Something New to Try, Eccentric Exercise!
You might be used to the term Concentric Exercise but now there is something new - Eccentric Exercise.
Traditional strength training exercises include both concentric and eccentric muscular contractions, but often focus is given to the shortening, or concentric, phase of movement. Eccentric training specifically focuses on the portion of the exercise in which the muscle is lengthened under a load.
Performing eccentric training comes with several potential benefits which include allowing for supramaximal training, providing greater movement efficiency and promoting greater muscle hypertrophy.
What is eccentric exercise?
Eccentric exercise is often used for physical therapy and rehabilitation. Because eccentric contractions create more force with less energy, it is less likely to overtax injured joints and muscles. As well as being helpful for those in recovery and rehabilitation, this type of exercise can also be valuable for older people who haven't the physical capacity for traditional eccentric-concentric exercises.
How eccentric training is used in rehabilitation
- A common area in which physical therapists often utilize eccentric training is in the rehabilitation of knee injuries or following surgery, helping muscle and connective tissue strengthening as well as improve knee stability following knee surgery.
- It can also help improve neuromuscular control following injury, meaning a better connection between your brain and the injured muscle.
- The training can help to preserve and even enhance muscle mass especially in older people who might be more likely to suffer from inflammation caused by muscle damage during exercise.
Here are some examples of eccentric exercise
- If you are doing a bench press, focus on the lowering of the bar to your chest.
- If you're doing pull-ups, focus on lowering yourself very, very slowly.
- If you are doing squats, focus on the part where you move your body into the starting position.
- If you are doing bicep curls, focus on the lowering of the weight away from your body.
Other suggestions include:
Walking uphill but then running downhill.
Getting the elevator up to reach higher floors in your office building but taking the stairs to come down again.
Some important points to remember when doing eccentric exercise
1. Warm up prior to eccentric training.
It is very important to do a warmup routine for five to ten minutes prior to eccentric training because you will be challenging your body in a new way. Warmup suggestions include:
- Jog on a treadmill or outside.
- Ride a bike for ten minutes.
- Use the rowing machine for ten minutes.
2. Do dynamic stretching prior to training.
After warming up, it is wise to do some dynamic stretching to maintain range of motion and prevent injury. This involves continuously moving through a stretch, rather than holding a stretch. Try some of the following stretches:
- Make arm circles in both directions.
- Touch your toes and then reach up to the ceiling.
- Kick your legs out forwards, to the rear and out to either side over their full range of motion.
3. Some further points to take on board
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Eccentrics may temporarily worsen joint pain for individuals with osteoarthritis or other joint pain.
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Consult a physician if you are recovering from an injury and want to do eccentric exercises.
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Lactate levels may rise more than with concentric exercises.
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You may experience muscle soreness for one or two days after the eccentric routine.
Written by Jane Chitty
Jane writes for Healing Natural Oils, a producer and retailer of high-quality, all-natural treatments for a variety of conditions as well as a range of beauty products. Apart from writing about those various conditions, she also covers general health, environmental and other subjects of interest. She has lived in Kenya as well as Cape Town, South Africa and spent time in San Diego, USA. She now lives in Somerset, England with regular visits from her far-flung children and grandchildren. She is a keen gardener and enjoys growing fresh fruit and vegetables with her husband on their joint allotment. As a result, there is something available to use in the kitchen virtually all year round. Her regular posts can be found on our blog.