Compound exercises are often included in every workout regimen, and for good reason. These movements are highly effective at building muscle and strength while burning a high calorie count, but you may wonder what sets them apart from other exercises.
Find out why compound exercises should be incorporated into your workout routine. In this guide, we discuss the benefits of compound weight lifting, the top exercises to tackle, and common mistakes to avoid.
What Is a Compound Exercise?
What’s the Difference Between Compound and Isolation Exercises?
Compound exercises target several muscle groups through the movement of multiple joints. For example, squats activate the quads, hamstrings, and glutes through the movement of the hips, knees, and ankles. These exercises can involve much more weight than isolated exercises and are more efficient in increasing overall strength.
Isolation exercises target a single muscle group through the movement of a single joint. For example, bicep curls isolate the engagement of the bicep muscle by only flexing and extending the elbow. These exercises can’t be loaded up as heavily and are often used to correct imbalances.
Key Benefits of Compound Movements
Strength and Muscle
Because compound exercises engage more than one muscle group to complete the movement, you can incorporate more weight than isolated movements. Compound movements are a reliable way to gain strength because they challenge muscles to adapt and grow to the increased weight, a principle known as progressive overload.
Efficiency
Compound exercises activate several muscles and utilize multiple joints at once, so you can work out your entire body with fewer exercises than if you dedicated an isolated movement to each muscle. These movements provide a more efficient way to gain muscle, build strength, and burn more calories.
Stability
Stability is essential for compound exercises. Because so many muscle groups and joints are engaged, compound exercises challenge your body’s stability in the same way they challenge its strength. Stability is required to propel the necessary force to complete the exercise.
Coordination
Compound exercises mimic everyday movements and teach you the proper technique to coordinate muscles. It’s understandable for someone unfamiliar with deadlifts to try to lift something using their back. Deadlifts teach you to lift properly by coordinating your legs, hips, and back.
The 8 Top Compound Exercises to Incorporate
Barbell Back Squat
Squats are regarded as one of the most efficient exercises for muscle activation. The movement utilizes the hips and knees to engage the quads, hamstrings, glutes, and core, while relying on the back to support the added weight.
How to Do It
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Set up the barbell on the rack just below shoulder height.
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Place your hands on the barbell a little wider than shoulder width. Duck under the bar, rest the bar on your upper back (not neck!), and place your feet hip-width apart directly below you. Squeeze your lats and mid-back as you grip the bar.
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Straighten out your knees to unrack the bar and take a step back. Place your feet slightly wider than shoulder width.
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Take a deep breath, push your butt back, and bend your knees, driving your knees out and engaging your core to keep your chest up.
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Lower until your thighs are just below parallel to the ground, take a brief pause, then press through your feet to stand straight again, squeezing your glutes at the top. Ensure your eyes stay forward and your weight is evenly distributed through your feet when you push up.
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Repeat for desired reps, then step forward into the rack to re-rack it.
Deadlift
Deadlifts primarily engage the glutes, hamstrings, and lower back, but also target the core and upper back. Additionally, deadlifts indirectly strengthen forearms and grip.
How to Do It
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Place your feet shoulder-width apart under the bar. Your shins should be very close or slightly touching the bar.
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Push your butt back and hinge at the hips to bend and grasp the bar just outside your knees with an overhand grip.
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Ensure your hips are below your shoulders, squeeze your shoulder blades to straighten your spine, and tighten your grip on the bar.
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Engage your abdominal muscles. Push upwards through your heels, extending your knees and hips. Don’t raise your hips first, as your back can round. As you raise the weight, keep the bar near your body and keep your arms extended.
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Squeeze your glutes until your shoulders, hips, and knees are aligned. The bar should be at your thigh. Pull your shoulders back as much as you can without bending backward.
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Lower the bar with a reverse motion, pushing through your hips while keeping your spine straight.
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Repeat for desired reps.
Bench Press
Bench press is a staple compound exercise, performed with a bench and barbell or a cable machine, like the Speediance Gym Monster 2. While seemingly only strengthening the chest, it also activates the triceps, mid-back, shoulders, and core.
How to Do It
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Lie down on the bench with your feet flat on the ground. Grip the barbell with your hands slightly wider than shoulder width. The bar should be right above your shoulders.
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Press your feet into the ground, tighten your core, and engage your glutes. Keep your spine neutral.
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Slowly lift the bar off the rack. Inhale as you lower it toward your chest, bending your elbows about 45 degrees away from the body. Ensure your forearms are perpendicular to the ground and keep your wrists straight.
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Stop lowering when your elbows are just below the bench. Exhale and press your feet into the floor as you push the bar back up to the starting position.
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Repeat for desired reps.
Bent-Over Barbell Row
Bent-over barbell rows work out your back, biceps, and core.
How to Do It
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Stand with the barbell above your toes and place your feet hip-width apart. Push your butt back to hinge at the hips and grab the barbell with an overhand grip with your hands slightly wider than shoulder width.
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Slightly bend your legs, keep your head neutral, and lock your glutes and core.
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Raise your torso slightly to lift the weight off the floor.
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Bend your elbows and squeeze your shoulder blades to row the weight toward your ribcage. Ensure your shoulders aren’t rising toward your ears.
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Slowly lower the weight to the starting position in a controlled manner without breaking your posture.
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Repeat for desired reps.
Inverted Row
The inverted row builds back strength and improves grip. You can adjust the difficulty by raising or lowering the barbell.
How to Do It
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Place the barbell at your desired height. The higher it is, the easier the row will be. Waist height is typically enough to fully extend the arms without touching the floor.
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Lie down under the bar and look up at the ceiling. Reach up for the bar with an overhand grip and position your hands a bit wider than shoulder-width. Your body should be suspended with only your heels touching the floor.
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Squeeze your abs, glutes, and shoulder blades to brace your lower back and keep your spine straight. Maintain this posture throughout the entire movement.
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Pull yourself up. Think about pulling the bar to your chest. Your chest doesn’t have to touch the bar, so don’t arch your back to reach it.
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Pause and squeeze your shoulder blades at the top before slowly lowering yourself to the starting position with arms extended.
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Repeat for desired reps.
Pushup
Pushups are useful if you don’t have access to weights. They primarily work out the chest, shoulders, and triceps while engaging the core. Despite being a bodyweight exercise, there are many variations to up the intensity or pinpoint the focus. If pushups are too difficult, try incline pushups against a bench and work your way down.
How to Do It
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Start in a high plank position with your hands flat on the floor, wrists directly below your shoulders, and feet hip-width apart. Place your hands slightly wider than your shoulders and hold your spine straight.
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Squeeze your shoulder blades together, brace your core and glutes, and keep your gaze on the floor in front of you.
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Lower your chest toward the ground by bending your elbows about 45 degrees away from your body. Keep your core tight and don’t let your hips drop. Get as close to the ground as you can without touching it.
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Pause briefly before pushing your hands into the floor and extending your arms, returning to the high plank position.
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Repeat for desired reps.
Pullup
Pullups strengthen your back, shoulders, and biceps using your bodyweight.
How to Do It
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Grab the pullup bar with an overhand grip a little wider than shoulder width. Hang on the bar in a dead hang, meaning your arms are fully extended. Tighten your core and slightly extend your legs in front of you to enter the hollow position.
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Pull your elbows down until your chest touches the bar. Imagine pulling the bar down towards your chest to engage your lats.
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Slowly lower yourself back down in a controlled manner before engaging in a dead hang again.
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Repeat for desired reps.
Lunges
Unlike the other exercises on this list, lunges are a unilateral movement, meaning they involve only one side of the body at a time. This exercise engages your quads, glutes, and core while improving balance. Lunges primarily use bodyweight but can be loaded up with weights and resistance equipment.
How to Do It
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Stand with your feet hip-width apart.
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Take a step roughly two to three feet in front of the other foot. Your leading foot should be flat while your trailing heel rises off the ground.
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Bend both knees to approximately 90 degrees as you lower yourself. Keep your torso straight and core engaged. Your back knee shouldn’t touch the ground, and your weight should be evenly distributed between both legs.
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Push through your front heel to return to the starting position.
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Repeat for desired reps, alternating the leading foot after each rep.
How to Program Compound Exercises Into Your Routine
Compound exercises can be incorporated into your workout program regardless of your goals. If you’re looking to build muscle mass, strength, stamina, or burn calories, compound exercises are highly efficient at doing so.
Compound movements have many variations to accommodate experience. Once you’re comfortable with a certain motion, add weight or reps to increase the intensity and continue improving. If you’re doing isolation exercises, do your most intensive compound exercises first to ensure you’re at your peak energy during the most taxing efforts.
4 Common Compound Exercise Mistakes To Avoid
Lack of Form
Proper technique is needed to get the most out of your exercises and avoid injury. You may think it’s easier to complete a rep by “bouncing” the weight when you’re extending the muscle back into the starting position, but you’re only risking injury without fully engaging the muscles.
Common form mistakes include flared elbows, a rounded back, locked knees, and an incomplete range of motion. Focus on mastering proper form now so you don’t get used to an improper technique.
Don’t Overdo It
It takes time to get used to compound exercises. Most beginners lack the endurance or stability to comfortably power through a compound movement, especially with added weight. Strong fundamentals require patience.
Every exercise takes some getting used to, and figuring out how to do them properly can be taxing. Take time to understand your fitness level and curate a workout program with a reasonable load, rep count, and set count.
You’re likely used to seeing influencers and athletes maxing out and boasting their personal best, but most don’t need to do that. Trying to do too much too soon increases the injury risk, and pushing yourself to failure right off the bat can be counterintuitive and make you feel stuck.
Don’t Underdo It
While overdoing it is a common mistake, so is underdoing it. Don’t let yourself get too comfortable with a certain exercise. If you don’t challenge your body, it won’t adapt to tougher circumstances and build strength.
Going up in weight can be intimidating, but there are other ways to challenge your body. Paused reps involve a slight pause at the point of the motion where the muscle is under the most tension. These reps increase muscle activation and prevent the assisted “bounce” that disengages the muscles where it’s most needed.
Not Every Exercise is for Everyone
The barbell back squat is one of the most highly regarded compound exercises. However, that doesn’t mean everyone can do them. Your anatomy, mobility, and physical condition affect your ability to complete certain movements. While that means some exercises may not fit in your program, the good news is that there are several ways to accommodate compound movements, such as exercise variations or equipment assistance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do You Really Need Compound Exercises?
It depends on your goals. Compound exercises aren’t needed per se, but they are much more effective and time-efficient at building strength and muscle. In addition, compound exercises increase functional fitness by mimicking everyday movements. Attempting to replace the benefits of compound movements with isolation exercises yields inefficient results.
What Happens if I Only Do Compound Lifts?
Only doing compound lifts gives you a solid foundation of strength and muscle mass, but may lead to muscle imbalances that isolation exercises could remedy. Isolation movements are useful in targeting the areas that need strengthening to improve at compound lifts.
What Are the Big 5 Compound Exercises?
The “Big 5” compound exercises are commonly the squat, deadlift, bench press, overhead press, and pull-up. These exercises provide a solid foundation for building strength and muscle across the entire body.
Compound Exercises Build Full-Body Muscle Strength
Compound exercises are key to building strength and muscle. They target multiple muscles and joints, providing an efficient way to improve your fitness. Incorporate them into your gym routine to effectively work toward your fitness goals.
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