Body Building Workouts: The Difference Between Compound and Isolation Exercises
March 7, 2011 By
In this article we will look at what the differences are of the two basic types of exercises muscle building and how each type is used for certain muscles and different types of training. Plus we will look at which of the two will get you the best results from your body building workouts.
There are a huge number of exercises and there are several ways to perform these exercise movements e.g., free weights, machines, gadgets, your own bodies weight resistance plus a slew more. Some say isolation exercises should be used more than compound and visa versa. Well, both are correct to a point, and this depends on what you are trying to accomplish or what type of training you are performing. For bodybuilding isolation and compound exercises are the two basic types of exercises and both should be used in training to provide you with the best overall muscle stimulation to activate growth.
What is the difference? :
Isolation exercises focus on a single muscle and usually the exercise involves the movement of a single joint, like your leg extensions and bicep curls etc.
Compound exercises require two or more muscles to engage and moving more than one joint to perform an exercise, like your squats, where you move your knees and hip joints and your bench presses etc.
How are each used? :
Isolation exercises, from a muscle builders perspective, are used as the name suggests isolating a muscle for strengthening or bettering development. A good example of this is, as your performing your body building workouts regularly and in time you notice your right bicep needs some shaping up to even out the strength or size when compared to the left bicep. You then would isolate that muscle by performing a dumbbell preacher curl, which is an isolation exercise, for your right bicep muscle.
Compound exercises, from a muscle builders perspective, are mainly used for overall strengthening and muscle mass. A single exercise uses more than one muscle group to lift the weight and usually they are the larger muscles that are doing the work. A great advantage of compound exercises is that when you have more than one muscle kicking in to help you can move heavier weight thus building greater overall mass quickly. Also, these types of exercises are a natural way of lifting, pushing, pulling objects. Think about it, when you are moving a slightly heavy box from one place to another you use your leg, back and arm muscles to complete the task at hand.
So as you can see both compound and isolation exercises are beneficial to your overall workout routine. You can build your strength and overall muscle mass up with intense compound exercises then go back and shape up muscles that were not fully used in your compound exercises with isolation exercises.
Incorporating both types of exercises in your body building workouts with right mixture for your individual needs is the way to go. And when done in the correct arrangement can make a big difference.
Empower Your Body – Beat Holiday Party Calories and get a Total Body Fat Burning Workout
March 6, 2011 By
Home Exercise: a Full Body Routine
March 1, 2011 By
Time is becoming increasingly tight in our busy schedules and this usually means that the excuses start on why we can’t make it to the gym. With this in mind I wanted to be able to give people a simple workout plan that they would be able to do at home in under an hour. I have designed this workout with several principals in mind. The first, is targeting the bodies major muscle groups including the legs, arms, chest, back, shoulders, and abs. The second is that this workout has been developed around the principle of circuit training. This will make the most efficient use of work out time and allow for an all-in-one weight lifting and aerobic exercise program. The third is that this program can be utilized by beginners to the advanced. The weight and intensity just need to be increased in order to make this a more strenuous and taxing workout. I have also designed this program with the idea that the exerciser is familiar with the basic moves of strength training.
Precaution: Please consult a doctor before beginning any workout or fitness routine especially if you have any illnesses or injuries or any other condition that may provide discomfort while exercising
In order to complete this exercise routine, the user will need to have some basic exercise equipment including a barbell, dumbbells of various weight, a weight bench, and exercise ball, and an exercise mat. Thera bands may be substituted for the dumbbells.
Throughout the workout I need you to keep in mind that you are to move from exercise to exercise without taking any breaks. We are trying to get the heart rate up to at least 65% of the age predicted maximum heart rate for fat burning effect with an eventual goal for the advanced fitness individuals reaching 85% of the age predicted maximum heart rate. You can calculate your predicted maximum heart rate by using the following calculation: 220-(age) = Age Predicted Maximum Heart Rate.
The How To
Warm up with 5-10 minutes of cardio. This can be done by running on the spot or for a lower impact warm up try doing alternating knee raises or alternating leg kicks.
Do 2-3 sets of each exercise doing 12-15 reps of each exercise.
Start with Squats. You can either place a barbell on the upper shoulders/back area, hold dumbbells in either hand. Bend the knees and lower into a squat. To do this exercise properly, drop your tailbone down to the floor and do not let your knees come over your toes. You also don’t want to bend your knees past 90 degrees. In between the sets of Squats, do lateral shoulder raises. Hold lighter dumbbells in each hand down by your side. Bend your arms slightly, and slowly raise the weights to shoulder level. Lower the weight back down to your side and repeat.
The next set of exercises will consist of alternating between the bench press and bicep curls. For the bench press, lie down on a bench or floor. Hold a medium-heavy barbell directly over the chest. Lower the bar down to your chest until your elbows reach 90 degrees. Press the weight back up to complete one rep. Alternatively, you could use dumbbells to vary the routine. In between sets of Bench Press do dumbbell bicep curls. Stand holding the dumbbells to your side. Raise the barbells by bending your elbows but do not move your arms at the shoulder. Also, do not swing or lean back. This should be a controlled movement counting 2 seconds to the top and 2 seconds to the bottom.
From here you will move to alternating between 3 exercises consisting of barbell dead lifts for your glutes, barbell row for your back, hamstrings, and lower back, and dumbbell tricep kickbacks. Start this set of exercise by holding a heavy weight barbell with hands and feet shoulder width apart. Hold the weights in front of your thighs. bend at the hips and lower the weights to the floor maintaining a bend in the knees, keeping your back flat and shoulders back. Return to the start position to complete a rep. After completing 12-15 reps of this exercise, move directly to the barbell row. Holding the same weight bend forward at the hips to a 45 degree angle. Squeeze the back to pull the weight towards the belly. Lower and repeat. After you complete your set of this exercise, grab the some lighter weight dumbbells, bend forward with elbows bent. Straighten the elbows to work the triceps.
Finish the workout routine with some core work. Alternate between the ball crunch and back extension exercises. For the ball crunch, lie down with the exercise ball under the lower/mid back. Squeeze the abs to lift the shoulders of the ball. Concentrate on driving your belly button down to the ball. Lower and repeat. After completing 15-20 reps, move quickly to the back extension. Lie face down on a mat and squeeze the lower back to lift your chest just a few inches from the floor. Lower and repeat.
That completes with workout.
