What is combined training and what is its benefit?

How much do you know about compound exercises and multi-joint movements?

There are different training systems, each of which has good features, but if you are looking for efficient, comprehensive, attractive, challenging and multi-faceted exercises that will have the most efficiency and impact in a short time, we suggest that you go for combined or multi-joint exercises. In this article from Vitamin, we will read about what multi-joint exercises are and why it is important to do them.

What are compound exercises and multi-joint movements?

Multi-joint exercises, as the name suggests, are exercises that engage and train several joints and muscle groups at the same time. A good example of a multi-joint exercise is the squat; When squatting, several joints and muscles are involved and trained. For this reason, multi-joint movements are also called combined movements.

It can be said that combined or multi-joint exercises are the cornerstone of a professional and principled bodybuilding program; Because it has a comprehensive attention to all muscles and joints and makes your bodybuilding program richer and more useful. Multi-joint exercises can also be called functional exercises; Because it simply simulates the natural movement of our body during everyday movements and sitting and standing up.

What are the benefits of compound exercises?

Multi-joint exercises are considered very valuable exercises for bodybuilders and athletes due to their many benefits. In the following, we will explain some of the benefits of these exercises.

1. Burn more calories

You burn more calories doing compound exercises and the reason is simple. Since a multi-joint exercise needs to engage more muscles, it also requires a lot more energy. For example, consider the squat, this movement uses all the muscles of the leg, thigh, buttock, as well as the mid-body and even the forearm.

Multi-joint exercises are a great way to build more muscle mass and burn more calories in less time. You can get a great program to burn more calories from Vitamin Coaches right now. Your program will be designed and adjusted according to your goals and physical conditions.

2. Establish muscle balance

Isolation or single-joint exercises can help you focus on a weak muscle or joint, strengthen it, and increase its volume, but on the other hand, it can mean that (if you don't train properly) certain parts of your body. become stronger or more muscular and other parts of growth remain.

Fortunately, there is no such problem in combined exercises; Because you train several muscles at the same time, and the overall strength and coordination of your body increases at the same time.

3. Being functional and practical

One of the key benefits of compound movements is its functionality. In the sense that it is practical and useful for our normal life and they help us in daily activities such as lifting, pushing and pulling.

Since these exercises simulate real-life movements, they effectively improve the body's ability to perform routine tasks and significantly reduce the risk of injury.

4. Saving time

As we said above, you burn more calories when doing multi-joint movements and using multiple muscle groups at the same time. With these exercises, you can train muscle groups such as upper body, lower body and middle body at the same time and spend less time on training. For example, do squats and shoulder presses at the same time.

5. Building a strong midsection

Don't you do separate abdominal exercises and feel guilty about it? Fortunately, many multi-joint exercises involve the mid-body in some way. The overhead press, deadlift, squat, and even the row require core strength and help build your abs. However, we recommend that you do not eliminate abdominal exercises altogether.

6. Better joint health and mobility

Many compound exercises require a wide range of motion, and when you do these exercises, mobility and joint health improve. For example, exercises like squats and lunges improve the flexibility and strength of your hips and knees.

7. Growth hormone stimulation

Research has shown that compound exercises stimulate the secretion of growth hormones more than single joint exercises. These exercises lead to an increase in the production of hormones such as testosterone and growth hormone, which are very important for muscle growth, fat loss and overall physical health.

8. Strengthening the cardiovascular system

Although many compound exercises are mainly strength training and focus on increasing muscular strength and endurance, they also have an aerobic aspect; Especially if they are done with a high pressure training system like circuit training. As a result, you can use these exercises to improve cardiovascular health.

9. Very diverse exercises

Compound exercises are a wide variety of different movement types that keep your exercise session interesting and challenging. When your exercise session is interesting, you will be more interested in it and continue to do it consistently.

Is it good to eliminate single-joint exercises?

After reading all the benefits of multi-joint exercises, you must have thought that single-joint or separate exercises are not good and should be abandoned! But it is not! Both types of multi-joint and separate exercises have their place and use, and one cannot be excluded.

The bodybuilding program of successful athletes and bodybuilders in the world is a combination of both types of training; For example, isolation exercises are often used to target specific muscles for bulking purposes, but multi-joint exercises are used to train more muscle groups.

Introduction of multi-joint or combined bodybuilding movements

According to the explanations we have given you about multi-joint movements or the same combination, you must have understood which movements fall into this category. Below are several examples of very popular multi-joint exercises.

Is squat multi-jointed or single-jointed?

Squats are an example of a very important and useful multi-joint exercise that uses several muscle groups and several joints simultaneously for one movement. Many muscles of the lower body are targeted in this movement, including the quadriceps, buttocks, hamstrings, legs, and abdomen, and various joints are involved, including the wrist joint, knee joint, and hip joint. But if you combine the squat with a movement like the shoulder press, the number of muscle groups and joints involved will increase!

Is the deadlift multi-joint?

Like the squat, the deadlift is one of the best and basic compound exercises in bodybuilding, where it engages several joints and large muscle groups at the same time. The muscles involved in the deadlift include hamstrings, quadriceps, hips, legs, back, but it's not over yet! Abdominal muscles and forearm muscles are also involved well.

Is the plank a compound exercise?

Yes! It might be interesting to you, but even though the plank movement is motionless, it is multi-jointed and combined! Plank is a compound exercise; Because it involves your stomach, quadriceps and hips.

Longs

In the lunges movement, the muscles involved include the hamstrings, quadriceps, glutes, calves, back, midsection. Depending on the type of lunges you do, the emphasis and intensity of pressure on the muscles will change slightly (for example, lunges backwards or forwards).

chest press

This movement engages and strengthens the pectoral muscles, triceps, anterior deltoid, and abdomen.

Swedish swimming

Swedish swimming focuses on chest, shoulder, triceps and mid-body muscles and will strengthen these muscles.

barfix

Barfix is ​​one of the combined exercises. This movement engages and strengthens the lat, biceps and rhomboid muscles well.

final word

Multi-joint or combined exercises target and strengthen several muscles at the same time. These exercises have a high calorie burn and because they are aerobic in many cases, they can increase the health of the heart and blood vessels. In this article, we talked in detail about the various benefits of compound exercises and introduced the best multi-joint movements.

References: onepeloton – acefitness