Written by Garett Reid | NSCA, CSCS, CISSN, M.S.E.S.S
Fact checked by Tyler DiGiovanni, BSBM
FACT CHECKED
We all know your main movements in the gym: things like the squat, bench press, deadlift, and overhead press. These are the lifts that your program is based around. At the same time, there's a whole other level of other exercises, your accessory lifts.
Accessory lifts are designed to support your main lifts but also hit the muscle from a different angle or target a specific issue. Compared to your main lifts, there are more to choose from. We will try to help you narrow the list down and lay out the most important accessory movements you can add to your program.
Table of Contents
- What Are Accessory Movements?
- The Most Important Accessory Movements
- Best Accessory Movements To Optimize Training
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What Are Accessory Movements?
So, before we talk about what the best accessory movements are, we need to define what an accessory movement is. Your exercises are generally divided into 3 different categories;
- Main Lifts
- Accessory Movements
- Isolation
Each of these lifts has a different role in your program, so understanding them can help you understand what makes an accessory lift a good one.
Major Movement Patterns
Before we get to the actual lifts, we want to explain what we even mean when we say a "main lift" or an "accessory lift." What is a main lift even the main lift for?
So, when we go through the human body and training, we see several major movement patterns. These include;
These 6 movement patterns hit every muscle group in the human body. We could include others, but this list is sufficient when talking about our main movements.
With that in mind, when we say a "main movement," we mean your primary exercise used to train each movement pattern. The accessory movement would then be a smaller exercise used to support your main lift.
Your Main Lifts
Understand that there is no agreed-upon list on the main lifts. For some people, it may just be 3, 4, or 5 exercises, including the;
- Squat
- Deadlift
- Bench Press
- Overhead Press (Not everyone considers this a main lift)
- Bent Over Row (Not everyone considers this a main lift)
At the same time, some people's main lift may be dictated by their sport. In this context, their most important exercise would be the main lift. For example, maybe a squat jump for a basketball player trying to increase your vertical jump.
That said, for the context of this article, we're going to consider your main lifts as your foundational lifts. We believe these lifts should be in everybody's training program and play an intricate role in their progress.
- Bench Press (Flat, Incline)
- Dumbbell Press (Flat, Incline)
- Overhead Press (Sit, Stand)
- Dumbbell Overhead Press (Sit, Stand)
- Back Squat
- Deadlift
- Bent Over Row
- Dumbbell Rows
- Pull-Up/Chin-Up
- Dips
- Lunge
We're using this definition to give attention to other exercises you may not think of.
For example, everyone knows chin-ups and knows they should be done. While many may refer to chin-ups as accessory movements, we believe they're foundational and should be looked at as a primary exercise for the general population.
We can then spend time pointing out other very important exercises that you should rotate through your routine.
With that in mind, your main lifts are generally;
- Big, compound exercises
- Trained with the highest intensity (highest %1RM)
- Programmed as the first exercise of the day
- Your focus is on improving their numbers (i.e., increase your bench press or number of chin-ups)
Accessory Movements
Your accessory movements are generally compound movements like your main movements. However, they are "smaller." By "smaller," we are referring to one of a few scenarios (or both!);
- The absolute load is lower than its primary movement. This doesn't just mean that you use lighter weight; it means that you can't use as heavy.
- They don't work as well with heavy loads.
With that in mind, their primary purpose is one of three;
- Target a weak spot
- Target a muscle not hit with the primary lift (i.e., Perform front squats to target the quads)
- Train a similar movement to the primary lift with slightly different biomechanics (Romanian Deadlift vs. Deadlift)
For example, the close grip bench press is a good accessory movement to improve pushing strength by targeting your triceps. However, you're not able to press as much weight.
Your accessory movements aren't isolation exercises, but they generally have a more targeted purpose than your main lifts.
Isolation
Isolation exercises are exercises that occur at just one joint, such as the bicep curl. They primarily isolate a muscle to optimize growth.
However, they play several other roles as well;
- Rehab
- Increase the strength of joints
- Target muscle imbalances
- Target a weak muscle
While isolation exercises are their own subgroup of exercises, some can be an accessory movement as well.
How To Use Accessory Movements In Your Program?
We want to quickly review how you might use these accessory movements in your training plan alongside some isolations. To do this, we'll lay out a basic template.
Workout Session
- Primary Exercise
- 2-4 Accessory Movements
- 1-2 Isolations
This is not written in stone, and there are times when you may do more or less. However, it should give you a good idea of how your accessory movements will line up in your program.
The Most Important Accessory Movements
We're now going to review what we believe to be the most important accessory movements based on their movement patterns.
Under each accessory movement, we'll list the primary functions or reasons you may want to choose it. This can help you decide which ones to include in your training.
Most Important Accessory Movements For Your Squat
These next accessory exercises will complement your back squat and target your knee extensors and the quadriceps.
Hack Squat (Machine)
The Hack squat is one of the more humbling exercises and is significantly harder than you'd expect, at least when you first start. The original hack squat was a free-weight exercise, but it can be a bit awkward, especially for newer lifters. Therefore, we prefer the machine version when speaking of general recommendations.
The exercise consists of a sled that runs on a track and a stationary platform, similar to the leg press. However, there's a major difference; your body goes on the sled while your feet are placed on the platform. This means your body moves up and down with the sled while your feet press on the platform.
Your body lies face up on the sled, meaning your torso is lying on the sled. As a result, your hips can't move, meaning knee extension and flexion are the primary movement patterns involved. This means your quadriceps are the primary movers of the exercise.
Front Squat
When compared to the back squat, it will promote a much more upright torso with minimal hip flexion and maximum knee flexion. This takes the stress off the posterior muscles and targets the quads.
The front squat is very similar to the hack squat except it's a free weight exercise. It uses a very similar movement pattern but bracing the core is a greater challenge. Therefore, the front squat is a great quad movement but it's also going to be extra demanding on your core.
At the same time, the front squat is a must for improving mobility in basically all of your joints, especially your shoulders and hips.
With that in mind, you shouldn't program the front squat on the same day as the hack squat. On the other hand, a common practice is to program the front squat after the deadlift.
Bulgarian Split Squat
The Bulgarian split squat can be a brutal accessory exercise, but it definitely serves its purpose: strengthening the quadriceps and increasing muscle mass.
It's important to realize that the Bulgarian split squat is going to train more muscles than just your quadriceps. Due to the deep stretch in your posterior muscles during the split squat, the Bulgarian split squat could also act as an accessory movement for your glutes!
It's performed by supporting your rear foot during a split squat. This essentially places all of your body weight on one leg. At the same time, you must balance everything on one foot as well! To bring up the intensity a little bit more, assuming your rear foot is elevated enough, the Bulgarian split squat provides a deep stretch.
As such, this is an awesome accessory movement to;
- Increase stability
- Increase the strength and size of your quadriceps
- Improve hip mobility
- Increase unilateral strength
If you want to increase the size and function of your quads, you should definitely include the Bulgarian split squat in your rotation.
Most Important Accessory Movements For A Hip-Hinge Movement
The next set of accessory movements will complement the deadlift or your primary hip hinge. As such, these will target the;
- Glutes
- Hamstrings
Romanian Deadlift
The Romanian deadlift is one of the most famous accessory exercises and the most prevalent in training programs. We can't tell you why it's called the Romanian deadlift, but we can tell you it's a perfect exercise to target your posterior chain and improve your hip extension.
Technically, it's not a true deadlift as you begin the movement with the load off the ground. This means it begins with the eccentric portion of the exercise when the muscle lengthens. It just so happens that the conventional deadlift usually lacks the eccentric portion due to the weight used and the nature of the deadlift.
Either way, including the eccentric portion of a movement is crucial, as it causes the most stress on the muscle. Numerous studies have shown that the eccentric portion is most responsible for muscle growth.
Barbell Hip Thrust
The ultimate accessory to grow your glutes is the barbell hip thrust.
Barbell hip thrusts are unique in that it's the only exercise in which the load is placed right on the joint; in this case, it's the hips. Therefore, even though it's technically a single-joint exercise, you can move a lot of weight.
As it's placed right on the hips, it naturally involves hip flexion and hip extension. This makes the glutes the primary driver while the hamstrings assist. With that in mind, this gives it a collection of variables;
- Placed right on the hips
- Allows heavy loads
- A single-joint exercise with the hip extension being the primary movement.
These qualities have caused many to claim the hip thrust as the best glute exercise.
All that to say, its effectiveness at building the glutes has made it a very popular exercise for a variety of people, including;
- Women who want to build their glutes
- Powerlifters or strength athletes who want to increase the strength of their hip extension
- Athletes who need to improve their performance
- Anyone!
Most Important Accessory Movements For Upper Body Pulling (Back)
Now, onto your back! Your upper body pulling movements essentially means your back. However, your "back" contains a ton of muscles with your major ones including;
- Traps
- Lats
- Biceps
Keep in mind that we won't list;
- Bent Over Row
- Dumbbell Rows
- Chin-Up or Pull-Up
These three exercises could be considered accessory movements but we think they're foundational to everyone's training. Therefore, you should be doing them as well.
Rack Pulls (Knee Level/Slightly Above)
Rack pulls may be a bit of a "controversy," as many people don't understand it. It's often thought to be a "cheat" deadlift. While it's a similar movement pattern, it's better to consider it a separate movement. This is especially true when performed at the knees or slightly above.
When performed at this height, the force is transferred to the hips and upper back. Because the bar is higher, people can pull significantly more weight.
As a result, it puts a huge demand on your back muscles to maintain form. This includes;
- Traps
- Lats
- Erector Spinae
Many people, us included, feel these have played an intricate role in building mass and strength in the upper back. In fact, Frank Zane famously preached this practice.
Further, because you can load the back, it can help build a bulletproof core.
Keep in mind that we would put this in either our;
- Upper body day
- Pulling day
- Back day
Also, keep in mind you would not train this on the same day as your deadlift.
T-Bar Row
We love the bent-over row and believe it should be a foundational exercise in anyone's program.
However, we think the T-Bar row needs more attention. Now, it's not necessarily an accessory to your bent-over row, nor do you use less weight. In this context, it doesn't fit our definition of an accessory movement.
But we love it that much!
It's a cross between a machine and a free weight. Since it's fixed on a pivot, it works on a semi-fixed path yet still requires stabilization. This means you can lift a heavy load while getting many benefits of a free weight.
Lat Pulldown
The lat pulldown is an important accessory movement simply due to a lack of vertical pulling movements.
The primary movements are either the chin-up or pull-up. However, these require you to lift the whole body and require high levels of core stabilization. Now, this is awesome in its own right, but it can be challenging for newer lifters. In addition, it's harder to isolate the lats,
Therefore, the lat pulldown is your only choice for vertical pulling. Of course, there are some variations, but the lat pulldown is the best accessory exercise for hitting your lats.
Most Important Accessory Movements For Upper Body Pushing
These accessory exercises are going to be used to improve the performance of your bench press. This means they'll target your pushing muscles, including;
- Chest
- Shoulders
- Triceps
Concerning your upper body pushing, keep in mind that in addition to the bench press, we won't be listing;
- Dumbbell Presses
- Dips
- Incline Press
Close Grip Bench Press
We mentioned this above, so you probably had a good idea it would be listed!
We love the close-grip bench press, and it's our favorite variation. Regarding the general setup, it's performed in the same manner as the bench press. The primary difference is that you will use a close grip about shoulder width apart.
You must keep your elbows closer to your torso when you come down. This significantly increases elbow flexion while also mitigating chest activation. Together, these variables make the close-grip bench press an awesome exercise for increasing the strength of your triceps.
Not only will these increase the size and strength of your triceps, but they'll drastically improve your lockout strength.
Landmine Press
The landmine press is an awesome pushing exercise that isn't used enough. Its unique movement pattern sets it apart from every other movement. In this movement, a lifter pushes a load out in front of the body at an angle.
It's kind of like the T-bar row for pushing muscles in that it works on a pivot. This gives it the exact same benefits, including;
- Move massive weight
- Minimal stabilization to assist with the movement
- Move weight safer due to the load moving on a semi-fixed path.
The movement pattern somewhat mimics an incline bench press, so it targets your upper pecs and shoulders. This makes it the perfect accessory to the bench press.
At the same time, the load is out in front. This movement pattern tends to be significantly less stressful on the shoulders, making it a great choice for anyone with shoulder issues.
Most Important Movements For The Shoulders & Upper Back
The third group of upper body movements targets your shoulders and upper back as a whole. Your shoulders have an intricate relationship with your upper back, as the rear deltoid is, in fact, on your back!
More importantly, the shoulder complex is highly complex; these muscles all work together to ensure a healthy shoulder complex.
Face Pull
The face pull is a smaller exercise, but you'd be mistaken if you think this reflects its benefits. It's one of the only exercises that is almost always in our exercise rotation.
Even when we're not using it in our main workout, we'll at least use it in our warm-up or as a burnout set at the end of our session.
Cable Lateral Raise
The cable lateral raise is one of the most important isolation exercises you should have in your program. Here's why.
The shoulder muscles, or deltoids, contain three different muscles and heads;
- Anterior (Front)
- Lateral (Middle)
- Posterior (Rear)
Now, all of the shoulder heads get trained with overhead movements. In addition, your anterior deltoids get hit during every pressing movement, while the anterior deltoids get hit with every pulling movement.
However, the lateral deltoids don't really get significant activation other than with overhead pressing. This means that they generally get the smallest amount of targeted training.
Therefore, the lateral raise is the best way to equalize training volume.
Most Important Accessory Movements For Total Body Conditioning
Not all accessory movements involve the barbell! The next accessory movements are non-traditional exercises that offer unique benefits not seen with your primary movements.
Farmer Carries
If you're a reader of SFS, you've almost certainly heard us talk about farmer carries (sometimes called farmer's walk).
Farmer carries are traditionally a Strongman movement but have become increasingly popular outside the sport. This is an awesome exercise, and it will literally benefit everybody as it offers numerous unique benefits;
- It is performed with an easy technique
- Low risk of injury
- Improve grip strength
- Improve full-body conditioning
- Increase leg strength and propulsion
- Awesome core exercise
You perform the farmer carry by simply picking up two objects in each hand. Keeping your torso erect, you will then simply walk. Pretty simple!
Sled Work
Another movement derived from Strongman is the sled. There are multiple ways to use the sled, and they all work. Some exercises include;
- Sled Push: The sled push consists of standing behind the sled while facing it. You then simply push the sled.
- Sled Pull: The sled pull consists of standing in front of the sled while facing it. You then attach a harness or waist belt and pull backward. This is a killer for the quads!
- Sled Drag: The sled drag consists of you standing in front of the sled while facing away with a waist belt or harness. You then run while pulling the sled, ultimately making this resisted walking or sprints.
Most Important Accessory Movements For Your Core
Pretty much any core movement can be described as an accessory movement. However, some core movements are better than others.
Therefore, we're going to list a few of the best core exercises you can do. Remember that these are picked through the viewpoint of improving your other lifts and hitting weak spots.
Back Extensions
Back extensions are a must for anyone who wants a solid core. And yes, we mean the lower back, as it plays an intricate part in protecting your spine!
We like to throw these at the end of a session, usually performed with high reps (15+). However, we'll also use an external load to perform weight-back extensions.
Barbell Rollout
If you can only do one core exercise, it must be the barbell rollout. It's basically a plank on steroids, as it requires the core to stabilize the body as it's completely stretched out!
Multiple studies have shown that when comparing numerous core exercises, the rollout is one of the best, if not the best, for all core muscles.¹
This is a tough exercise, so if necessary, you can start on your knees as you build strength.
The Best Accessory Movements To Optimize Your Training
We laid out the most effective accessory movements for the different movement patterns and lifts. Remember that we focused on lifts that aren't what we consider to be foundational movements, which we listed as well.
This means that if you rotate the accessory movements in this article with the foundational movements, anyone can build an awesome program to build strength and mass. So to sum up:
- Squat
- Hack Squat
- Front Squat
- Bulgarian Split Squat
- Hip Hinge
- Romanian Deadlift
- Barbell Hip Thrust
- Upper Body Pulling
- Rack Pulls
- T-Bar Row
- Lat Pulldown
- Upper Body Pushing
- Close Grip Bench
- Landmine Press
- Shoulders & Upper Back
- Face Pulls
- Cable Lateral Raise
- Total Body Conditioning
- Farmer Carries
- Sled Work
- Core
- Back Extensions
- Barbell Rollout
Prepare to maximize your strength with our exclusive 13-week strength training program. 3, 4, and 5 day per week programming options.
References
- Escamilla, Rafael F., et al. “Core Muscle Activation during Swiss Ball and Traditional Abdominal Exercises.” Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy, vol. 40, no. 5, May 2010, pp. 265–276, https://doi.org/10.2519/jospt.2010.3073.
Garett Reid
Author