{"id":29368,"date":"2025-04-18T04:55:31","date_gmt":"2025-04-18T04:55:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/29368\/"},"modified":"2025-04-18T04:55:31","modified_gmt":"2025-04-18T04:55:31","slug":"the-5-most-efficient-exercises-for-adding-strength-and-size","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/29368\/","title":{"rendered":"The 5 most efficient exercises for adding strength and size"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\" A man performing barbell overhead press. \" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/f725c8228e25db6bfebcb4a0a831afb3.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Let\u2019s be honest: we don\u2019t have hours to train in the gym. We have work, family and other commitments. Does that mean you still can\u2019t get strong and build muscle? Absolutely not. The key to effective training isn\u2019t about how long you spend in the gym; it\u2019s about smart exercise selection. Quality over quantity, always.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">To help you zero in on the most efficient exercises for your training, exercise scientist Dr. Mike Israetel recently shared his top picks in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=w5jMBPnkFbw&amp;t=880s\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:YouTube video;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">YouTube video<\/a>, which he says \u201cwill take very little time and leave you ultra jacked\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The exercises he\u2019s chosen hit three criteria:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"mb-4\">\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><strong>They\u2019re all compound exercises:<\/strong> this means the exercise will hit multiple muscles at the same time, rather than an isolation exercise which isolates one particular muscle (like bicep curls). While Dr Mike has nothing against isolation exercises, they\u2019re not the most time efficient.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><strong>No single muscle receives the vast majority of stimulus: <\/strong>you may be thinking \u2018yes, you\u2019ve already said <a href=\"https:\/\/www.t3.com\/features\/what-are-compound-exercises\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:compound exercises;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">compound exercises<\/a>, \u2019 but even compound exercises can do this. Dr Mike uses the wide grip bench press as an example; while it hits the triceps, front delts and chest, he says the wide grip makes the chest a huge limiting factor, making it predominantly a chest exercise.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><strong>They have a high range of motion and stretch: <\/strong>exercises that move the joints through a wide range of motion and getting a deep stretch stimulates hypertrophy and more growth.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">FYI, these aren\u2019t the only exercises out there that can cut down your gym time and deliver results, but they\u2019re a good bunch to get going with. He suggests putting exercises that prioritise different movement patterns together \u2013 such as pushing and pulling \u2013 or pairing together an upper and lower body exercise, and then <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/lifestyle\/supersets-benefit-training-100034376.html\" data-ylk=\"slk:supersetting;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;outcm:mb_qualified_link;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;\" class=\"link  yahoo-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">supersetting<\/a> them. You\u2019ll be working more efficiently and seeing gains in no time. Here they are\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Deficit deadlifts<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.t3.com\/features\/how-to-deadlift\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:deadlift;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">deadlift<\/a> is one of the best bang-for-your-buck exercises; it builds functional strength, muscle mass, core strength, and is brilliant for the posterior chain muscles (the muscles on the back of your body). The deficit deadlift \u2013 where you stand on an elevated platform \u2013 takes this to the next level. You get serious range of motion, putting even more focus on the muscles used, meaning more gains.<\/p>\n<p>Walking lunges<img alt=\"A topless man doing dumbbell lunges\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/f42dec5bc3c14df5f7da7c9b32ce3f61.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Dr Mike says these will \u201cdestroy a ton of your body\u201d \u2013 in a good way, of course. Lunges light up all of your lower body muscles: the quads, glutes, hamstrings and calves. To make sure you\u2019re hitting all these muscles, and aren\u2019t honing in more on the glutes, Dr Mike says to take shorter steps and keep your body more upright so that your knees go over your toes slightly.<\/p>\n<p>Underhand lat pull down<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The reason Dr Mike says he favours this lat pull down variation is because: \u201cIt allows you to hit the lats and most of the back super well. But, as opposed to a neutral grip or overhand pull down, the underhand allows you to actively engage your biceps much more.\u201d You\u2019ll therefore be hitting the back, biceps, rear delts, and even your forearms, all in one move. If you don\u2019t have access to a lat pull down machine, he says you can do underhand assisted pull-ups instead.<\/p>\n<p>Incline close-grip press<img alt=\"A man performing incline dumbbell chest press\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/18a8ab4291d2de924cd6c2a773b30e7a.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Want to overload three upper body muscles in one exercise? This is your ticket. The incline close-grip press will smoke your entire chest (including upper, middle and a little lower), the front delts, and triceps. \u201cFor any version of this you do, full range of motion is really good, especially that deep stretch, and at the bottom don\u2019t let your elbows flare out as that lets the chest take over, but leaves your triceps hanging a bit, so try to keep a bit of a closer grip and tighter elbows,\u201d says Dr Mike.<\/p>\n<p>Hang muscle snatch<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The hang muscle snatch begins with the barbell hanging just below your hips, and from there, you drive it overhead in one smooth, fluid motion. It&#8217;s primarily found in weightlifting and CrossFit circles, so you might wonder why Dr. Mike has included it in his roundup. The reason is simple: it targets the delts from all angles. \u201cIt really gets your rear delts going and then your side delts, and then it uses your front and side delts to continue the motion,\u201d he says. Your legs, hips and back muscles will also be working to generate power.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Credit:&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":29369,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4322],"tags":[17581,17582,1630,17584,395,105,17583,17586,17585,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-29368","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fitness","8":"tag-compound-exercises","9":"tag-dr-mike","10":"tag-fitness","11":"tag-front-delts","12":"tag-getty-images","13":"tag-health","14":"tag-isolation-exercises","15":"tag-posterior-chain-muscles","16":"tag-range-of-motion","17":"tag-uk","18":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114357189201400025","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29368","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29368"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29368\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29369"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29368"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29368"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29368"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}