When putting together a training programme it is important to choose a variety of exercises and equipment. Not only will this help you get the best results, but it will also provide you with a knowledge of what exercises are suitable in particular circumstances. While ideally, you want to focus on compound (multi-joint) exercises to build muscle and strength, isolation (single-joint) exercises can certainly complement your routine. Even though you can successfully train with mostly compound movements, there are times when isolation exercises can be appropriate.
1. Some muscles don’t get enough work through compound exercises
Compound exercises are a brilliant way to have an efficient workout. However, sometimes you might not be able to equally target all the muscles. For example, when you train shoulders, you will primarily be hitting your front delts/side delts during overhead press but not your rear delts (back of your shoulder). Therefore, it would be important to add some isolation exercises (e.g. prone flys) to target those muscles.
Similarly, when you train glutes you want to add hip abduction exercises. These are cable side raises, lying side raises, lateral band walks. This is important because if you mostly do deadlifts and squats you are using the lower part of your glute. Adding isolation exercises can help you make sure you are not missing out on any muscular development.
2. You struggle to build certain muscles/had an injury or muscle size imbalance
When it comes to building muscles, genetics play a decisive role in how we are going to look. If you feel like some of your muscles are lagging behind, incorporating isolation exercises can help you to better target that area. Furthermore, your dominant side muscles can be slightly larger than your non-dominant side. Adding isolation exercises can address those imbalances. This can happen if you mostly do bilateral compound exercises and your stronger side continuously does most of the work.
Including unilateral exercises is a good way to address the issue, while isolation exercises can help you address a specific muscle that’s smaller in size. Adding extra volume for the smaller side can help you achieve a more symmetrical physique. Finally, if you had an injury and lost muscle mass on one of your sides, isolation exercises can help you restore that balance.
3. You can use them together with compound exercises
When you start getting more experienced in a gym you will have to start looking for new ways to challenge your muscles. One way to do that is by performing a compound and an isolation exercise back to back as a superset. You want to make sure though that you are working the same muscles. For example, you can perform squats followed by leg extensions. As a result, your quads will already be tired before you isolate them. This will lead to your quads being thoroughly fatigued by the end of the superset. Subsequently, it can result in more muscle fibre damage and subsequent muscle growth. This way of training is known as post-exhaust.
You can use this method other way around when you fatigue your muscles with an isolation exercise before doing a compound one. This method is called pre-exhaust. For example, doing chest flyers before the chest press. However, you should only try both of these approaches when you have lifting experience and can maintain great form and technique.
4. You are tired/sore but still want to have a session
When you are not feeling your best or some of your muscles are sore from a previous workout, isolation exercises might be a good solution. If resistance training makes you feel better mentally, the benefits of doing a quick arm/shoulder workout might go beyond feeling the pump. For example, if you feel like you just haven’t got it in you to do squats, performing some leg extensions, leg curls and a bunch of isolation glute work (side leg raises, kickbacks) are way better than skipping the gym. It’s fine to step away from your regular routine and do something else sometimes.
However, this shouldn’t become a habit and you should still strive towards achieving progressive overload doing your planned programme. Often even a small workout with just a few isolation exercises can make you feel much better and encourage you to exercise when you feel tired and unmotivated.
5.You actually enjoy them
It is extremely important to include exercises you enjoy into your routine to stay consistent and motivated. If you love isolation exercises, then definitely include them in your programme. Unless you are using them as supersets, isolation exercises can work very well at the end of the workout.
There is plenty of equipment you can use for isolation exercises: machines, free weights, bodyweight, resistance bands and cable machines so you’ll have a lot of options to challenge your muscles in different ways.
There are numerous occasions when isolation exercises can be appropriate in your routine. It’s still important to remember that even though it’s only a single joint exercise, your form and technique are extremely important. For example, during the bicep curl, you want to avoid using momentum and your back to lift the weight up. This is relevant to a lot of other isolation exercises. The best thing you can do is use light weights, stabilize your body and make sure that it’s actually only one joint that’s working.