Posted on August 23, 2017 by Kate Halsall

barbell complex

I’m not going to lie – this is currently my favourite things to do as a second warm-up. I started introducing it into a couple of my clients plans as it gets the whole body “warmed up” – but then it’s also a little mean as we use the 20kg barbell! This barbell complex contains 5 moves without the bar leaving the hands. I throw in some press ups at the end because 1. I like even numbers so I couldn’t leave it as 5 exercises and 2. It makes sure I do actually hit the whole body.

There are 4 ways of doing this barbell complex:

  • Perform 6 reps of each exercise, then put the bar down and rest (after the press-ups), then repeat x 3-4 times.
  • Use a pyramid formation ie, exercise 1 for 6 reps, exercise 2 for 8 reps, exercise 3 for 10 reps, 4 for 12 reps, 5 for 14 reps, 6 for 16 reps and then work backwards starting from exercise 5 for 14 reps etc
  • Do it for time eg how many times can you complete 5 reps of each exercise in the complex in 2 minutes (ooo that’s not a bad shout for a monthly workout challenge!)
  • Increasing the weight on the bar after each round until you can’t finish it!

So here are the exercises for this barbell complex workout:

  1. Bent Over Row
  2. Upright Row
  3. Shoulder Press
  4. Back Squats
  5. Lunges
  6. Press Ups

Niiiiiiiiiice…….

In theory – as long as you don’t put the bar down, you could make up your own barbell complex. But to help, here are some websites with more suggestions:

http://www.mensfitness.com/training/workout-routines/5-best-barbell-complex-workouts-burn-fat-and-build-muscle

https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/lift-to-burn-4-barbell-complexes-scorch-fat-increase-strength.html