For nearly three years, I’ve been fighting an uphill battle with my shoulder. What started as a skiing accident left me with a damaged rotator cuff and a strength ceiling I couldn’t break through. Despite following proper rehabilitation protocols and consistent training, my overhead press had been stuck at around 150 pounds—well below my pre-injury max of 185.
Until six weeks ago, when everything changed.
The Plateau That Wouldn’t Budge
After my injury, I did what many do: I tried to treat it myself. When that yielded limited results, I finally saw a physical therapist who helped me regain range of motion. Progress was slow but steady. Eventually, I could perform movements that had been impossible post-injury — kipping pull-ups, snatches, overhead squats.
But raw strength? That remained stubbornly fixed.
I follow the 5-3-1 program, which has a built-in system for tracking estimated one-rep maxes (E1RM). Looking at my overhead press numbers since January tells the story:
2025-01-21: 150.97 lbs
2025-01-29: 152.73 lbs
2025-02-18: 153.53 lbs
Three training cycles, and my strength increased by less than 3 pounds. Frustrating, but not unusual. A 2.5-5 pound improvement over a 4-week training block used to be something I’d celebrate.
The Tendon Discovery
In early March, I stumbled across research by physiologist Keith Barr on the Tim Ferriss podcast (If you only watch some of this I’d recommend minutes 3-10, 13-16 and 27-45 for the meat of the information). His message was simple yet revolutionary: most strength training programs completely overlook tendon health, creating a weak link in the strength chain.
Barr explained that while muscles adapt relatively quickly to training (days to weeks), tendons take much longer (months to years). This mismatch creates a situation where your muscles can generate force that your tendons can’t safely transmit.
The solution? Specific isometric exercises designed to stimulate collagen synthesis in tendons.
The Protocol
The protocol Barr recommends is surprisingly simple:
- Choose an exercise that targets the tendon you want to strengthen
- Use low to moderate loads (around 30-40% of maximum)
- Hold the isometric position for 3-10 seconds
- Repeat once per minute for 10 minutes
- Do this daily or near-daily
For my shoulder issues, I focused on a single exercise: Dead hangs from a pull-up bar.
The beauty of this approach is its simplicity. I could do dead hangs between meetings, or even during longer calls when my camera was off. I began incorporating the protocol almost daily, often breaking it up throughout the day.
The Results
After just one week of consistent tendon training, I noticed something: my regular working sets felt noticeably easier. I initially attributed this to a good day or better recovery.
But the trend continued. Here’s what happened to my E1RM over the next few weeks:
2025-03-10: 156.00 lbs
2025-03-20: 162.58 lbs
2025-03-28: 168.39 lbs
Let that sink in. A 15-pound increase in less than a month, after being stuck for years. At this pace, I’ll surpass my pre-injury max within weeks.
Why It Works
According to Barr’s research, these specific isometric holds trigger collagen synthesis in tendons without causing excessive strain. The key is the time under tension: long enough to signal adaptation, but not so intense that it causes damage.
Traditional strength training often neglects tendons because:
- They receive limited blood flow compared to muscles
- They adapt much more slowly than muscles
- Most programs don’t include the specific stimulus tendons need
When tendons are strengthened, they can transmit force more efficiently. Suddenly, the strength your muscles already had becomes fully available.
Implementation Tips
If you want to try this approach:
- Start simple: Choose 1-2 exercises targeting your problem areas
- Keep intensity low: These aren’t max effort holds—around 30-40% of max is ideal
- Be consistent: Daily or near-daily practice seems to be the key
- Track progress: The effects build up gradually
- Be opportunistic: I do sets during Zoom calls, while waiting for coffee, or other “dead time”
The time commitment is minimal—just 10 minutes per exercise—but the consistency matters more than the intensity.
Beyond Rehab
What’s most exciting is that this isn’t just a rehabilitation technique. Even if you’re not dealing with an injury, strengthening your tendons could be the missing link in your training program.
Think about it: if your tendons are the bottleneck in force transmission, then all the muscle development in the world won’t help you express more strength. This could explain why many lifters hit plateaus despite consistent training.
After experiencing these results firsthand, I’ve begun implementing this approach for other lifts. If you’re struggling with a strength plateau or recovering from injury, you might want to give Keith Barr’s tendon protocol a try. It might just be the missing link in your training.
Ten minutes a day could unlock years of stalled progress.
