Accessory Exercises: What They're For and How to Choose Them

0 to Elite course · Lesson 60 of 100 · Level 3: Novice to Intermediate

Over the last few lessons you’ve learned the big barbell lifts. Accessory exercises are everything else in your session: the smaller, supporting movements that make those lifts stronger and your body more balanced. Here’s how to choose them with purpose instead of at random.

What counts as an accessory exercise?

Your main lifts are the big, heavy movements you progress most carefully: the squat, deadlift, bench press, overhead press and pull-up you met in lessons 54 to 58. Accessory exercises are everything that comes after them. They’re usually lighter, use dumbbells, cables, machines or body weight, and are done for more reps.

Examples include Romanian deadlifts, split squats, dumbbell rows, lateral raises, triceps pushdowns, biceps curls, calf raises, face pulls and core work.

The four jobs accessories do

1. Build muscle. More muscle has more potential to get stronger. Accessories add useful training volume without the fatigue of more heavy barbell sets.
2. Strengthen weak links. If your chest rises first in a squat or your lockout fails on the bench, the right accessory targets that exact weakness. Lesson 70 covers finding and fixing weak points in depth.
3. Balance your body. Lots of pressing with little pulling can leave shoulders unhappy. Rows, face pulls and rear delt work restore the balance.
4. Train what the big lifts miss. Side delts, calves, biceps, the side of the glutes and grip get little from barbell lifts alone.

A fifth, quieter job is resilience. Exercises like face pulls, single-leg work and core training (which you met in lesson 21) build strength around your joints so they cope better with heavy main lifts week after week.

Example pairings

• Squat: split squats, leg press, leg extensions, calf raises.
• Deadlift: Romanian deadlifts, back extensions, hip thrusts, dumbbell rows.
• Bench press: incline dumbbell press, dips, triceps pushdowns, chest-supported rows.
• Overhead press: lateral raises, face pulls, overhead triceps extensions.
• Pull-up: lat pulldowns, biceps curls, rear delt flyes, dead hangs for grip.

How to choose your accessories

Ask three questions for each main lift:

• Which muscles does it use? Pick an accessory that trains them in a slightly different way. Bench press pairs well with dumbbell presses and triceps work; squats pair with split squats and leg presses.
• Where does it fail? Choose movements that strengthen that part. A slow lockout on the overhead press points to triceps.
• What’s missing? Look at the whole week. If you push more than you pull, add pulling.

Then pick exercises you can do with good form and feel in the target muscle. A useful default in an upper/lower or push/pull/legs week is one main lift followed by two to four accessories per session.

Sets, reps and effort

Accessories are best in moderate to higher reps, usually 8 to 15, and sometimes up to 20 for small muscles like calves and side delts. Take them closer to failure than your main lifts, around one to two reps in reserve, because the injury risk is lower and smaller muscles recover faster.

Count accessory sets towards your weekly total for each muscle, using the volume guidelines from lesson 49 on training volume. Progress them like everything else: add reps first, then weight.

Keep accessories in your plan for at least four to eight weeks before swapping. Changing them every session makes progress impossible to track. For how all of this fits into one coherent plan, read the full guide to structured training programmes.

Accessories are not “optional extras” to drop when you’re short of time. If a session runs long, cut an accessory set or two, but keep at least one pulling and one lower body accessory in your week.

If an accessory exercise causes joint pain, swap it for a pain-free alternative rather than pushing through. Pain that lasts or keeps returning is a reason to see a GP or physiotherapist.

Your action steps

1. List your main lifts and write down where each one feels weakest.
2. Choose one accessory per main lift that targets that weakness, plus one for a muscle the big lifts miss.
3. Count your weekly pushing and pulling sets. If pulling is lower, add a row or face pull.
4. Keep your chosen accessories for the next six weeks and log every set, adding reps before weight.

Frequently asked questions

What are accessory exercises?

They are the smaller, supporting exercises done after your main lifts, such as rows, lunges, curls and lateral raises. They build muscle, fix weak points and balance your training.

How many accessory exercises should I do?

Two to four per session after your main lift works well for most people, adding up to a sensible weekly number of sets for each muscle.

How many reps for accessory exercises?

Usually 8 to 15 reps, and up to 20 for small muscles like calves. Take them close to failure, around one or two reps in reserve.

Keep going

Previous: Lesson 59: The Hip Thrust and How to Train Your Glutes

Next: Lesson 61: Interval training and the HIIT workout: how to use it well

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