I’ve already described my favourite all-over-body workout routine in this article but I would like to dive a little deeper here and talk about the differences between compound and isolation exercises.
I’m sure you are already aware what compound and isolation exercises are, but for the benefit of those who don’t, here’s a quick explanation:

Compound Exercises: These hit the main muscle group, but they also hit other muscles by default.

1. Bench Press – Primarily for chest (pecs) but also affects shoulders, triceps and forearms.
2. Bent over Rowing – Primarily for back (lats) but also affects biceps.
3. Shoulder Press – Primarily for shoulders (delts) but also affects triceps.
4. Squats – Primarily for thighs (quads) but also affects leg bicep (bicep femoris).
5. Bicep Curls – Primarily for biceps but also affect forearm muscles and allow cheating with heavy weights.
6. Tricep Bench Dips – Primarily for triceps but also affect shoulders and some chest.

I always make sure that at the very least, I perform one compound exercise for each and every body-part during my workouts.

Isolation Exercises: These hit a specific muscle in a very isolated way.

1. Pec Deck Fly Machine – Isolates the pectoral muscles.
2. Seated Pulley Machine – Isolates the lats and allows strict form.
3. Side/Forward/Rear Deltoid Raises – Isolates the particular deltoid muscle.
4. Leg Curl Machine – Isolates the leg bicep (femoris) muscle, allowing enhanced form.
5. Bicep Preacher Curls – Isolates the bicep muscles and almost locks them into a strict range of motion. It is almost impossible to cheat during this movement.
6. Tricep Push Downs – Performed on a cable machine, this movement keeps all of the emphasis on the tricep muscles, maintaining strict form.

Of course there are more compound and isolation exercises that could be mentioned, but I think that you get the picture.

Ultimately, I look to perform ONE compound exercise plus ONE isolation exercise, for each body part, during my workouts.

One Compound + One Isolation = One well-worked muscle group!