In this chapter, we’ll go through a list of weight training exercises you need to consider as a beginner for building an all-round athletic, strong and muscular physique. The following image shows the major muscles/muscle-groups that we would be training.
Tutorial videos where I learnt the most about these exercises have been attached below so that you could master the movements safely and effectively. Take your time and go through the videos carefully and in detail — feel free to come back to this section again for reference and form correction.
LEG MOVEMENTS
1. Squat
The Back Squat is perhaps the king of all lower body exercises. It builds the Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Glutes, Adductors (check anatomy image above) and several other muscles of the hip joint. Additionally, like Alan Thrall says in the following video, squat is a balancing act: this means that it trains your core (abs, lower back, obliques, etc) as well.
2. Deadlift
The Deadlift is the exercise where you can move the maximum amount of weight through a large range of motion. This is because in a deadlift, it is possible to recruit and train several big muscle groups of your body simultaneously — the Posterior Chain (upper back, Spinal Erectors of the lower back, Glutes, Hamstrings), the Rear Deltoids, forearms (the muscles that determine your grip strength) and the core.
Deadlifts and back health:
Having back problems is a notoriously difficult situation. Deadlift and back injuries could seem pretty scary to the layman.
“Obviously, lifting so heavy is probably not good for your spine. Right? RIGHT??”
Wrong!
The impulsive forces from a simple jump could place hundreds of kg of force on your spine. But we don’t ever see people so scared of jumping. As far as spinal loading is concerned, your spine is designed to take huge loads. Why, then, do we hear about so many people hurt their backs while deadlifting?
Actually, all the structural integrity of your spine comes only when in its neutral position i.e. when it has its natural curvature. Round back deadlifts are bound to injure the discs between the vertebrae of the spine.
When done with correct form, deadlift suddenly transforms from a dangerous exercise to perhaps the most important exercise someone who sits a lot should do (sitters generally have very weak or highly dysfunctional posterior chain of muscles). The main function of the muscles you build through deadlifts, especially the spinal erectors, is to protect the spine by keeping it in a neutral position. So, in effect, deadlift training could actually build “armour” for your spine in the long run.
Deadlift — Back or Legs?
Some might argue that the deadlift is a back movement and might place it along with their back training. The reason I think otherwise and like to place it in my lower body training routine is because:
- Your Hip Extensors — Glutes and Hamstrings — are the prime movers in a deadlift.
- The lower back is only in an isometric contraction throughout the motion of a deadlift — like your core muscles while you do a plank — the muscle fibers are tight (contracted) but do not change length during the movement. The only two cases where the erector muscles of your back would undergo concentric contraction during a deadlift is either if your back is round in the first place OR if you are trying to hyper-extend your spine — both of which are dangerous situations under heavy load and MUST be avoided.
- Deadlift has more in common with the bio-mechanics of a squat than with, say, rowing.
You may have a sore lower back after a heavy deadlift session; but, I can assure you this will change when you leave the beginner phase of training. Within 3 months of training, I stopped getting lower back soreness — my Hamstrings get more beat up than any other muscle after a good deadlift session.
3. Split Squat | Tutorial for Split Squat in the previous chapter.
Why do we need to do Split Squats in the first place? We do train both our legs while squatting normally right?
We are all slightly asymmetric by nature — one hip/leg stronger than the other. So what happens with squat-like bilateral movements over time is that these imbalances get amplified because we naturally tend to train our stronger side more. This is one very important reason to add unilateral exercises to our training regimen. Additionally, split squats train the stabilizers of our hip (primarily Glute Medius) to a far greater degree than Squats and Deadlifts.
Note: You could replace split squats with lunges or step ups. But remember that these activities are even more challenging than split squats when it comes to balance and stability requirements.
4. Front Squat
We already have one type of squat in our routine — why should we add front squats?
Front squats are slightly more leg dominant whereas Back squats are more hip dominant and although the underlying motion is relatively similar, these exercises serve different purposes.
Front squats are, in one sense, more “functional” than back squats when talking about carryover to daily activities. When you need to pick up a box, you generally tend to load yourself frontally (example shown in the image). On the other hand, with back squats, you can load up more total weight on the bar and hence build more overall muscle than the front squat.
How to structure? It would be difficult to exert your 100% on both back squat and front squat in the same training session. So, you should probably alternate the focus between the two squat variations on your lower body training days.
Due to relatively more upright torso, front squats are generally easier for beginners to learn. Extending this concept further — an exercise called Goblet Squat, very similar to the front squat, is what I would suggest for anyone who is struggling with registering the basic squat movement. I generally use goblet squats as warm up before any barbell squatting session.
*please wear proper squatting shoes while squatting: don’t wear runners like this guy; even barefoot is probably better than that.
PUSH MOVEMENTS
1. Bench Press
2. Overhead Press
The Flat Barbell Bench Press combined with the Standing Barbell Overhead Press (OHP), as simple as it sounds, is a complete combo for training your Chest, Front Deltoids and Triceps (check anatomy image above).
- Improving your bench press will make push-ups easier; if you cannot do push-ups yet, bench press is ideal for you.
- The OHP trains core: standing upright with a heavy weight above your head demands stability. The OHP is pretty functional too — when you have to load up that heavy suitcase on to the top most shelf, you’d be better off being skilled at vertical pressing.
What about other pressing variations like Inclined and Declined presses?
The flat bench press is relatively easier for beginners to learn and progress than the other options. Additionally, by trying out multiple variations, I believe that the focus towards progression (the most important factor for growth) gets diluted.
Disclaimer: For advanced athletes who have achieved good strength levels in the flat bench press, it might actually be beneficial to replace the flat bench altogether with a combination of inclined and declined bench press (more about this in a future chapter).
PULL MOVEMENTS
1. Barbell Row
Apart from lower back issues, slouching of the upper back and neck is a very common issue seen among people who sit a lot. Horizontal pulling i.e. rowing strengthens the upper back and is a powerful tool for preventing and correcting excessive Kyphosis from long hours of sitting.
Once, you have learnt the basic barbell row, you can replace this movement with other horizontal pulls of your choice like Seated Cable Row OR Unilateral Dumbbell Row.
2. Pull-Ups | tutorial by Omar Isuf in the previous chapter.
If you cannot do pull-ups right now, you could use a Lat-Pull-Down machine and grow your vertical pulling strength. It hits the same muscles of your back and arms as a pull-up. When you are strong enough to lift 75% of your body-weight on this machine for multiple reps, you will be capable of cranking out a few reps of pull-ups too.
If body-weight pull-ups are too easy, you could load up more weight using chains on a belt OR by suspending a dumbbell between your legs. My personal choice is to have vertical pulling sessions alternating between weighted pull-ups and lat-pull-downs.
The major muscles that are targeted through Horizontal and Vertical pulling are Lats (the main muscle that gives you a V tapered back), Traps, Rear Deltoids, forearms (Brachioradialis) and Biceps (check out the anatomy image at the top).
Additional Resources
Other exercise form tutorials that you should explore over time:
- Mark Rippetoe (Squat, Deadlift, Bench, OH-Press)
- Layne Norton (Squat, Bench, Deadlift)
ABOUT EXERCISE SELECTION
You might have noticed that we primarily chose free barbell weights to perform compound movements rather than using machines to perform isolation exercises. Why this specific style of training?
Barbell vs machines?
Machines don’t train function. In the real life, you don’t get to move things that are neatly restricted to move through that comfortable groove for your joints. It is your job to make sure the load is in control while you’re moving it.
Machines don’t train the core. If you try to do big movements like squat and deadlift on a Smith Machine, you might be able to lift more weight but, there are no stability requirements from your core muscles. Performing free barbell movements is a really great way to train your core i.e. GET ABS FOR FREE.
Additionally, even though we are supposed to move the barbell more or less in a straight line, what is realistically seen is a mild ‘S’ shaped movement of the bar (in side-view). So, restricting the barbell to move in a perfect straight line is probably less than ideal for your body.
Note: A Smith machine is actually pretty good for exercises with small ranges of motion like shrugs and calf raises.
Barbell vs Dumbbells?
Using Dumbbells for the main movement is not very practical in some cases. For example, you cannot squat a lot of weight using dumbbells alone. Also, very commonly, progressing with dumbbells is a lot harder than with a barbell due to 2 reasons:
- Gyms typically have 5 kg jumps in the heavier Dumbbell weights — and such a jump could be the difference between too light and too heavy loads for you. With barbell, it is common to find a TOTAL jump of 5 kg (2.5 kg on each side) and with the use of fractional plates, the jumps could be as small as you can imagine. This feature of barbell activities is gold when it comes to progressive overload.
- The absolute load you can move with a dumbbell (sum of both — left and right sides) is almost always less than what you can move with a barbell. What this means is that even if you have the same % growth in strength using both, the absolute growth would be more in the barbell activity.
Disclaimer: Dumbbell movements for your pressing movements (overhead press and bench press variations) require a lot more stability and are hence a totally different kind of challenge (in a good way). For most athletic and aesthetic purposes, unless you are a powerlifter, it might actually be better to switch to dumbbell presses AFTER you’ve achieved sufficient proficiency in the barbell presses (in future, we’ll talk about barbell strength standards that everyone should try to achieve).
Compounds vs isolation?
When a particular movement has the active involvement of more than one joint, it is said to be a Compound Movement. For example, bicep curl is an isolation activity involving the flexion of the elbow joint whereas a pull-up is similar but also involves the shoulder joint. Curl is an example of an isolation activity for the elbow whereas chin-up/pull-up is a compound activity involving the elbow joint.
Compound movements are better than single joint (Isolation) movements for two reasons:
- You hit more muscles (probably involving the big ones) with less exercise variations. Time is probably the most valuable thing you have at the gym. With pull-ups, you can train your back as well as your guns (arms) with a single activity which, I think, saves a lot of time.
- Your body works as a unit — a system of joints. It would be much better to focus on the movements which have high functional carry-over. For example: having very big and strong biceps while your back is not strong enough to support your weight is of zero use if you wish to do something like climbing.
As you get stronger and build a solid foundation, you will notice growth in almost all of your musculature without any additional isolation work because heavy compounds movements are going to train the small muscles of your body anyway. You don’t really need to train single joint movements unless you have specific aesthetics goals (like an advanced bodybuilder).
In the next part, we’ll talk about how you should structure your workouts and about how you could incorporate the above discussed activities into your workout program.
