As a personal trainer or coach, you’ve probably noticed that keeping your clients engaged and looking forward to each upcoming workout isn’t always easy.
Fortunately, there are plenty of tools you can use to keep their workouts effective and more enjoyable.
One such option is combination exercises. Read on to learn what these are, how they work, what makes them useful, and how to effectively program them into a workout routine.
What Are Combination Exercises?
A combination movement, not to be confused with a compound exercise, is one where you combine two or more movement patterns and transition between them on each rep.
To be clear, combination movements are compound exercises because they work multiple muscles and involve two or more joints. But they differ from a basic compound lift like the squat or bench press.
An example of a combo movement would be a lunge to bicep curl because it combines two distinct exercises: lunges, which primarily train the lower body, and curls, which work the biceps.
7 Questions to Consider Before Adding Combo Exercises to a Client’s Workout Plan
1. Can the client handle the exercise?
Combination exercises blend two or more movement patterns and train multiple muscle groups. They are inherently more complex, so doing them correctly requires more experience.
As a trainer, consider where your client is now and whether they have experience with the individual movement patterns.
2. Does the activity align with the client’s goals?
As a trainer, you sometimes have to sacrifice a bit of effectiveness in favor of novelty to keep your clients motivated and looking forward to upcoming workouts.
However, that doesn’t mean adding a bunch of new activities and completely changing their workout plan every three weeks because they grow bored.
You must still find ways to align workout changes with their goals, which applies to prescribing new exercises.
3. How would the activity integrate into their plan in the long run?
Adding a new movement to a workout plan can provide much-needed variety, but you must also consider how it integrates into the routine over the long run. Does it allow for decent overload (e.g., using more weight over time), and do you plan to keep it in the program for an extended period?
If it’s just a temporary addition, how long do you want to keep it in the workout plan, and what purpose does it serve beyond pleasing the client?
4. How effective is the exercise?
Is the movement good, or are you adding it to provide something new for your client?
Some combination exercises aren’t good, so it’s essential to examine the ones you want to include in a client’s workout plan. Better yet, grab some weights and test for yourself.
For example, the barbell squat to press is not ideal because the weight needed to overload the legs is far greater than what someone can overhead press safely. Similarly, I don’t like the deadlift to bent-over row because of the same weight discrepancy.
In some cases, overall safety or the transition between movement patterns could be the issue.
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5. What resistance would work best for the activity?
Let’s say you’ve landed on some decent combo activities and want to program one or two into your client’s training plan. The next logical thing to consider is what load to use.
The goal is to pick a weight that loads the movement patterns adequately, allowing for a balanced and effective training stimulus.
One option is to look at your client’s past performances (the Hevy Coach platform allows you to do that easily), see what weights they’ve lifted on individual movements, and use that as your base.
For example, if they’ve used 10-kilo dumbbells for bicep curls and alternating lunges, prescribe that weight if you combine the two activities. Another option is to experiment and see what load and repetition range would be most suitable for a specific combo.
6. How will you integrate the combination exercise into the training plan?
As with all movements you add to a client’s training plan, it’s essential to consider how a combo lift would fit the routine and when it would make sense to do it.
It’s generally recommended to do combo exercises early in a workout when your client is fresh and can maintain proper form. However, that’s not always ideal when considering the structure of a session.
For example, let’s say you want to include a lunge-to-bicep curl combo in a workout plan. Your first instinct could be to add it early, but would that make sense? Lunges are a decent accessory exercise, but the trainee would have to use a lighter weight they can also curl, which means doing more reps.
Plus, bicep curls are an isolation exercise, generally best done near the end of the workout.
If the workout includes heavy squats or back work (which involves the biceps), would doing this exercise early be a good idea, or would it generate fatigue and affect the performance of more important movements?
As a coach, your job is to find the best possible ways to program these movements in a way that maximizes the training results for your clients without getting in the way of their primary work in the weight room.
7. Do the movements work well together?
Finally, does the combination of movement patterns work together? Can the client transition smoothly from one pattern to the next without awkward pauses or potentially dangerous movements?
An example where things don’t work well would be an overhead press to bicep curl. In addition to being biomechanically disjointed, the weight trainees can typically press overhead is greater than the weight they can curl, forcing a compromise.
Plus, the trainee would waste a lot of energy lowering the dumbbells to the sides and lifting them to shoulder level for an overhead press.
Before We Move On
Even when you consider all the above questions, it’s crucial to monitor your clients when they do combo lifts, experiment with various exercise orders to see how fatigue impacts their performance and listen to their feedback.
After all, the goal is for them to enjoy the activity and see it as a break from monotonous weight training. So, if it feels too overwhelming or weird, the lift is not serving its purpose.
I also recommend using Hevy Coach to monitor their performance and decide if you need to make any changes to their workout approach.
10 Combination Exercises You Can Add to Your Client’s Training Plan (Dumbbell, Kettlebell, and Barbell)
1. Dumbbell Squat to Press
| Movement patterns | Clean, squat, and vertical press |
| Muscles trained | Quadriceps, glutes, midsection, upper back, upper chest, shoulders, and triceps |
| Why it works | Holding a pair of moderately heavy dumbbells provides a decent overload for the quads while also being enough to train the shoulders. |
| Potential limitations | It can be difficult to pick an ideal weight that challenges the legs without being too heavy for the shoulders. |
| Coaching tip | One option is for the trainee to do as many shoulder presses as possible and finish the set with only squats until the quadriceps are burning up. |
2. Renegade Row to Push Up
| Movement patterns | Horizontal pull and horizontal push (+ a high plank position) |
| Muscles trained | Back (lats, rhomboids, rear delts, and erector spinae), biceps, shoulders, triceps, chest, midsection, and legs (isometrically) |
| Why it works | It allows for balanced upper body development by training agonist-antagonist muscle groups. |
| Potential limitations | Stronger lifters may struggle to overload the back with the rows from this position. |
| Coaching tip | Depending on the trainee’s rowing and push-up strength, you can prescribe a weight they can row for up to 10-20 times (per side) and have them do a push-up for every one or two rowing reps. |
3. Forward Lunge to Bicep Curl
| Movement patterns | Lunge and bicep curl |
| Muscles trained | Quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, midsection, and biceps |
| Why it works | The two movement patterns work well together, and trainees can typically use the same load for both. |
| Potential limitations | Running out of breath from too many reps before all the muscles get trained sufficiently. In essence, cardio is the limiting factor rather than the target muscles. |
| Coaching tip | One option is to perform the curl during the lunge; the other is to do a lunge rep, return to the standing position, and then do a curl. |
4. Step Up to Shoulder Press
| Movement patterns | Knee flexion and extension, hip flexion and extension, and vertical press |
| Muscles trained | Quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, calves, midsection, shoulders, triceps, and upper chest |
| Why it works | The two movements work well together, and trainees can generate some momentum off the bottom to press with more force. |
| Potential limitations | Using dumbbells heavy enough for an overhead press could be too much when doing a single-leg movement, especially for trainees not used to unilateral exercises. |
| Coaching tip | Have the client hold the dumbbells at shoulder height instead of lowering them to the sides and performing a clean on each rep. |
5. Romanian Deadlift to Upright Row
| Movement patterns | Hip hinge and vertical pull |
| Muscles trained | Hamstrings, glutes, midsection, back (erector spinae, rhomboids, and traps), shoulders, and biceps |
| Why it works | Trainees can often work with a lighter weight that evenly challenges the upper and lower body. |
| Potential limitations | Some trainees can Romanian deadlift far more weight than they can safely upright row. |
| Coaching tip | Having the feet hip-width apart provides a more solid foundation for strong upright rows. |
6. Clean and Press
| Movement patterns | Clean and vertical press |
| Muscles trained | Quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, calves, entire back, midsection, shoulders, triceps, chest, and biceps |
| Why it works | It’s a highly technical but effective full-body activity where lifters generate momentum and leverage it to lift as much weight as possible. |
| Potential limitations | Learning proper form is often the biggest roadblock, given the complexity. |
| Coaching tip | The client should keep their feet shoulder-width apart for a stable stance. |
7. Kettlebell Clean to Reverse Lunge
| Movement patterns | Clean and lunge |
| Muscles trained | Quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, midsection, back (especially the erector spinae), biceps, and shoulders |
| Why it works | The two movements fit well together and allow a smooth transition without awkward pauses. |
| Potential limitations | One kettlebell may not provide enough load to train the lower body. Also, the clean technique can break down as the trainee gets tired. |
| Coaching tip | The client should start with knees slightly bent to allow for some quad extension and a more powerful clean before the lunge. |
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8. Kettlebell Clean, Squat, and Press
| Movement patterns | Clean, squat, and vertical press |
| Muscles trained | Quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, midsection, entire back, shoulders, biceps, triceps, and upper chest |
| Why it works | Though complex, the movement pattern is relatively easy to teach, and the individual activities work well together. For instance, squatting generates momentum for a more powerful shoulder press. |
| Potential limitations | Trainees with poor cardio can experience a breakdown in form before they can train their muscles well. |
| Coaching tips | 1. The client should assume a starting position with the feet slightly wider (and toes pointing forward and out) for a good foundation to squat and press the weight overhead. You can adjust that if necessary. 2. As the client gets tired, you may skip the clean and have them hold the weight at shoulder level, moving between a squat and vertical press. 3. More experienced clients can hold two kettlebells for additional loading for the squat and to train both shoulders simultaneously. |
9. Kettlebell Goblet Squat to Press
| Movement patterns | Squat and vertical press |
| Muscles trained | Quadriceps, glutes, midsection, upper back, shoulders, triceps, and upper chest |
| Why it works | The two movements work well together, and squatting generates momentum for a stronger shoulder press. |
| Potential limitations | The narrow and neutral grip can cause some shoulder discomfort in certain trainees. |
10. Walking Lunge to Shoulder Press
| Movement patterns | Lunge and vertical press |
| Muscles trained | Quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, midsection, upper back, shoulders, triceps, and upper chest |
| Why it works | The two movements fit together, and trainees can use similar weights (for higher reps) to target their legs and upper body evenly. |
| Potential limitations | Trainees with a particularly strong shoulder press may struggle to challenge themselves enough with weights suitable for lunges. |
| Coaching tip | Cue your client to forcefully press through the leading foot (be it the right or left foot) and immediately press the weights as they reach a standing position. However, remind them to control the negative (as they lower the weights to the sides of their shoulders). |
Final Tips for Adding Combo Exercises to Workout Plans
Here are a few final tips before we wrap up:
- Teach the movement patterns individually for your clients to develop the skills needed to perform the combination movements correctly. Discuss important details like proper setup, bracing, breathing, range of motion, and rep tempo.
- While some combo activities are generally best done for more reps (e.g., the lunge to bicep curl), try to steer clear from high-rep sets when possible. The reason is that technique can break down as clients get winded, which can be problematic for these complex movement patterns.
- Don’t approach combo lifts with the ‘I must include these at all costs’ mindset. Add them to a client’s training plan if it makes sense and aligns with their goals and capabilities.
- Don’t overly rely on combo lifts. Add them sparingly, preferably as assistance lifts after the client has done the main work.
- Consider other intensity techniques if the client is strapped for time. Combo lifts are not the only way to do more work in less time. Other coaching tools include drop sets, supersets, myo reps, and circuits.
Conclusion
So, there we have it:
Some of the more important things you need to consider when looking to program combination lifts into your clients’ routines.
The above ten are also some of the better combo lifts that work well and provide a solid training stimulus. We hope you’ve gotten some good ideas.
Now, check out Hevy Coach before you go. Our all-in-one platform allows you to build workout plans for your clients in seconds, track their performance from the dashboard, make quick changes when necessary, and answer their questions through the built-in chat.
