Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Tendons need enough load (strain) to adapt
🏋🏽♂️ Just like a muscle, if you don’t challenge a tendon enough it won’t adapt.
For most athletes, bodyweight holds just aren’t going to move the needle.
🔬 I like to go to the case study level to show how tendon can adapt because biological plausibility is one of the most important factors for positive belief in the ability to heal and adherence to a training program.
Overall, my go-to recommendation is prioritizing 10-30 second isometric or heavy slow resistance exercise directly targeting the tendon and working up to greater than 70% max force production over time.
📊 There’s evidence that as low as ~3 second contractions may be equally beneficial, however in practice I find it difficult to avoid fast rates of loading which can be irritable with such short contraction durations.
Bottom line: If you want your tendon to grow, build up over time to meaningfully challenge it like you would a muscle.
Tendons need enough load (strain) to adapt
🏋🏽♂️ Just like a muscle, if you don’t challenge a tendon enough it won’t adapt.
For most athletes, bodyweight holds just aren’t going to move the needle.
🔬 I like to go to the case study level to show how tendon can adapt because biological plausibility is one of the most important factors for positive belief in the ability to heal and adherence to a training program.
Overall, my go-to recommendation is prioritizing 10-30 second isometric or heavy slow resistance exercise directly targeting the tendon and working up to greater than 70% max force production over time.
📊 There’s evidence that as low as ~3 second contractions may be equally beneficial, however in practice I find it difficult to avoid fast rates of loading which can be irritable with such short contraction durations.
Bottom line: If you want your tendon to grow, build up over time to meaningfully challenge it like you would a muscle.
