As a Personal Trainer, I always aim to prescribe exercises with specific purpose. That is identified by asking three questions ahead of time: WHAT, WHY, HOW.

WHAT we need to strengthen
WHY we need to strength it
HOW are we going to do that.  

Personally, I identify What and Why by performing series of muscular imbalances tests on clients. Based on your needs and wants, we can then select suitable exercises (How).

In this article, I will write down an extensive list I use when selecting exercises. A list of strength training exercises has been helping me for many years and I am willing to share it with a world in order to help you as well.

This article is will not discuss technique. It is purely an extensive list of more than 100 strength exercises, which will help you organize your training session/plan. Make sure to check Youtube resources for learning technique for more information.

So, without further ado, here is a list of strength training exercises divided by muscle groups.

LIST OF STRENGTH TRAINING EXERCISES

CHEST

1. Upper:

• Incline Bench Press
• Incline Dumbell Bench Press
• Reverse-Grip Bench Press
• Incline Machine Press
• Reverse Grip Bench Press
• Incline Bench Pull-Overs

2. Lower:

• Seated Machine Flies
• Decline Dumbell Press
• Decline Bench Press
• Dumbell Pull-Over
• Decline Dumbell Flies

BICEPS

1. Long Head:

• Biceps Curls
• Cross Body Curls
• Incline Curl
• Drag Curl
• Chin Ups

2. Short Head:

• Preacher Curls
• Spider Curls
• Chin ups
• Standing Upper Cable Curls
• Standing EZ Curls
• Wide Grip Curls

3. Brachialis:

• Hammer Curls
• Cross Body Hammer Curls
• Reverse Grip EZ Bar Curls

TRICEPS

1. Long head

• Triceps Pushaway
• Lying Triceps Extension
• Incline Dumbell Triceps Kickbacks
• Incline Dumbell Overhead Exension
• One-Arm Overhead Cable Extension
• Overhead Rope Extension
• Two-Arm Overhead Dumbell Extension

2. Lateral head (Forearms turned in)

• Triceps Pushdown
• Diamond Pushup
• One arm Reverse Pushdown
• E-Z Bar Triceps Extension
• Dumbell Triceps Extension

3. Medial head (Forearms turned out)

• Reverse Grip Triceps Pushdown
• Close Grip Bench Press
• Seated Dumbell Extension
• Bar Dips

FOREARM

• Farmer Walk Carry
• Dead Pullup Hang
• Standing Wrist Curls
• Wrist Flexion Rollers
• Wrist Extension Curls
• Wrist Extension Rollers

BACK

1. Latissimus Dorsi:

• Lat Pulldown
• Underhand Lat pulldown
• Straight Arm Pushdown
• One Arm Dumbell Row
• One Arm Straight-Arm Pushdown

2. Teres Major:

• Wide Grip Lat Pulldown
• Wide Grip Lat Row

3. Trapezius:

• Barbell Shrugs
• Rack Pulls
• Face Pulls
• Inverted Y
• Cable Y
• Reverse Flies

4. Rhomboids:

• Reverse Flies
• Bat Wings
• Face Pulls
• Scapula Retraction on a Cable Row

5. Lower Back:

• Hyper Extension
• Single Leg Bridges
• Angel of DeathS
• Superman
• Good Mornings

SHOULDER

1. Rotator Cuff:

• External Rotation Cable Pull
• Internal Rotation Cable Pull
• Side Lying External Rotation
• Banded Upright External Rotation
• Banded Upright Internal Rotation

2. Rear Deltoid:

• Reverse Dumbell Fly
• Seated Row
• Face Pull
• Dumbell Hip Hugger
• Underhand Rear Delt Raise

3. Middle Deltoid:

• Lateral Raises
• Dumbell High Pull
• Dumbell Butterfly Raise
• Bodyweight Side Lateral Raise

4. Anterior Deltoid:

• Push Press Dumbell
• Plate Front Raise
• Cable Front Deltoid Raise
• Crush Grip Shoulder Pressout
• Landmine Press

LEGS

1. Quadriceps:

• Leg Extension
• Narrow Stance Leg Press
• Barbell Step ups
• Bulgarian Split Squat
• Front Squat
• High Bar Squat
• Pistol Squat

2. Hamstring:

• Stiffed Legged Deadlift
• Low Bar Squat
• Good morning
• Deadlift
• Leg Curls
• Standing Cable Leg Curls
• Snatch

3. Hip Adductors:

• Side Lunges
• Side step ups
• Thigh Adductor Machine
• Cable Hip Adduction
• Lateral Box Jump

4. Hip Abductors:

• Monster Walks
• Hip Thrusters
• Thigh Abductor Machine
• Cable Hip Abduction
• Standing Side Leg Raise
• Side Leg Raise
• Hip Cirlces
• Clam

5. Calves:

5.1. Gastroconemius:

• Calves Raises Toes Straight
• Calves Raises Toes In
• Calves Raises Toes Out

5.2. Soleus:

• Calves Plantar Flexion With Toes Hooked To Bench
• Calves Sitting Raises Toes Straight
• Calves Sitting Raises Toes In
• Calves Sitting Raises Toes Out

ABDOMINALS

1. Upper Abs:

• Cable Crunches
• Starfish Crunches
• Dumbell Crunch
• Tuck and Crunch
• V-Sit

2. Lower Abs:

• Hanging Leg Raises
• Hanging Knee Raises
• Dragon Thrust
• One Down, Two Ups
• Heel Tap
• Scissors Exercise
• Straight Leg Raise

3. Obliques:

• Russian Twist
• Pendelum of Pain
• Slashers
• Weight Windshield Wipers
• Single-Arm Farmer’s Carry
• Side Plank
• Cross Body Mountain Climbers
• Half-Kneeling Cable Chop
• Medicine Ball Rotational Toss
• Bicycle Crunch
• TRX Pendulum Swing
• Hanging Knee Raise Twist

4. Inner Abs (Stabilization):

• Weighted Planks
• AB Wheel
• RKC Plank
• Panter Shoulder Taps
• Dead Bugs
• Body Saw
• Hollow Hold
• Hollow Body Rock
• Side Plank

Extras:

Just throwing bunch of exercises at you will raise millions of questions like:

-How many repetitions?
-How many Sets?
-What kind of tempo?
-How Heavy?
-How much rest in between?
-What kind of split?

Therefore, if you are not familiar with basic programming concepts, I recommend you to start with Complete Guide to Building Muscle.

If you are interested in gaining muscle mass, I have written a specific guide on each muscle group. Those articles go way beyond just exercise selection. Among other things, you will learn about muscle activation which is CRUCIAL and mostly never talked about when it comes to muscle growth.

Select a muscle group you want to learn more about below:

• ARMS
• SHOULDER
• CHEST
• LEGS
• BACK
• ABDOMINALS

If you feel like you need more help with designing you workout program, I offer online personal training. For that, contact me through contact page above.

Summary:

Designing a workout program requires some though behind it. Every workout and exercise should have a purpose. You get a purpose by asking yourself WHAT, WHY and HOW.

Once you identify these, you will be be on a great path towards quicker results. Going to the gym and just doing what you feels like it on the day is like throwing shit at the wall and see what sticks. Take some time to learn about muscle anatomy, muscle function to create your own workout routine.

Combine that with diet and you are on a great way to build stronger, muscular and confident physique. Ohhh, and always remember to LIFT, EAT, SLEEP, REPEAT!