Reasons for selecting accessory exercises to develop strength

In power-lifting, accessory exercises are generally selected to improve strength on the 3 competition lifts. As there are many exercises to choose from, it can become overwhelming in deciding which to select. The good news is there are no ‘best’ accessory exercises, and this would be context-dependent. Instead providing a list of the best exercises to support the main lifts, as no one has evidence on which ones are best. This short article will cover some reasons/goal outcomes on why you might select particular accessory exercises to improve strength on the competition lifts.  

Increasing muscle size

Although increasing muscle size is not required to increase strength (strength can improve in the absence of increasing muscle size) (3), bigger muscles will likely provide the opportunity to increase strength. A theory is that increasing the size of the muscle will increase the number of components within the muscle which contribute to producing force. If we have more ‘muscle machinery’, we have more tissue that can contract and help move a barbell from point A to point B (7). 

Increased muscle mass for improving strength is indirectly supported by looking at the physical characteristics of powerlifters. Multiple studies have shown that a significant differentiator between stronger and weaker powerlifters is the amount of lean muscle tissue. Stronger athletes generally show having more muscle than weaker athletes  (2, 5, 6, 8).

Although the three competition lifts are compound movements and work multiple muscle groups at once, they do not provide uniform growth across all muscle groups. For example, Zabaleta-Korta et al. had one group of subjects complete five weeks of training performing 4 sets of 12 repetitions, three times a week using smith machine squats only, with another group performing leg extensions only. Results found the rectus femoris grew only in the leg extension group, whereas the central region of the vastus lateralis increased in the squat group. This study demonstrates that different exercises targeting the same muscle group (in this example legs) result in region-specific hypertrophy (9).

Some exercises will provide a higher stimulus for muscle growth with less fatigue. Some exercises are going to be less fatiguing than the main lifts and provide a better ‘stimulus to fatigue ratio’. For example, deadlifts can be highly fatiguing, and due to their limited range of motion, increasing quadricep hypertrophy will likely be less than that of a leg press. As such, for those who need to gain quadricep size, adding accessory exercises which provide high muscle stimulation with low fatigue (compared to the comp lifts) and take the working muscles through a large range of motion should be effective for promoting muscle hypertrophy without having to do an excessive number of sets on the competition lifts.

Improve technique

Accessory exercises can be utilised to improve technique of the main lifts. Unfortunately, there is no solid evidence to support this as it is difficult to measure technique improvements. At SPC Performance lab, if someone is struggling to correct a technique error even after plenty of practice on the main lift, we may use a movement that places greater emphasis on the area of the movement the lifter is struggling with. For example, suppose a lifter is shifting their weight forward at the bottom of the squat and showing weight shift into the toes and knees. In that case, we can use a paused squat that emphasises maintaining a balanced position at the bottom of the movement.     

We believe that utilising accessory exercises that emphasise the technique error can work as a ‘reward and punishment’ system. Using the paused squat example, if the lifter maintains balance and does not shift forward, they will be rewarded with an efficient squat. If the lifter loses balance and shifts forward into the toes, the lifter will be ‘punished’ with an exaggerated forward lean. As such, the pause squat places greater focus the part of the movement where the error occurs and may help the lifter become better at correcting the technical fault. 

Adherence / motivation

It is usually stated that accessory exercises should serve a purpose, and they shouldn’t be used for no reason. For the most part, this statement is probably true, accessory exercises should probably be used to improve strength on the main lifts in some way. However, powerlifting can be boring and repetitive, and sometimes throwing in some new exercises for motivation help break up the monotony of training.

Baz-Valle et al. had subjects training for 8 weeks, 4 times a week using 3 sets of 6 exercises. One group used the same exercises for the entire 8 weeks which were;

Upper body exercises – bench-press, pendlay row, shoulder press, latpull down, dumbbell fly, dumbbell pull-over

Lower body exercises – back squat, deadlift, leg press, hip thrust, leg extension and leg curl

The other group followed the same training protocol but randomly selected exercises from a computerized database of 80 different exercises. The exercises for the upper body randomly selected 3 pulling and 3 pushing exercises. Lower body exercises were randomly selected from anterior focus and posterior focus. Training volume was equated between groups. At the end of the 8-week study, those in the random exercise group showed a moderate improvement in intrinsic motivation. In contrast, the group who did not rotate exercises showed a non-significant decrease in motivation (1).

It is not advised to rotate exercises every workout as this may not be an effective way to build strength and muscle mass. The previously mentioned study was just used as an example demonstrating that new exercises can help with increasing motivation. For the sake of keeping mental sanity from the sometimes-boring routine nature of powerlifting, a good enough reason to choose a particular accessory exercise might purely be from an enjoyment perspective. I don’t think every single exercise needs to serve a direct purpose regarding improving the main lift. Likewise, there is a lack of evidence to suggest there are magic accessory exercises guaranteed to improve your main lifts. Some accessory exercises may be selected purely from a motivation/lifting longevity standpoint. 

Improve ‘weak points’ of a lift?

It is commonly stated that ‘weak points’ or underdeveloped muscles should be trained to overcome particular parts of a lift. In most cases, this would be a lift’s sticking point. For starters, this statement is generally based on anecdotal evidence. From my understanding, there has not been research that directly measures working on weak points to improve strength on the competition lifts.

However, this does not necessarily mean it is untrue. Fonseca et al. conducted a study comparing constant exercises versus varying exercises on muscle size and 1RM strength over a 12-week training program. Subjects were split into one of four groups. Constant exercises with constant intensity (CICE), constant exercises with varied intensity (CIVE), varied exercises with constant intensity (VICE) and varied exercises with varied intensity. The constant exercise group performed the smith machine squat only, where the varied group performed squats, leg press, deadlifts and lunges over the 12 weeks. The table below provides specifics of the programs performed in each group.

Related help: For individual help choosing accessories around your squat, bench press and deadlift, see our powerlifting coaching in Taren Point. For a specific exercise example, read how to do stiff-legged deadlifts.