What are compound lifts, and why should I be doing them?
At Body By Ford Personal training, all workouts are tailored to a client’s goals and need, tracked in order to ensure progress over time, and planned to ensure we can get maximum results in the smallest, most efficient amount of time possible. The key to program any workout for maximum results and efficiency is to center workouts are compound lifts. What are compound exercises?
A compound exercise is any movement where you're using more than one muscle group at a time.
Consider a squat: This one simple motion engages your core, quads, hamstrings, glutes, calf muscles and hip flexors. Isolation exercises, on the other hand, work one specific muscle group at a time (such as a bicep curl).
Benefits of compound lifts:
Increase caloric burn/fat burning
Working more muscles at the same time raises the heart rate and burns more calories. Burning calories — and limiting caloric intake — is the key to fat loss.
Intramuscular coordination. Nothing prepares you for everyday life like compound lifts. These movements tend to mimic our everyday activities— pushing, pulling, squatting, and hinging at the hip. Do these movements patterns more, and you’ll be better prepared and more coordinated for everyday life.
Elevating heart rate in order to increase cardiovascular capacity. Compound lifts can improve cardiovascular function — as if you’re performing steady-state cardio — while giving you the benefits of strength training. When we program workouts in a circuit-style fashion — usually the method of choice at BXF — this effect can me magnified.
Improve flexibility. Bending at the knees and hips regularly helps improve mobility and flexibility, thus you more prepared for everyday tasks — sitting down, picking up, playing on the floor with kids, etc. Although stretching and yoga are beneficial for flexibility and mobility, don’t forget to tax your body by moving resistance (AKA weight-training) against a full range of motion. We don’t only want to be mobile, we want to be strong, resilient, balanced, and mobile.
Improve strength. The most efficient way to gain strength is with compound lifts. To get stronger, hit the biggest muscle groups with regularity — the smaller surrounding muscles will get stronger as well. Push, pull, squat, and hinge. Doing these four movements will lead to full-body strength and a balanced physique. Don’t waste your time doing endless isolation exercises that aren’t the best bang for the buck.
Gain more muscle mass. Want to have more chiseled muscle and improve the way your clothes fit and the way you look? Build lean body mass.
What’s the best way to build muscle in an efficient manner? Get stronger using key compound lifts.
At Body By Ford Personal Training, we are able to program efficient 30 minute workouts that make you stronger, leaner, and fitter. We do this by programming workouts built around key compound lifts that efficiently build muscle, gain strength, and help you change your body composition. Every workout is customized for your body, your goals, and based on your progress over time. This is the Body By Ford difference.
