Compound Exercises Routine

A compound exercise is simply a multijoint exercise that challenges multiple muscle groups concurrently. While compound exercises should form the backbone of every solid lifting routine, it is possible to structure an entire routine around nothing but compound exercises. Here are some of the advantages to this style of training and how you go about scheduling it.

  1. Big Boy Basics

    • Chad Waterbury, a strength and conditioning coach best known for training mixed martial arts fighters, is a huge proponent of focusing your efforts in the weight room to strictly compound movements. According to Waterbury's philosophy, it makes perfect sense to concentrate on these "bang-for-the-buck" exercises and disregard isolation training (performing exercises that focus on one muscle group at a time, like curls) for two reasons: (1) the muscles you would normally "isolate" are already being trained with compound movements, so they will not lag behind, and (2) in a world where people have limited time to train, why not focus your efforts on exercises that will provide the greatest return on investment? He calls his plan "Big Boy Basics."

    The Plan

    • Big Boy Basics is a 4-day-a-week training program. Waterbury suggests two possible splits, subject only to individual preference. Split 1 uses a two-on, one-off, two-on, two-off rhythm to divide the week. So, for example, you would train Monday and Tuesday, then Thursday and Friday, and have the entire weekend off. Split 2 is a one-on, one-off, one-on, one-off, two-on, one-off plan. So you would train Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. No matter how you pick your poison, the program remains just as effective, so do not sweat the small stuff.

      As far as the actual lifting goes, the program alternates upper-and lower-body days, for a total of two upper-body and two lower-body days during the week. You alternate performing light and heavy days. The light days focus around a set/rep scheme of three sets of eight repetitions per exercise. The heavy days reverse that, using a set/rep scheme of eight sets of three repetitions per exercise. By constantly varying the load and keeping the body guessing, you ensure sustained progress.

    Exercises

    • Exercises on the program are what you would expect to see--heavy incorporation of the three big lifts (squat, bench, and deadlift), with all of their possible variations thrown into the mix as well. Expect to perform many types of pressing movements (both benching and overhead), many types of rows, pull-ups, hack squats and press-downs and several direct abdominal exercises like weighted sit-ups and knee raises.

      Overall, this program should produce ample gains in both size and strength for the lifter looking for a compound-only exercise routine. After a few months of following Waterbury's principles (and assuming your nutrition is dialed in), expect a 10- to 20-pound increase in scale weight and a similar increase in muscle definition. Good luck!