Are isometrics underrated?

[crazyquik]

Isometrics were pretty popular in the '50s and '60s I guess, and then they were pretty thoroughly trashed.

No one on Elite directly talks about integrating isometrics into their workouts.

However, deads are highly praised for building big traps. The day after doing deads, you can feel it in your traps (at least, I'm feeling it right now). And deads, to the traps, are just an isometric exercise. Your traps aren't lifting the weight as much as they are just hanging onto it. Particularly at the top of a locked-out deadlift, your traps are just along for the ride yet are in a full extension. They aren't really activating the movement of the bar.

Needsize's ab routine is also highly praised and widely used. I've been using it, and realized that it is, mostly, an isometric/static ab contraction with weight, fighting gravity.

Are there other isometric movements (oxymoron ) that we are overlooking?

 

[ExtraMile]

I like to do isometric holds for forearms, what I do it get a heavy DB and hold it over a bench in about the half way point of a preacher curl with a hammer curl grip. So its like doing db hammer preacher curls but I hold it at the half way point, usually 17.5kg DB's I can do for 70secs or so and 20kg db's for 35 secs or so. Great burn in the forearms and only been doing them 3 weeks and already see a differance I think!