The Third Type of Isometric Training Most People Never Learn

Posted on March 25, 2026 by Jon

The Third Type of Isometric Training Most People Never Learn (Rotational Isometrics)

Most people think isometric training means one thing:

Holding still.

Planks.
Wall sits.
Horse stance.

And if they go a little deeper, they might discover overcoming isometrics—pushing or pulling against an immovable object.

But there is a third type of isometric training that almost nobody talks about.

And it’s the one that most closely resembles real martial power.

It’s called:

Rotational Isometrics

Why Most Strength Training Falls Short

Most strength training is linear.

Up and down.
Push and pull.

Even most isometric training is linear:

You hold a position.
Or you push in one direction.

But martial arts are not linear.

Punches rotate.
Throws spiral.
Grappling involves torque, pressure, and redirection.

Power doesn’t move in straight lines.

It moves in curves, spirals, and angles.

And if your training doesn’t reflect that…

Your strength won’t transfer.

What Are Rotational Isometrics?

A rotational isometric is when you create tension by resisting rotation or producing force in opposing directions.

Instead of holding still…

You are actively creating twisting force inside the body.

Examples include:

• resisting a band pulling you into rotation
• twisting into a stance without moving
• creating opposing forces between upper and lower body
• diagonal push/pull tension patterns
• rotational squat holds
• Dragon Coil Holds

The key idea:

You are not just holding position.
You are organizing force through the body.

What Rotational Isometrics Train

This is where things get interesting.

1. Fascial Chains (Not Just Muscles)

Rotational tension travels through the body in diagonal patterns.

This activates:

• anterior/posterior sling systems
• cross-body fascial lines
• spiral tension chains

These are the exact pathways used in:

• punching
• throwing
• takedowns
• weapon work

2. Internal Connection

Rotational isometrics teach the body how to:

• connect upper and lower body
• transmit force across the torso
• maintain structure during movement

This is what many internal arts call:

“whole-body power”

3. Torque and Pressure

Linear strength pushes.

Rotational strength twists and compresses.

This is what creates:

• heavy hands
• crushing grappling pressure
• destabilization of opponents

4. Anti-Rotation Stability

Ironically, training rotation improves your ability to resist rotation.

This is critical for:

• defending takedowns
• maintaining base
• staying balanced under pressure

Why This Is the Missing Link

Here’s the problem:

Most people train:

✔ Yielding (structure)
✔ Overcoming (force)

But they skip:

❌ Direction of force

So their strength exists…

…but it doesn’t transfer cleanly into movement.

Rotational isometrics fix that.

They teach the body how to:

organize force through angles

The Martial Connection

If you look at traditional systems:

• Tai Chi → silk reeling
• Bagua → circular walking
• Xing Yi → directional force
• Jujutsu → kuzushi (off-balancing)

They are all based on:

rotation and redirection of force

Rotational isometrics are the modern bridge into that training.

They make those principles:

• measurable
• repeatable
• physically trainable

How I Use Rotational Isometrics

Inside my system, rotational work comes after structure is built.

Because without structure, rotation becomes collapse.

Here’s how it fits:

Step 1 — Yielding Isometrics

Build structure and endurance

Step 2 — Overcoming Isometrics

Build force and power

Step 3 — Rotational Isometrics

Organize and apply that power

Example Drill — Diagonal Push/Pull

Set up:

• Attach a band or strap
• One hand pushes forward
• One hand pulls back
• Hips remain stable
• Spine tall

Hold for 30–45 seconds.

Focus on:

• creating tension through the torso
• breathing calmly
• feeling force travel from foot to hand

This is not a “hold.”

This is a force pattern.

Example Drill — Dragon Coil Hold

From a squat:

• rotate the torso
• maintain lower body alignment
• create opposing tension

This develops:

• spiral strength
• hip integration
• rotational power

Where Most People Go Wrong

They try to muscle the movement.

But rotational strength is not about squeezing harder.

It’s about:

• direction
• alignment
• connection

Too much tension kills the effect.

Correct tension distributes it.

How This Fits Into My Programs

If you’ve been following my work, you’ve already seen these layers.

The Isometric Warrior Training Guide

Builds structural foundation through yielding isometrics

👉 Learn more here

The 21-Day Isometric Forge

Introduces overcoming + diagonal tension

👉 (Free bonus program inside the private Isometric Warrior Brotherhood)

The Iron Silk Method

Fully integrates:

• tendon elasticity (Yi Jin Jing)
• rotational force
• breath-driven power

👉 Learn more here

Final Thought

Most people train strength.

Very few train how strength moves through the body.

That’s the difference between:

Looking strong…

and feeling powerful.

Rotational isometrics are the bridge.

Train them seriously, and your strength will begin to show up where it actually matters.

—
Jon Haas
The Warrior Coach

“He Opened My Eyes to Budo…”

Posted on August 23, 2020 by Jon

Way back in 2009 I started studying this weird, rarely talked about, even more rarely taught aspect of traditional martial arts called internal power.

To say it opened up my worldview when it came to martial arts training would be a huge understatement!

Now, to put it in perspective, I’d been training in martial arts since I was 10, and I’d trained with high level masters all over the world. But I was blown away by this stuff!!!

I’m reminded of what Ueshiba (the founder of Aikido) said of his Daito Ryu teacher, Sokaku Takeda who taught him these internal power exercises – “He opened my eyes to budo”

To me, this training is really the underlying essence of budo. It creates a powerful body for any martial artist, no matter the art. And it gives those who are in the know a tremendous advantage!!

What is Internal Power?

I think it’s best to start with the basics. What is internal power and how can it useful to the practitioner of any and all martial arts or combat sports? Let me state this at the outset to hopefully clear up a rather unfortunate misinterpretation of IP.

Internal Power is physical.

It’s not some mystical mumbo jumbo or a throwing chi balls type of nonsense.

It is actually a way of conditioning the body through specific solo training exercises and paired partner training. The training method spans thousands of years and has been handed down through the ages within the warrior traditions of India, China, and Japan. It is a body technology with a set method and detailed process of instruction that simply cannot be learned by osmosis. It must be explicitly taught.

The basis for the method is what is known as the union of opposites or In Yo Ho, in Japanese.

By creating opposing forces within the body (up/down, left/right, front/back) through the use of intent – your own mental direction using imagery, feeling, and visualization – we begin to increase the mind-body connection to a remarkable degree.

Through the solo training exercises we condition and strengthen the entire fascia network, as well as tendons and ligaments, throughout the body. This process serves to create a connected body through the center so that when ‘one thing move, everything moves’.

How Can YOU Learn This?

So when I had the opportunity, I put all my knowledge into a program called Integrated Strength back in 2015. This program lays the foundation of combining internal power with the warrior’s system of functional strength.

Thus in the Integrated Strength Program I have combined the two methods to create a fully integrated system of developing human strength potential.

This complete system of Internal Power Development AND Unusual Strength is presented to you for the FIRST TIME EVER inside the Integrated Strength Training Program.

I refined and added to that body of knowledge in the next installment of internal power training called Shadow Strength in 2019.

Shadow Strength contains a unique set of exercises drawn from traditional martial arts designed to utilize breath, posture, and mobility to build superhuman levels of strength and resistance to injury.

And this year I released the newest program in my internal strength series called The Power Protocol which takes all of the training so far to the next level.

The goal of The Power Protocol program is singular in nature – to cut through the morass of myth and misinformation and give you a practical, proven, results-driven method for building real martial power no matter who you are, what martial art you study, or how you’ve been let down by unknowing or unscrupulous teachers in the past.

This program is your one-stop-shop for developing knock-down, drag out power for any martial art from the inside out and the outside in. After following this program, you will be stronger, tougher, more durable, flexible, and resistant to injury.

Not to mention the ability to hit like a truck out of nowhere and be almost impossible to take down, throw, or joint lock without your express compliance

These 3 programs contain the most powerful training I’ve released publicly to date.

Now you can save 50% on all 3 powerful programs here <<==

If you train in martial arts, you owe it to yourself to grab this package and get started – your training will NEVER be the same!

Which Program is Best for YOU?

Posted on July 31, 2020 by Jon

I get asked this question all the time – Jon, which one of your programs should I start with?

And the answer is, it depends on your goals. So in this article I’m going to give you a set of general guidelines to help you decide which program is right for you.

Quick disclaimer before we get started: ALL of my programs are designed to increase functional strength, improve mobility/flexibility, and build your health and energy reserves. Even though my training is forged in the crucible of martial arts, you do NOT need to be a martial artist to reap all the benefits from any of my programs.

So here goes…

If you are a martial artist looking to unlock the methods of internal power which make ANY art powerful and useful than I recommend starting with Integrated Strength, Shadow Strength, or The Power Protocol. Each one of these looks at the secrets of internal power and strength from a slightly different perspective to guide you into becoming an all around power house in your respective art.

If you are a weekend warrior looking for the edge in your strength and conditioning training, I suggest the WarFit Program or Sledgehammer Domination which are designed to build superior levels of functional strength, burn fat, and increase all around endurance.

If you are looking to build up your energy reserves and recover faster from all your training and life stress, I suggest Evolve Your Breathing or Vital Force. Both these programs will balance out your workouts and help build health, energy, and give you the edge in your recovery.

And lastly, if you are a man in the over 40 crowd, I highly recommend Strong(er) Over 40 and Dad Strength. These programs will guide you to growing stronger as you get older, along with building and keeping your levels of testosterone high!

At any age and in any life circumstance, keep training, keep pushing, keep growing, and always keep challenging your perceived limits!

If you want all the best that Warrior Fitness has to offer brought to you each and every month, then I highly recommend signing up for the Warrior’s Inner Circle. Here is where you get my most up to date training information plus 4 free stand alone programs!!

5.5 Principles for More Effective Striking in ANY Martial Art

Posted on September 9, 2018 by Jon

Part 1 of this series, Conditioning the Fists for Striking can be found HERE.

Being able to strike with power and precision involves a lot more than merely knowing the technique. Practice must include these principles of effective striking techniques for all martial arts…

1. Whole Body Power

All movement in real life happens in three dimensions, so why train exercises that only incorporate one or two? Training muscles in isolation, unless it is used to rehab a specific injury, range of motion, or strengthen a particular muscle to add to the whole, does not work in martial art.

Our strike conditioning exercises must train movements in three dimensions utilizing diagonal, rotary, and angular strength, as well as prime moving muscles.

2. Stored Elastic Energy (SEE)

Stored Elastic Energy is basically the potential energy stored in tendons and connective tissue as a way to power movement.

An easy exercise to begin to feel stored elastic energy is to stand in a natural stance with feet shoulder width apart. Bend your right arm and raise it up to shoulder height as if you were about to throw the most telegraphed punch in history (don’t worry, it’s just an exercise). Now, lead from the elbow and pull your fist back. Allow your torso to rotate, but keep the feet planted and the hips facing forward. When you reach the end of your range of motion, hang out there for a second and feel the tension (torque) on the spine. Now simply relax and release that torque to throw the punch. Don’t add any driving forces with muscle. You can’t propel it any faster; you’ll just slow it down.

Feel it?

Try it again.

Do it with the other arm. Remember the feeling. This is stored elastic energy (SEE).

The point here about creating torque or stored elastic energy (SEE) in the spine is essential in being able to move powerfully without winding up or telegraphing the movement.

If you are having trouble feeling it, try to exaggerate the movement.

Make it much larger than necessary to study the feeling. It should feel like a tension in the lower back near the bottom of the spine. When this tension (torque) is relaxed (released), the movement happens.

3. Structure / Kamae

Many people tend to use the terms alignment and structure almost interchangeably but in actuality, alignment is a component of structure.

For example, looking at a natural standing posture, good alignment would be:

Crown up
Chin down
Shoulders packed down
Spine lifting up (through crown)
Spine pulling down (through the sacrum)
Hips under shoulders
Knees under hips
Mid-foot balance
Chest is relaxed
Butt not sticking out nor is pelvis tucked under
Knees are over the toes
Weight evenly distributed (50/50)
No leaning forward or backwardThis puts the whole body into proper alignment.

Structure also includes (in my lexicon) the balance of tensions within the body’s soft tissues. The bones act as compressive struts pushing outward from the center while the soft tissues (fascia) act as the stays pulling inward towards the center keeping the tensional balance in the body.

4. Breathing

How often do you think about breathing as it relates to striking?

Yet it is absolutely essential to maintain proper breathing when in combat or simply hitting a heavy bag, mitt, or an opponent. Lack of breath control affects the rest of your body and hinders your overall performance.

5. The S.A.I.D Principle

Why are all the above ideas important to understand in relation to striking and martial movement?

The SAID Principle – Specific Adaptation to Implied Demand says every activity that we repeat consistently causes an adaptation in the body.

The critical thing to note here is that it does not matter at all how we value this adaptation. It can be something that we want like how healthy exercise increases lean muscle mass and burns excess fat, or it can be something we do not want like how eating junk food to an extreme causes our body to adapt by putting on weight.

Both of these are examples of activities that cause adaptations in the body. Our goal is to train adaptations we value highly like the enhanced neural connections in our nervous system that increase our skill level. Keep this in mind when training. We do not want to train bad habits!

5.5 Elements of Efficiency

Efficiency is defined as the amount of useful work divided by the amount of total work. In other words, how much effect are you producing for the amount of effort you are expending?

Ever see a batter “swing for the fences” only to completely miss the pitch?
Ever see someone try to pick something up that is really light, but they believe is heavy?
How about watching someone using the general whole-body tension we discussed above trying to hit a heavy bag?

How much effect, i.e. force from the strike embedded into the target, is gained from the huge effort expended?

You must train to have your strikes be both effective (devestatingly powerful) and efficient (uses the least amount of force or energy to accomplish the movement). Only then can you be said to have mastered the art of striking!

Learn exactly how to upgrade your striking skills in ANY martial art with these resources from Warrior Fitness Training Systems…

The Secret to Becoming a Great Martial Artist

Posted on June 24, 2013 by Jon

There is one very special, not so secret, secret to becoming a great martial artist. Want to know what it is?

Do the work.

Train every day. Yes, every day. Great martial artists train all the time. Not once a week. Not every other day, not just during class. Every day. Multiple times a day.

The not so great martial artists are content to train only in class or at seminars. They spend lots of time thinking about training, maybe, but the actual doing, not so much.

For you the process is simple – not easy. Daily training. How do you do this? Figure it out. You don’t have to think about when you’re going to take a shower during the day or brush your teeth, you just do it. Make your training a priority and get it done. While others are busy doing other things, you are training. While others are busy daydreaming about training, you are training. While others are busy running their mouths about training, you are – you guessed it – training.

Soon it will begin to show. The difference may not be too apparent at first, but consistency of training will win out. It may not be so obvious in a year, or even 2. But after 5 years it will be very noticeable. After a decade, you will be miles ahead of the rest of the martial arts landscape.

You will move better.

You will feel different when they touch you.

You will have power in motion and in stillness.

You will stand out, not because of ego or anything like that but because the work you put in day after day, week after week, month after month, and year upon year will cause your skills to grow exponentially. The growth and development created simply by training every day will become self evident.

So ask yourself – do you want to be a mediocre martial hobbyist (not that there’s anything wrong with that), or do you want to be legendary?

The choice is yours. As for me, F__k being mediocre. 🙂

What If All the Stories Surrounding the Incredibly Powerful, Legendary Martial Artists of Old Were True?

What if greatness wasn’t random, but specifically engineered?

What if YOU Had Access to Their Secret Training Strategies for Building Whole-Body Strength & Power for Martial Arts – ANY Martial Art – in Your Hands?

Learn more ==>>

Fitness Dangers for Bujinkan Students

Posted on May 14, 2013 by Jon

Martial artists need to be extremely cautious when choosing a fitness program to compliment their training. While the right program can support, enhance, and protect budo practice, the wrong one can just as easily derail it.

Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu relies on relaxed, whole-body power devoid of excess muscular tension to properly execute its techniques.

Think About This

Think about this – each and every action you repeat over and over again encodes in your nervous system and creates change in your body, no matter how you value that change. Meaning that if you want to train yourself to move softly, subtly, and with relaxed power for your martial art practice yet you perform high tension power lifting exercises at the gym, guess what gets carried over to your budo? Yup. Too much tension.

If you are working towards using your whole body as a unit in budo practice so that when one thing moves, everything moves (can you do this?), but you perform bodybuilding style splits and isolation exercises in your strength training, what do you think happens to your functional integration? Yup. Bye-bye.

The critical thing to note here is that, as stated above, every action you do, no matter what your opinion of that action is, has an affect on your nervous system. When 2 actions compete, both lose out.

Shouldn’t your supplementary training and fitness support and enhance your main goal of becoming a more proficient martial artist? If it doesn’t, you might want to ask yourself what is more important to you? These are tough questions for a life long, committed budoka to wrestle with – trust me! I know. I walk a thin line in my training every day. But I made my choice long ago… You see, I love fitness, but budo is in my blood.

So when you go looking for a strength and conditioning program to support and protect your martial arts practice, remember something – I have been there, done that, and got the t shirt (several, actually).

Already Done For You

The research has been done. The exercises, protocols, and programs have been rigorously tested. The results are in. I have created several Done For You programs that I KNOW will change your Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu practice for the better. As a 20+ year veteran of the Bujinkan (I started training in 1989), I have put together these programs for you – Bujinkan students and teachers alike. It’s all here….

Traditional Martial Artists of the World – UNITE!

Posted on April 12, 2013 by Jon

Traditional martial arts all have a long history of intense, sometimes downright brutal, physical training to forge the warrior’s combative body, mindset, and spirit.

This training has, up until very recently in history, never been optional. If you did not have the strength of will to endure it and push through then you simply did not make the cut and were not taught higher level skills. Not that you would be considered somehow unworthy or anything silly like that, but you would be thought physically incapable and therefore not worth the teacher’s time to train you.

Each school of martial art had its own type of tanren or forging process to harden the aspiring martial student. Continue reading →

4 Principles For Punching Power

Posted on March 13, 2013 by Jon

Principles of Striking Power

1. Whole Body Power

All movement happens in real life happens in three dimensions, so why train exercises that only incorporate one or two? Training muscles in isolation, unless it is used to rehab a specific injury, range of motion, or strengthen a particular muscle to add to the whole, does not work in martial art. With very few special exceptions, the majority of exercises in this manual will train movements in three dimensions utilizing diagonal, rotary, and angular strength, not muscles. As discussed above, this is the goal of SPP – neurological adaptation.

2. Stored Elastic Energy (SEE)

Stored Elastic Energy is basically the potential energy stored in tendons and connective tissue as a way to power movement. An easy exercise to begin to feel stored elastic energy is to stand in a natural stance with feet shoulder width apart. Bend your right arm and raise it up to shoulder height as if you were about to throw the most telegraphed punch in history (don’t worry, it’s just an exercise). Now, lead from the elbow and pull your fist back. Allow your torso to rotate, but keep the feet planted and the hips facing forward. When you reach the end of your range of motion, hang out there for a second and feel the tension (torque) on the spine. Now simply relax and release that torque to throw the punch. Don’t add any driving forces with muscle. You can’t propel it any faster; you’ll just slow it down. Feel it? Try it again. Do it with the other arm. Remember the feeling. This is stored elastic energy (SEE). This point here about creating torque or stored elastic energy (SEE) in the spine is essential in being able to move powerfully without winding up or telegraphing the movement. If you are having trouble feeling it, try to exaggerate the movement. Make it much larger than necessary to study the feeling. It should feel like a tension in the lower back near the bottom of the spine. When this tension (torque) is relaxed (released), the movement happens.

3. Structure / Kamae

Many people tend to use the terms alignment and structure almost interchangeably but in actuality, alignment is a component of structure. For example, looking at a natural standing posture, good alignment would be:

Crown up
Chin down
Shoulders packed down
Spine lifting up (through crown)
Spine pulling down (through the sacrum)
Hips under shoulders
Knees under hips
Mid-foot balance
Chest is relaxed
Butt not sticking out
Hips are open
Knees are over the toes
Weight evenly distributed (50/50)
No leaning forward or backward

This puts the whole body into proper alignment. Structure also includes (in my lexicon) the balance of tensions within the body’s soft tissues. Think of spine as the mast of a sail boat while the soft tissues (fascia) act as the stays keeping the tensional balance.

4. Breathing

How often do you think about breathing as it relates to striking? Yet it is absolutely essential to maintain proper breathing when in combat or simply hitting a heavy bag, mitt, or an opponent. Lack of breath control affects the rest of your body and hinders your overall performance.

This article is from my e-book manual, Warrior Fitness Guide to Striking Power.

Want to learn even more about how to bring together fitness training with your martial art practice for vast performance improvement? Join me on a 6-week journey where I take you behind the curtain and show you how to build Martial Power!

Intelligent Tension For Striking

Posted on March 11, 2013 by Jon

How intelligent is your usage of tension in striking?

All too often in training our punching and kicking techniques, we find what I’ve come to label as “dumb tension”. This is used by martial artists across the board either accidentally through lack of understanding of how the body should work, or taught and passed down from teacher to student on purpose through a lack of knowledge.

Dumb tension is defined as either the complete usage of whole body, generalized tension to attempt to deliver extra power to a specific kick or strike, OR the complete lack of any and all tension to attempt to whip a wet noodle-like strike at the opponent or target. Both of these things miss the boat, in my opinion.

Walk the Middle Path

Intelligent Tension (IT) is simply walking the middle path between the two extremes and using the appropriate amount of tension required, and only that amount, to coordinate whole body power into a strike. More tension does not necessarily equal more power in terms of striking. Actually, the more tension recruited for a movement, the more you apply the brakes physiologically since your body is now moving against itself in an attempt to use generalized tension. When both the agonist muscle and antagonist muscle are working against each other the result is less overall power delivery for the strike. Learning to appropriately activate only the muscles necessary to accomplish the task removes the brakes, ups the power wattage, and increases the efficiency since you are no longer using energy you don’t need.

Additionally, the more tension created in a movement, the less mobility you have. If you look at tension and mobility on one line with tension on one side and mobility on the other, the more you have of one, the less you have of the other. When we train the nervous system to fire high tension all the time, we lose mobility and range of motion. While this is perfectly acceptable and absolutely essential for a purely low-gear strength based activity like dead lifting, it is not fine for martial arts.

This article was a short excerpt from my manual, Warrior Fitness Guide to Striking Power.

Get The Warrior Fitness Guide to Striking Power (e-book) and the original book, Warrior Fitness: Conditioning for Martial Arts (e-book) FREE when you pick up my brand new program – WarFit Combat Conditioning!