Building Your Program With Supplemental and Accessory ExerciseS (Week 1 of An 11 Week Series)

​In terms of programming, one of the main components of building an ideal program comes from a sound and consistent template. Over the next 11 weeks I will be breaking down two tremendously important aspects of a training program, which are supplemental and accessory lifts. Basically, there are five fundamental movement patterns that are almost always involved in our training.
 
They are as follows:
 

• Squat
• Hinge (Deadlift)
• Lunge
• Push
• Pull

 
Each of these movements can be improved upon via supplemental and accessory lifts. Essentially, supplemental lifts are of the same type of pattern as the primary movement pattern and help build that movement pattern directly. Think of it in the sense of a training family tree. The fundamental movement patterns are the ancestors of the family. Each movement pattern then branches off into supplemental exercises, and from those supplemental exercises come a multitude of accessory exercises. Accessories are more specific and target particular muscle groups to strengthen the supplemental and then back up to the fundamental movements.
 
Breaking Down an Effective Training Program
 
            Now that I have shed some light on supplemental and accessory exercises, I would like to briefly detail a skeleton or template of these exercises and how they should be utilized for performance benefits. You will see that this is a fairly simple concept and it can be used and repeated for all of the fundamental movement patterns. In addition, having a template allows us to collect a database of exercises for each category and as a result we can keep our training fresh by utilizing different variations for similar effects.
 
The template breaks down as follows:

• Primary Movement (Example: Barbell Bench Press, Barbell Squat, Barbell Deadlift etc.)
  • Again: These are comprised of the Squat, Hinge, Lunge, Push, or Pull
  • This is the first exercise we complete once we have fully warmed-up.
  • These can be used for a variety of reasons anywhere from a performance indicator exercises for athletes looking to improve on-field performance or your average gym goer looking to build muscle, strength and size.
• Supplemental Exercises
  • Supplemental exercises directly build the fundamental movement patterns.
  • These exercises are performed with the same movement pattern as the primary lift they are working to improve.
  • For example, if you are training on upper body day and the bench press is your main movement you may find that you’re weaker for the last third of the range of motion, or the lockout. So, your supplemental movement might be a board press where you again perform a bench press but this time you use a thick board to limit your range of motion to only the top half or third.
• Accessory Exercises
  • Accessory exercises are not necessarily performed with the same movement pattern, and I actually advise to train for accessories much like a body builder. What I mean by that is that you should use them to build muscle (hypertrophy) and target the smaller muscles that work together for your primary movements.
  • Sticking with the bench press example, many of us know that triceps play a big role in the bench press, as do our upper back muscles. So, you may perform some triceps pushdowns and face pulls in order to target those two areas and increase their size. These muscles are now bigger and have more potential to get stronger to aid in the development of the fundamental movement patterns.
  • * NOTE *: As a disclaimer, you DO NOT have to perform accessories in a muscle building manner if you are an athlete trying to get stronger without gaining weight. If that is the case, perform them for strength or power as you would with your primary movements.

 
What To Expect Moving Forward
 
            Over the next ten weeks I will write separate articles for my favorite supplemental exercises for each of the fundamental movement patterns. Once I am through with that, I will do the same with accessories. That is a total of 10 articles, two pertaining to each movement pattern. At the conclusion of this comprehensive breakdown you will be able to use this template I provided and utilize my favorite exercises.