Compound lifts are the most comprehensive exercises you can incorporate into your workout. Before we get into the best compound movements out there, we’re going to tell you everything you need to know to get started. If you’re looking to find the best compound exercises for beginners - look no further. We’ve got it all.
Up second is the bodyweight squat. This compound exercise is great for beginners and perfect for building a foundation of strength. They also help to build proper mobility, supporting the potential for extending this exercise with barbells! What muscles are trained with the squat?
What muscles are trained with the barbell squat?
BUT FIRST, WHAT ARE COMPOUND EXERCISES?
Compound lifts are exercises that work several muscle groups in one movement. For example, deadlifts can help you develop strength in the glutes, lower back, hamstrings and upper back. An easier way to explain how compound lifts work is to compare them to isolation exercises.- Compound exercises need more than one muscle group to work together in order to complete the movement. This recreates the way your body moves naturally.
- Isolation exercises, however, pretty much train one specific muscle group. For example, leg curls are an isolation exercise which targets the hamstring muscles.
Also Read:Your Ultimate Guide to HIIT TrainingMany of us don’t pay attention to everyday tasks, such as taking out the trash, carrying the kids about or picking up something heavy at the store - yet these movements tend to use multiple groups. This is exactly what happens when you add our best compound movements into your workout. Plus, when you’re making multiple muscle groups work, you’re maximising your time in the gym! Why focus on one muscle when compound lifts can workout several? Ready for the best compound exercises for beginners? Let’s do it.
OUR FAVOURITE 5 COMPOUND EXERCISES FOR BEGINNERS (BODYWEIGHT)
One of the most simple exercises you can do - the push up. This compound exercise allows you to use your own bodyweight and train several muscles at the same time. What muscles are trained with push ups?- Abs
- Triceps
- Deltoids
- Pectoral

- Glutes
- Quads
- Core muscles
- Hamstrings
- Your grip
- Biceps
- All of your back muscles (Rhomboids, trapezius, latissimus dorsi)
- Forearm muscles (Ventral, dorsal)
- Your entire back (Rhomboids, trapezius, latissimus dorsi)
- Abs
- Latissimus dorsi (Lats)
- Trapezius (Traps)
- Biceps
- Your grip
- Abs
- Deltoids
- Pectoral
- Rhomboid (back muscles)
- Triceps
OUR TOP 6 COMPOUND EXERCISES FOR BEGINNERS (WITH BARBELL)
By now, you’ll be pretty familiar with moving your own bodyweight, so it’s time to add barbells into the mix. To increase the difficulty of these compound lifts, add a little extra weight. Provided you do it safely, you can almost always add more weight. We’re going to start the list again and kick things off with the overhead press. We’re going to give it to you plain and simple: Press a barbell above your head. What muscles are trained with the overhead press?- Abs
- Deltoids
- Pectoral
- Triceps
- Rhomboid (back muscles)
- Hamstrings
- Erectors (spinal muscle)
- Glutes
- Pretty much every other muscle
- Glutes
- Hamstrings
- Erectors (spinal muscle)
- Rhomboid (back muscles)

- Core muscles
- Hamstrings
- Glutes
- Quads
- Abs
- Triceps
- Pectoral
- Rhomboid (back muscles)
- Deltoids
- Pretty much every other upper body muscle
- Your grip
- Forearm muscles (dorsal, ventral)
- Biceps
- All of your back muscles (Rhomboids, trapezius, latissimus dorsi)