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

1. The Push: Push will target some of your upper body muscles like chest, shoulders, and triceps

2. The Pull: Pull will target muscles such as, the lats, rhomboids, traps, rear delts, erectors and biceps.

3. Squat Variation: Squats target front legs and core muscles. Such as, the quads, hip flexors, and adductors.

4. 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

1. 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.

   
   

2. 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

1. 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.

   
   

2. 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.