What Are Compound Movements?
A compound lift is an exercise that uses more than one muscle group at once. This can benefit and improve your training as it allows you to lift more weight each exercise, which therefore allows greater muscle growth, larger calorie burn and an overall more efficient workout. These lifts will also translate into your everyday life as most compound lifts have a functional carry over relating to everyday activities
The Four main Compounds
The Push
Push will target some of your upper body muscles like chest, shoulders, and triceps
The Pull
Pull will target muscles your such as, the lats, rhomboids, traps, rear delts, erectors and biceps.
Squat Variations
Squats target front legs and core muscles. Such as, the quads, hip flexors, and adductors.
Hinge/Deadlift Variations
Finally, these moves will target the rear leg and core muscles. Such as, hamstrings, glutes, and abductors
What are the benefits of each Compound movement?
The benefits each compound can provide are genuinely great and incorporating each into your weekly routine will be essential to make efficient and well- balanced gains.
Upper Body
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Push - Push movements can be done between horizontal and vertical planes and dependant on the incline angle will bias muscles more than others. Exercises that are included are flat bench press, inclined chest press, shoulder press and many more. Each will work towards improving your lean upper body mass and defining muscle groups such as your chest and shoulders.
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Pull - Pull helps to strengthen your posterior upper chain as mentioned above. Exercises that are done from pulling are lateral pulldown, row variations and bicep curls. Also, these can help to correct poor posture such as rounded shoulders and arched spine or back pain, which a sizeable percentage of people suffer with. Hence why an appropriate balance in training is vital. Similarly with push, pull will also aid in improving lean muscle mass on the upper body.
Lower Body
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The Squat - Squat moves strengthens your legs as well as improves mobility in the hips, knees, and ankles. Exercises that include these are squats of any variation, leg press when done correctly and with appropriate loading. This can also help to improve knee pain and injuries related to the knee.
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Hinge/Deadlift - Finally, hinge movements. This strengthens your upper back as well as posterior lower body as the erector spinae muscles which aid in extending the hips up. This movement also improves mobility in the hamstrings, hips, and centre and lower spine. Exercises that include hip flexion are Romanian deadlifts (RDLs), back extensions, and hip flexor raises.
Summary and Thoughts
To summarise, compound lifts should be included in your workouts. Get the most out of your workouts and incorporate them at the beginning as you will have the most energy to exert on the heaviest, most taxing lifts.
It is also important to remember the small muscles that aid in the compound movements, such as the rotator cuff group in the shoulder, for pressing movements are key to work on. This muscle group stabilises the shoulder during most pressing patterns so without it you will be less efficient.
For more tips and advice consider the help of a personal trainer or use the Gym Group App to plan your workout or training routine.