Why Compound Exercises Should Be Part Of Your Next Workout, Plus 10 To Try

If you want to make your workouts efficient, diverse, and extra spicy, listen up! Compound exercises, or compound movements, are arguably the aces of fitness. While they don't get much airtime, you're probably already doing them in your workouts. And if you're not, well, don't worry, we'll convince you.

"Compound exercises work multiple muscle groups at the same time rather than just one," explains Sydney Miller, founder of HOUSEWORK. Compound exercises are also called multi-joint movements because they involve more than one joint. When you do a movement that involves multiple joints, you're recruiting all of the muscles that help to flex that joint.

If you've taken a HIIT, strength, Pilates, or yoga class, you've done compound movements before. Traditional exercises like squats, which involve flexion at the hip, knee, and ankle joints and work several muscles including your glutes, hamstrings, quads, and abdominals are considered compound movements as well as more complicated movements, like a beast crawl or a kettlebell swing. 

Isolation exercises are the opposite of compound exercises—they involve only one joint. You're likely used to seeing both types of movements in your workouts. "For example, a triceps kickback is a very common isolation exercise that involves only the triceps—the arm is bending and extending at the elbow and the tricep flexes," explains Miller. 

But you can work your triceps and other muscles at the same time by doing a compound exercise like a triceps pushup. "Not only are you working your triceps as you bend and extend at the elbow to lower and lift yourself, but you are also working shoulders, back, abs, and even biceps." 

As Thompson explains, "Compound exercises are great for a holistic training program, while isolation exercises can be executed to grow specific muscle groups."

If you've ever biceps-curled into oblivion, you can already see the appeal of compound movements. "The variety can be fun, engaging, and keep workouts interesting, leading to an increase in motivation and consistency, which in turn leads to sustainable fitness goals long term," says Thompson.

"Compound exercises tend to be more efficient than an isolation exercise because essentially you are getting more bang for your buck and working different parts of your body at the same time," says Miller. This means you can spend less time working out while still getting the benefits of exercise. 

If you're looking to improve strength, compound movements are the way to go. "Compound movements like a squat, bench press, or deadlift provide the foundation for future training," says Thompson. "Compound movements engage more muscles, which means that under tension there is more mechanical damage to muscle fibers resulting in an increase of muscle mass and strength."

"Compound movements will typically spike your heart rate, compared to their single-joint counterpart," says Donavanik. While compound movements won't give you the standard steady-state cardio that you'll get with running, biking, or swimming, depending on the moves you choose and the way your workout is programmed, you can definitely get a dose of anaerobic exercise, he explains, which uses your fast-twitch muscle fibers.

"Compound movements are not just for resistance training," agrees Thompson. He points to everyone's love-to-hate move, the burpee, which works multiple muscle groups and elevates your heart rate.

"Online workouts and classes are a great place to start to learn compound movements," recommends Donavanik. It's also a way to find compound movements you enjoy and want to add to your arsenal. 

Of course, this doesn't mean you need to completely abandon your favorite isolation exercises.