The isometric secret: 15 ways to get much fitter – without moving a muscle

What are the best exercises to reduce your blood pressure? The plank and the wall sit. Here is how to do them – and some other great poses – whatever your current fitness level

Could the secret to lifelong health be … staying still? It sounds counterintuitive, but in a recent study, researchers assessing 270 randomised controlled clinical trials (involving more than 15,000 participants) found that isometric exercises, in which muscles are working but remain motionless, were more effective than a range of other options for reducing blood pressure.

To be clear, aerobic exercise training, dynamic resistance training, combined training and high-intensity interval training all helped, compared with non-exercise control interventions. But isometrics were most likely to reduce blood pressure, with full-body movements such as the wall squat showing bigger benefits than moves such as hand-gripping or leg extensions.

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