Compound Movements?

So you've heard of compound movements, but what are they? And how do they benefit you?

What are Compound Movements?

A compound exercise or movement is an exercise that works several muscle groups at the same time, and involves movement around multiple joints. The squat, for example, involves pretty much all the muscles in your legs and glutes and involves the hip, knee and ankle joints.

How do Compounds benefit you?

Compounds are great in many ways and should be the base for any good workout program. Most compounds are based on everyday movements, and being strong in these movements will help in everyday situations.

For example, the deadlift exercise mimics picking items up from the floor. Be it a sofa, a box or even your child, being strong in this movement will help prevent getting injured and help in these everyday situations.

Compounds work more than one muscle group at a time, so combining just a few of these movements you can workout your entire body and save loads of time in the gym. A squat combined with a chin up and a press up will work: your legs, your bum, your back, your shoulders (to an extent), your biceps, your triceps, not to mention all the smaller stabiliser muscles! Only 3 exercises and you've worked nearly all your body!

CAUTION: Be sure to perform these exercises with proper form! Especially the squat and deadlift. You need to practice these movements with proper form to ingrain it into your mind and nervous system so you won't get injured, in or out of the gym. Look out for instructional posts on these movements coming soon.

A great book to look out for is Strength Training Anatomy by Delavier, it has pretty much every exercise in it with useful tips, and lists all the muscles each exercise works. A great tool for planning your own workout program.

So what are some Compound Movements?

Here's a list:

• The squat
• The deadlift
• The bench press (Or similar i.e. push up)
• The lunge
• Shoulder press
• Rowing movements (i.e. Bent over row, upright row)

This is just a small list, there are many compound movements. 

So get your compounds on and #getmoving today!

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