two to three times.
27. V-up Hold
- Lie flat on the mat with your arms straight behind you.
- Lift your arms and legs together off the floor until your body is in a “V” shape.
- Engaging your core, hold in this position for 10 seconds.
- Do it a couple of times.
28. Isometric Lying Leg Raise
- Start with lying flat on the mat with your arms straight at your side, and keep your hands underneath your butt for support.
- Raise your legs straight and together until your feet are pointed toward the ceiling.
- Keep your abdominal muscle contracted and hold in this position for 5 to 10 seconds.
29. Bird-Dog Isometric Hold
- Get on all fours with your arms straight below your shoulder and knees underneath your hips.
- Engage your abs, and raise your right arm in front of you and left leg behind you simultaneously until they are parallel to the floor.
- Hold for the desired time and then switch to the other side.
- Repeat two to three times.
30. Boat Pose
- Sit on the floor with your legs extended before you.
- Raise your legs and torso until your body forms a v shape.
- Keep your arms straight beside your legs and brace your abdominal muscles.
- Stay in that position for as long as possible, then relax your muscles.
- Repeat three times.
30-Minute Isometric Upper Body Workout Routine
Here’s an example of 30-min static workout routine to train your entire torso at home.
| Exercise | Pause Duration (seconds) | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Wall Press Hold | 5-10 | 6-8 |
| Isometric Towel Curl | 5-10 | 8-10 |
| Isometric Y Raise | 8-10 | 6-8 |
| Isometric W Pull | 8-10 | 6-8 |
| Isometric T Raise | 8-10 | 6-8 |
| Isometric Tricep Dips | 8-10 | 6-8 |
| Forearm Front Plank | 45-60 | 1-2 |
| Side Plank Hold | 20-30 | 1-2 |
| Bird Dog Plank | 10-15 | 5-6 |
You can include, exclude, or replace exercises according to your fitness level or when you train the next days.
Upper Body Isometric Exercises PDF
Download this upper body isometric exercises PDF for future use.
