Types of Muscle Contractions: Isotonic and Isometric

Muscle contractions are defined by the changes in the length of the

muscle during contraction.

LEARNING OBJECTIVE

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

 Differentiate among the types of muscle contractions

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Key Points

 Isotonic contractions generate force by changing the length of the muscle and
can be concentric contractions or eccentric contractions.
 A concentric contraction causes muscles to shorten, thereby generating force.
 Eccentric contractions cause muscles to elongate in response to a greater
opposing force.
 Isometric contractions generate force without changing the length of the muscle.

Glossary

isometric: Of or involving muscular contraction against resistance in which the length of the
muscle remains the same.
isotonic: Of or involving muscular contraction against resistance in which the length of the
muscle changes. Antonym is isometric. Isotonic movements are either concentric (working
muscle shortens) or eccentric (working muscle lengthens).
concentric: (Of a motion), in the direction of contraction of a muscle. (E.g., extension of the
lower arm via the elbow joint while contracting the triceps and other elbow extensor muscles.
eccentric: Against or in the opposite direction of contraction of a muscle. (E.g., flexion of the
lower arm (bending of the elbow joint) by an external force while contracting the triceps and
other elbow extensor muscles to control that movement.

EXAMPLE

An example of this in the context of a bench press would be that a yielding isometric would be
holding the bar at a given place even though it could be pressed higher, and an overcoming
would be pressing the bar up into the safety guards of a squat cage that prevent pushing the bar
any higher.
Muscle fiber generates tension through the action of actin and myosin cross-bridge
cycling. While under tension, the muscle may lengthen, shorten, or remain the same.
Although the term contraction implies shortening, when referring to the muscular
system, it means muscle fibers generating tension with the help of motor neurons.
Several types of muscle contractions occur and they are defined by the changes in the
length of the muscle during contraction.

Isotonic Contractions

Isotonic contractions maintain constant tension in the muscle as the muscle changes
length. This can occur only when a muscle’s maximal force of contraction exceeds the
total load on the muscle. Isotonic muscle contractions can be either concentric (muscle
shortens) or eccentric (muscle lengthens).

Concentric Contractions

A concentric contraction is a type of muscle contraction in which the muscles shorten

while generating force. This is typical of muscles that contract due to the sliding filament
mechanism, and it occurs throughout the muscle. Such contractions also alter the angle
of the joints to which the muscles are attached, as they are stimulated to contract
according to the sliding filament mechanism.

This occurs throughout the length of the muscle, generating force at the musculo-
tendinous junction; causing the muscle to shorten and the angle of the joint to change.
For instance, a concentric contraction of the biceps would cause the arm to bend at the
elbow as the hand moves from near to the leg to close to the shoulder (a biceps curl). A
concentric contraction of the triceps would change the angle of the joint in the opposite
direction, straightening the arm and moving the hand toward the leg.

Eccentric Contractions

An eccentric contraction results in the elongation of a muscle. Such contractions

decelerate the muscle joints (acting as “brakes” to concentric contractions) and can alter
the position of the load force. These contractions can be both voluntary and involuntary.
During an eccentric contraction, the muscle elongates while under tension due to an
opposing force which is greater than the force generated by the muscle. Rather than
working to pull a joint in the direction of the muscle contraction, the muscle acts to
decelerate the joint at the end of a movement or otherwise control the repositioning of a
load.

This can occur involuntarily (when attempting to move a weight too heavy for the
muscle to lift) or voluntarily (when the muscle is “smoothing out” a movement). Over the
short-term, strength training involving both eccentric and concentric contractions appear
to increase muscular strength more than training with concentric contractions alone.
Isometric Contractions

In contrast to isotonic contractions, isometric contractions generate force without

changing the length of the muscle . This is typical of muscles found in the hands
and forearm: the muscles do not change length, and joints are not moved, so force for
grip is sufficient. An example is when the muscles of the hand and forearm grip an
object; the joints of the hand do not move, but muscles generate sufficient force to
prevent the object from being dropped.
Types of Skeletal Muscle Fibers

Slow-twitch and fast-twitch skeletal muscle fibers can be

characterized by their metabolic processes and corresponding
physiological traits.

LEARNING OBJECTIVE

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

 Differentiate between the types of skeletal muscle fibers

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Key Points

 Oxidative fibers rely on aerobic respiration to fuel muscle contractions, and

include slow-twitch fibers, which are characterized as muscles with long
contraction duration, associated with endurance.
 Glycolytic fibers rely on glycolysis to fuel muscle contractions and include fast-
twitch fibers, which are characterized by fast muscle contractions of short
duration.
 The proportion of fast-twitch vs. slow-twitch muscles of an individual is partly
genetic in nature. However, concentrated exercise that prioritizes one type of
muscle fiber use over the other can improve an individual’s ability to perform
related physical activities.

Glossary

fast-twitch: Type II fibers which are characterized by fast muscle contractions of short

duration.
slow-twitch: Type I fibers characterized as muscles with long contraction duration, associated
with endurance.
glycolytic: Of, pertaining to or producing glycolysis, which is the metabolic pathway that
converts glucose into pyruvate.

Skeletal muscle fibers can be characterized by their metabolic processes and

corresponding physiological traits.
Signaling Pathways that Regulate Skeletal Muscle Fiber-type Phenotype
Exercise-induced signaling pathways in skeletal muscle that determine specialized characteristics of slow-
twitch and fast-twitch muscle fibers.

Oxidative fibers rely on aerobic respiration to fuel muscle contractions, and consist of
slow-twitch (Type I) fibers, which are characterized as muscles with long contraction
duration, associated with endurance. Slow-twitch fibers are used to maintain posture.
They are usually found in red muscles, indicative of the large concentration of
myoglobin providing a steady supply of oxygen to them. The red muscles use oxidative
phosphorylation to obtain ATP. Oxidative phosphorylation occurs in the red muscles as
the process requires a lot of oxygen, and the red muscles contain high amounts of
myoglobin. The process is slower than glycolysis, but much more efficient, which is why
slow-twitch muscles do not tire easily. Also, slow-twitch fibers contain less sarcoplasmic
reticulum, facilitating a slower release of calcium, regulating muscle contraction at
slower rates.

Glycolytic fibers rely on glycolysis to fuel muscle contractions and consist of fast-twitch
(Type II) fibers, which are characterized by fast muscle contractions of short duration.
Fast-twitch fibers are constituents of white muscles and have less myoglobin due to
their primary reliance on glycolysis (anaerobic respiration) to fuel muscle contractions.
Although glycolysis is very quick, it is also inefficient at producing ATP. Glycolysis
produces lactic acid as a byproduct, which leads to fatigue. The use of the glycogen
cycle is the reason why fast-twitch muscles tire out quickly.

There is some evidence that the proportion of fast-twitch versus slow-twitch muscles of
an individual is partly genetic in nature. That is, we are born with a unique proportion of
such muscles that suit us to particular types of physical activity. This is not without
debate, however. Regardless, concentrated exercise that prioritizes one type of muscle
fiber use over the other, can lead to muscle hypertrophy (increase in size), improving an
individual’s ability to perform related physical activitie
Interactions of Skeletal Muscles
LEARNING OBJECTIVES

 Compare and contrast agonist and antagonist muscles

 Describe how fascicles are arranged within a skeletal muscle
 Explain the major events of a skeletal muscle contraction within a muscle in
generating force

To move the skeleton, the tension created by the contraction of the fibers in most
skeletal muscles is transferred to the tendons. The tendons are strong bands of dense,
regular connective tissue that connect muscles to bones. The bone connection is why
this muscle tissue is called skeletal muscle.

Interactions of Skeletal Muscles in the Body

To pull on a bone, that is, to change the angle at its synovial joint, which essentially
moves the skeleton, a skeletal muscle must also be attached to a fixed part of the
skeleton. The moveable end of the muscle that attaches to the bone being pulled is
called the muscle’s insertion, and the end of the muscle attached to a fixed (stabilized)
bone is called the origin. During forearm flexion—bending the elbow—the
brachioradialis assists the brachialis.

Figure 1. Prime Movers and Synergists. The biceps brachii flex the lower arm. The brachoradialis, in the
forearm, and brachialis, located deep to the biceps in the upper arm, are both synergists that aid in this motion.
Although a number of muscles may be involved in an action, the principal muscle
involved is called the prime mover, or agonist. To lift a cup, a muscle called the biceps
brachii is actually the prime mover; however, because it can be assisted by the
brachialis, the brachialis is called a synergist in this action (Figure 1). A synergist can
also be a fixator that stabilizes the bone that is the attachment for the prime mover’s
origin.

A muscle with the opposite action of the prime mover is called an antagonist.
Antagonists play two important roles in muscle function:

1. They maintain body or limb position, such as holding the arm out or standing
erect
2. They control rapid movement, as in shadow boxing without landing a punch or
the ability to check the motion of a limb

For example, to extend the knee, a group of four muscles called the quadriceps femoris
in the anterior compartment of the thigh are activated (and would be called the agonists
of knee extension). However, to flex the knee joint, an opposite or antagonistic set of
muscles called the hamstrings is activated.

As you can see, these terms would also be reversed for the opposing action. If you
consider the first action as the knee bending, the hamstrings would be called the
agonists and the quadriceps femoris would then be called the antagonists. See Table
1 for a list of some agonists and antagonists.

Table 1. Agonist and Antagonist Skeletal Muscle Pairs

Agonist Antagonist Movement

Biceps brachii: in the anterior compartment of the Triceps brachii: in the posterior compartment of the The biceps br
arm arm triceps brachii

Hamstrings: group of three muscles in the posterior Quadriceps femoris: group of four muscles in the The hamstring
compartment of the thigh anterior compartment of the thigh quadriceps fe

The flexor dig

Flexor digitorum superficialis and flexor digitorum
Extensor digitorum: in the posterior compartment of digitorum prof
profundus: in the anterior compartment of the
the forearm the wrist, whe
forearm
the fingers an

There are also skeletal muscles that do not pull against the skeleton for movements.
For example, there are the muscles that produce facial expressions. The insertions and
origins of facial muscles are in the skin, so that certain individual muscles contract to
form a smile or frown, form sounds or words, and raise the eyebrows. There also are
skeletal muscles in the tongue, and the external urinary and anal sphincters that allow
for voluntary regulation of urination and defecation, respectively. In addition, the
diaphragm contracts and relaxes to change the volume of the pleural cavities but it does
not move the skeleton to do this.

EVERYDAY CONNECTIONS: EXERCISE AND STRETCHING

When exercising, it is important to first warm up the muscles. Stretching pulls on the muscle
fibers and it also results in an increased blood flow to the muscles being worked. Without a
proper warm-up, it is possible that you may either damage some of the muscle fibers or pull a
tendon. A pulled tendon, regardless of location, results in pain, swelling, and diminished
function; if it is moderate to severe, the injury could immobilize you for an extended period.
Recall the discussion about muscles crossing joints to create movement. Most of the joints you
use during exercise are synovial joints, which have synovial fluid in the joint space between two
bones. Exercise and stretching may also have a beneficial effect on synovial joints. Synovial
fluid is a thin, but viscous film with the consistency of egg whites. When you first get up and start
moving, your joints feel stiff for a number of reasons. After proper stretching and warm-up, the
synovial fluid may become less viscous, allowing for better joint function.

Patterns of Fascicle Organization

Skeletal muscle is enclosed in connective tissue scaffolding at three levels. Each

muscle fiber (cell) is covered by endomysium and the entire muscle is covered by
epimysium. When a group of muscle fibers is “bundled” as a unit within the whole
muscle by an additional covering of a connective tissue called perimysium, that bundled
group of muscle fibers is called a fascicle. Fascicle arrangement by perimysia is
correlated to the force generated by a muscle; it also affects the range of motion of the
muscle. Based on the patterns of fascicle arrangement, skeletal muscles can be
classified in several ways. What follows are the most common fascicle arrangements.

Parallel muscles have fascicles that are arranged in the same direction as the long axis
of the muscle (Figure 2). The majority of skeletal muscles in the body have this type of
organization. Some parallel muscles are flat sheets that expand at the ends to make
broad attachments. Other parallel muscles are rotund with tendons at one or both ends.
Muscles that seem to be plump have a large mass of tissue located in the middle of the
muscle, between the insertion and the origin, which is known as the central body. A
more common name for this muscle is belly. When a muscle contracts, the contractile
fibers shorten it to an even larger bulge. For example, extend and then flex your biceps
brachii muscle; the large, middle section is the belly (Figure 3). When a parallel muscle
has a central, large belly that is spindle-shaped, meaning it tapers as it extends to its
origin and insertion, it sometimes is called fusiform.
Figure 2. Muscle Shapes and Fiber Alignment. The skeletal muscles of the body typically come in seven
different general shapes.
Figure 3. Biceps Brachii Muscle Contraction. The large mass at the center of a muscle is called the belly.
Tendons emerge from both ends of the belly and connect the muscle to the bones, allowing the skeleton to
move. The tendons of the bicep connect to the upper arm and the forearm. (credit: Victoria Garcia)

Circular muscles are also called sphincters (see Figure 2). When they relax, the
sphincters’ concentrically arranged bundles of muscle fibers increase the size of the
opening, and when they contract, the size of the opening shrinks to the point of closure.
The orbicularis oris muscle is a circular muscle that goes around the mouth. When it
contracts, the oral opening becomes smaller, as when puckering the lips for whistling.
Another example is the orbicularis oculi, one of which surrounds each eye. Consider, for
example, the names of the two orbicularis muscles (orbicularis oris and oribicularis
oculi), where part of the first name of both muscles is the same. The first part of
orbicularis, orb (orb = “circular”), is a reference to a round or circular structure; it may
also make one think of orbit, such as the moon’s path around the earth. The word oris
(oris = “oral”) refers to the oral cavity, or the mouth. The word oculi (ocular = “eye”)
refers to the eye.

There are other muscles throughout the body named by their shape or location. The
deltoid is a large, triangular-shaped muscle that covers the shoulder. It is so-named
because the Greek letter delta looks like a triangle. The rectus abdomis (rector =
“straight”) is the straight muscle in the anterior wall of the abdomen, while the rectus
femoris is the straight muscle in the anterior compartment of the thigh.

When a muscle has a widespread expansion over a sizable area, but then the fascicles
come to a single, common attachment point, the muscle is called convergent. The
attachment point for a convergent muscle could be a tendon, an aponeurosis (a flat,
broad tendon), or a raphe (a very slender tendon). The large muscle on the chest, the
pectoralis major, is an example of a convergent muscle because it converges on the
greater tubercle of the humerus via a tendon. The temporalis muscle of the cranium is
another.

Pennate muscles (penna = “feathers”) blend into a tendon that runs through the central
region of the muscle for its whole length, somewhat like the quill of a feather with the
muscle arranged similar to the feathers. Due to this design, the muscle fibers in a
pennate muscle can only pull at an angle, and as a result, contracting pennate muscles
do not move their tendons very far. However, because a pennate muscle generally can
hold more muscle fibers within it, it can produce relatively more tension for its size.
There are three subtypes of pennate muscles.

In a unipennate muscle, the fascicles are located on one side of the tendon. The
extensor digitorum of the forearm is an example of a unipennate muscle.
A bipennate muscle has fascicles on both sides of the tendon. In some pennate
muscles, the muscle fibers wrap around the tendon, sometimes forming individual
fascicles in the process. This arrangement is referred to as multipennate. A common
example is the deltoid muscle of the shoulder, which covers the shoulder but has a
single tendon that inserts on the deltoid tuberosity of the humerus.

Because of fascicles, a portion of a multipennate muscle like the deltoid can be

stimulated by the nervous system to change the direction of the pull. For example, when
the deltoid muscle contracts, the arm abducts (moves away from midline in the sagittal
plane), but when only the anterior fascicle is stimulated, the arm will abduct and flex
(move anteriorly at the shoulder joint).

The Lever System of Muscle and Bone Interactions

Skeletal muscles do not work by themselves. Muscles are arranged in pairs based on
their functions. For muscles attached to the bones of the skeleton, the connection
determines the force, speed, and range of movement. These characteristics depend on
each other and can explain the general organization of the muscular and skeletal
systems.

The skeleton and muscles act together to move the body. Have you ever used the back
of a hammer to remove a nail from wood? The handle acts as a lever and the head of
the hammer acts as a fulcrum, the fixed point that the force is applied to when you pull
back or push down on the handle. The effort applied to this system is the pulling or
pushing on the handle to remove the nail, which is the load, or “resistance” to the
movement of the handle in the system. Our musculoskeletal system works in a similar
manner, with bones being stiff levers and the articular endings of the bones—encased
in synovial joints—acting as fulcrums. The load would be an object being lifted or any
resistance to a movement (your head is a load when you are lifting it), and the effort, or
applied force, comes from contracting skeletal muscle.
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