5 great compound exercises that build strength and burn fat

If there is one thing the fitness world is obsessed with, then it is isolating muscles. Which is extremely important, but should not come at the cost of leaving out exercises that can work multiple muscle groups at the same time.

In fact, having a blend of both is what makes a workout more complete. So while you’re isolating your biceps with a one-arm bicep curl on the cable machine, there is no harm following it up with a lunge along with a two-handed bicep curl. Think of it as a buy-one-get-one-free offer, or like one of those click pens which come in multiple ink colours.

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Following a complete isolation routine also takes time and there are days which won’t allow that. This is when combination exercises can become a saviour, making it easy to get the most out of the time you devote to exercise. Some fitness experts call these compound exercises as well. But this list tends to be less complicated and most of them only need a pair of dumbbells to do.

Lunges and bicep curl: Use this as the starting point to learn a compound movement. Choose a lunge of your choice—whether it’s a side lunge or a forward or backward one, and use the dumbbells in both arms to do a conventional bicep curl and you will be working a lot more than just your legs. This move also works as an excellent warm-up whether you are doing leg day or upper body.

“[This] is a great exercise for beginners. You can really tailor this exercise to fit your individual needs based on how deep you lunge and how heavy your dumbbells are,” states a Get Healthy U article titled, How To Do A Forward Lunge With Bicep Curl.

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Low lunge with tricep kickback: Similar to the lunge and bicep curl, this move will hit your triceps with one of the most potent exercises, the kickback. The lunge is slightly different though, with the body leaning forward onto the lunging leg while keeping the back straight. This will create the correct angle to allow space for the tricep kickback. With as little as 2kg dumbbells, you can get the most out of your exercise because the kickback is not meant to be done with very heavy weights.

One key element of this move is that you will have to pull the dumbbells closer to your chest for the kickback: an added resistance which makes this very useful.

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Squat plus overhead press: Combining a squat with an overhead press on the way up is not just a good standalone exercise for the legs and the shoulders, but also a foundational move to learn thrusters and snatches as you progress in your journey. The best part about this one is that you can also do a push press at the top of the squat if you want to use heavier weights. The body coordination benefits are multi-fold, along with learning technique.

You can choose to do this with alternating hands as well, pressing the dumbbell up with your left arm in one rep and the right one in the next. Adding a rotation will make it even more interesting. “The squat and the overhead press are two power-house moves that hit big fat-torching muscles like your glutes, quads, and shoulders. When merged together, you can work a ton of muscles at once and save time,” states a Men’s Health article titled, The Combo Lift That Builds Strength And Sheds Fat.

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Deadlift and bent over row: I wrote about the importance of barbell complexes in an earlier story for Lounge titled 3 Barbell Workouts To Reach Your Fitness Goals, and performing the deadlift with the bent over row featured in all three.

One can start this with dumbbells before building the strength to use barbells of any size and weight. Perform a bent over row and deadlift the weight up since the body is already in a hinged position. Two classic back moves done in one go? Irresistible.

Given that the body can perform deadlifts with higher weights than it can for bent over rows, make sure the choice of weight is safe. The key here is not loading the back, but working it in different ways in the same move.

Pullup and hanging leg raise: For those who are intermediate to advanced level and have mastered the pullup without resistance bands, this is the exercise which will isolate the core and work your entire back.

Perform the pullup and then one hanging leg raise. Try and treat the hanging leg raise as a small break from doing one pullup after another rather than a challenge and you’d be surprised how a slight change in perspective can make a big difference. Feel free to scale it down by trying a knee raise first before attempting a full leg raise.

Pulasta Dhar is a football commentator, podcaster and writer.

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