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The table below contains a list of exercise complexes.  You can use it to filter and search for new workouts.  Be sure to click the  to get the details and video of each workout.  If you want more information on complexes, read the content the table.

Be sure to check out my Not-So Complex Program based almost entirely of complex exercises

If I’m missing your favorite complex, please contact me and let me know the details!

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My Original Goal with the Complex exercises was to find an efficient and aggressive method of performance enhancement that saves time and makes the program more enjoyable.

These words written by Istvan Javorek, the strength coach widely acclaimed for putting complexes on the map, sum up the magic of these exercises in one sentence.  In case you’re not familiar with complexes as they’re defined in the fitness space, they’re an array of exercises designed to be completed in one continuous set.  That, I know, is a very general description, but that’s part of their beauty; they leave much to the sadistic trainer’s imagination.

Allow me to dive a little deeper into Javorek’s quote above.

“Efficient and aggressive”:

If massive amounts of volume packed into a minute or two of work is efficient, then he’s on the money here.  Javorek’s original barbell complex, for instance, demands 30 reps across five compound exercises in one set.

And aggressive?  Yeh, complexes are pretty freakin’ aggressive.  I told one of my clients just last night, as he geared up for his third set of Ben Bruno’s Brutal Trap Bar Complex (10 split squats, 10 RDLs, and 10 deadlifts) that he was about to go to war.  Five minutes after the set, while he was still lying on his back, he knew exactly what I was talking about.

Complexes force you to be aggressive.  They’re an amazing tool for sewing toughness, and insist that you to drive past your breaking point without looking back.

“Performance enhancement”:

I can’t help but think of Smiling Bob from those stupid Enzyte commercials anytime someone says “performance enhancements” (that’s just my struggle), but I don’t think that’s what Javorek had in mind (unless he’s copping Arnold’s style).  No, what he’s referring to are the indisputable gains athletes experience when they add complexes to their programming.

Strength coaches never seem to agree on anything, but all of them, from Joe Defranco to Charles Poliquin, use complexes to build superior athletes.  Pick any of the workouts from the table above (with the exception of the mobility routines), and you’ll see immediately the conditioning possibilities.  That’s barbell cardio, baby.

In addition to muscular endurance, complex practitioners also quickly notice the increase in strength and hypertrophy.  Dan John often refers to hypertrophy as “armor building”, and in his book Mass Made Simple he includes a routine that will drop you in a suit of plate mail (you get to do up to 80 reps of bent rows, hang cleans, front squats, overhead presses, back squats and good mornings without putting the bar down).

It’s widely accepted that the formula for getting bigger features time under tension as a keystone variable.  Is two straight minutes with a bar on your back considered time under tension?  Yes, yes it is.

“Makes the program more enjoyable”:

I just adore puking on the floor and spontaneously crapping my pants…it’s just so darn “enjoyable”.  Javorek, you crazy Romanian!

I’m just joshing ya, buddy.  I know what you’re talking about.

Complexes are synonymous with variety, which staves off a stale time at the gym, and in some cases, might just foster an enjoyable experience.  Not to mention the sheer feeling of accomplishment, knowing that you just slayed an exercise that would literally have killed 50% of American couch potatoes.  Completing complexes feels good (then again, so does crapping in your pants…for just a second…but I wouldn’t know…more than once…ok, twice…).

Complex Versatility

Complexes can fit neatly into just about any exercise program, and there’s no fitness goal they can’t help you tackle; whether it be conditioning, fat loss, muscle growth, strength or masochism.  There are a number of ways you can plug them into your workouts.

Warm ups: The table above includes several warm up and targeted mobility complexes, and in my opinion, you can’t do them often enough.  Having said that, you don’t need a routine with the label, “warm up” to use it effectively.  Simply pick a routine that engages the same muscle groups you’re going to hammer in your work sets, but drop the weight and intensity to a warm up level.

For example, Lee Boyce’s back complex (7 high pulls, 10 Yates rows, and 15 bent over rows) at 20-30% is a solid inclusion in a “back day” warm up.

Finishers: Complexes programmed as finishers (grueling met-conesque bouts meant to toast you at the end of your workout) are probably their most common implementation.  Whether your primary workout consisted of skill practice, hypertrophy, strength or speed work, you can throw in a few rounds of your favorite high-rep complex at the end to make sure you aren’t leaving anything on the table.

This Shang Tsung style, soul-stealing fitness strategy is one of the most effective ways of burning fat, bar none.  Not only are you torching calories and creating a massive metabolic effect for muscle growth, but you send your body into EPOC mode (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption), spiking your metabolic rate for hours after the workout.

An excellent example of this methodology can be found in Joe Defranco’s Built Like a Badass program.  Give Joe’s Be-Zercher complex a shot (10 Zercher squats, 10 Zercher reverse lunges, 10 curl-to-presses, 10 Romanian deadlifts, and 10 bent over rows) before you pack up for the day, and your fat will get hit up like Epoc (bad pun for Big Pop!).

Accessory lifts: Accessory lifts are a general fitness term for exercises done to accompany your primary lifts (most commonly deadlift, squat and press variations). They enhance strength and hypertrophy in areas you might not have hit as hard with your initial top sets.  For a classic “leg day” example, you may start with 5×5 barbell back squats, and finish the workout with several sets of leg presses, leg curls and terminal knee extensions.

I’m currently in the final week of a program where literally all of my accessory lifts are complexes.  Why?  What do you mean “why”?  Didn’t you read the first part of this article?

I’ll post the complete program in a couple weeks, but in the mean time, here’s an example of my “leg day”:

• Work up to a top set of 5-7 heavy back squats
• 2-3 rounds of Bruno’s front rack complex (lunges, front squats and back squats)
• 2-3 rounds of Bruno’s trap bar complex (split squats, RDLs, and full deadlifts)
• 1-2 rounds of my quad complex to hit the quads and other muscles around the knee (1/4 plie squats, 1/4 skater squats, banded TKEs, and 1/4 split squats)

This program isn’t easy, but my strength is holding steady, fat is falling off, and my conditioning is roaring.  Best part is, it’s not boring…for me or the 12 dozen members of my gym who scratch their heads when they see me working out.

Standalone Workouts: If you’re pinched for time, complexes–especially of the total body variety–can serve as a more-than-adequate standalone workout.  This especially holds true for conditioning and body composition goals.  In fact, that same program I mentioned above features conditioning and mobility routines that I complete on my “off days”.

There are tons of examples to fit this mold, but I find that bodyweight, light dumbbell and light kettlebell exercises work best here.  My go-to guy when I want to crush myself in a small time window is Funk Roberts; his workouts are almost as awesome as his name.

Creation and Modification:

The table above is ever-growing and offers enough activities to keep you busy at the gym for a while.  Be that as it may, you might want to work on a weak point that isn’t addressed in any of the listed routines.  Or maybe you’re just a glutton for punishment, and nothing on their gouges that itch like you like.

Not a problem, sicko.  There are an infinite number of ways to tweak others’ existing complexes, or go crazy and completely build your own (check out my Full Frontal Sandbag when you get a chance).

Use the following suggestions to go off the beaten path.  All I ask is that you let me know what you came up with, so I can add it to the database.

Tweak the rep and set schemes to match your goals: Probably the most common way to modify a complex workout is to alter the reps.  In his book, Mass Made Simple, Dan John talks extensively on the subject, but the basic gist is this: use higher reps for conditioning and lower reps for strength and mass building.

For example, if you perform the eight rep variation for each of the six workouts in Dan’s book, you’ll need mouth-to-mouth from your spotter (now you know why none of my workout partners have beards).  Work with a heavier weight in low reps–say, three–to maximize time under tension.  Of course, the beauty about complexes is that even low rep variations can offer a brutal bout of conditioning.  In the case of our three rep example, you’re still hammering out 18 reps of heavy compound movements before putting the bar down!

When it comes to sets, I tend to keep them low; usually three or less.  This is almost out of necessity.  If you’re performing a complex correctly, it should be very difficult (with the exception of mobility or warm-ups routines).  If after three sets, you’re chomping at the bit to hit another, you probably didn’t go heavy enough, and you should be ashamed of yourself.

If you’ve already browsed the database, you may have noticed that the vast majority of the workouts have a very uniform rep structure (e.g., complete 10 reps of the following exercises).  There is absolutely no reason you need to stick to this methodology.  If, for instance, you’re working with a weight that you can clean, row and squat six times, but you can only overhead press it twice, and you really want to add presses to the complex, then overhead press it twice and six-rep everything else. I promise it’s alright.

You can also get real wacky and use variations like ladders and pyramids.  In Fleming’s Double Kettlebell Pyramid you do one rep of cleans, front squats, push presses and sumo deadlift high pulls; then two of each; then three; all the way up to five…then back down again (have fun).

For more reading on this subject, John Romaniello discusses straying from set and rep uniformity in this article on his site.

Change the weight: Changing the weight really goes hand-in-hand with modding reps, but there are a couple specific points to touch on.  First, when determining which weight to use, I normally do the following:

I start by choosing the reps I’d like to complete for each exercise.  Then I take 60-85% of my weakest lift’s max in that rep range.

It took me over 15 minutes to write the two sentences above, and I’m sure I’ve done nothing but confuse you.  Here’s a sample problem to illustrate the method:

Gibbons wants to complete a barbell complex with five different exercises at eight reps each.  Among the five lifts, Gibbons’ weakest is the good morning.  He thinks he can do eight good mornings at 135 lbs, so he shoots a little low, throws 70% of his perceived 8 RM max on the bar (95 lbs), and gears up for the set.

So why does Gibbons go so much lower than 135 lbs if he’s pretty sure he hit eight of them in a set when he did them half a year ago (or maybe those were those straight-leg deadlifts…Gibbons, you freakin’ screwed it up!)?

First of all, most people don’t walk around with a current database of all of their rep maxes for every movement that could potentially show up in a complex (Gibbons certainly doesn’t).  So,whether you’re doing standalone sets or circuits, err conservatively when you start (you could use a max rep estimation calculator, but I like to wing it…I also play guitar by ear, bake with pinches, hit wrong notes and my food tastes terrible).

Secondly, he has four other lifts to complete in succession at eight reps a pop.  He’s gonna be a little tired, so it’s important to factor in the inevitable fatigue.  When in doubt, start light.  You can always slow down the tempo or add weight on the next set to meet the pain point you’re after.  And, as mentioned earlier, you there’s no rule that says you have to perform the same number of reps for each exercise.

You can also change the weight by incorporating drop sets.  There are over a dozen drop set models to play with, but the most classic example is to complete a set (often to near-failure), then immediately pick up a lighter weight and complete another set (and maybe another…just run the rack, son!).  This method makes complexes insanely interesting.  What’s especially interesting is the way you look on your fifth set, pale-faced and crying with a five pound dumbbell in each hand.

Get out the timer: You don’t have to honor a rep scheme at all!  You can use brute force and willpower decide all that for you.  Employ alternative methods like AMRAP (as many reps as possible), ALAP (as long as possible) and EMOM (every minute on the minute) to dictate your workload.  The Men’s Health Chest Complex invites you to “AMRAP” as many dips, wide-grip push-ups and flys as you can until your man boobs need a Bro.

If you’re the kind of person who always has to best himself, grab a stop watch and try to crush your last set’s performance.  Ferrugia’s Timed Barbell Complex will kick you in the mouth and take your stop watch.

Substitute equipment: If you really like the looks of a barbell series, but all you have is two kettlebells, just modify the movements to fit the equipment on hand.  I can think of very few exercises that are strictly unique to one particular piece of fitness equipment, especially when it comes to heavy stuff like barbells, sandbags, dumbbells and kettlebells.  Again, complexes don’t really have rules, other than you bust your butt.  Santa isn’t going to care if you did barbell cleans instead of kettlebell swings.

Even if all you have is your body, you can still create an adaptation from an equipment-based routine.  Just analyze each exercise based on its movement pattern and replace it with a comparable bodyweight exercise.  If barbell rows are called for, do inverted rows or pull-ups from a bar or a branch.  If it’s an overhead press, do handstand or pike push-ups.  You can swap swings and cleans for kip ups and broad jumps.  I think you got it from here.

Unilateral/Bilateral adjustments: The variety of just about every complex in the table can immediately be doubled by substituting bilateral exercises for unilateral exercises, and vice versa.  Instead of a pressing movements that uses one arm, sub in a pressing movement that uses two.  Easy.

Quick tip: if you have any asymmetries in strength or range of motion (most people do), start on your weak side.

Planes of motion: The advantage of training in multiple planes of motion (sagittal, frontal and transverse) for both athletic performance as well as active daily living is way outside of the scope of this article, but similar to the unilateral/bilateral adjustments we just discussed, most exercises also have multiple counterparts in different planes.  For instance, when piecing this database together, I noticed there were ample complexes in the sagittal plane (front to back) and the transverse (rotational) had decent representation as well, but the poor frontal plane rarely showed up.

I decided to remedy this by creating the Full Frontal Sandbag Complex (Cossack squats, pirate ships, lateral lunges and squat shuffles), and the world has been a better place ever since (more stable when it changes direction anyway).

Range of motion: Other than changing the load, adjusting range of motion is probably the most effective method of progressing and regressing exercises.  Generally speaking, the longer the range of motion, the more difficult the exercise (e.g., deficit deadlifts), and the shorter, the easier (e.g., half squats).  If mobility issues prevent you from completing an exercise, don’t write off the whole complex.  Just tighten up the movement and get in there!

Contraction types: Here we’re referring to a focus on concentric (muscle gets shorter), eccentric (muscle gets longer), and isometric (muscle holds a position under load) contraction types.  In your average gym, concentric movements are king; mainly because it’s all anyone knows how to do, and most of the complexes in the database reflect that (to be fair, most conditioning goals favor concentric contractions).  That said, if you really want to struggle to pick up your coffee cup tomorrow, or sit down for your morning “productivity”, throw some slow negatives into the mix for maximum fiber damage.

A great example of combining all three contraction types is Athlean X’s Guaranteed Bicep Soreness Complex (concentric cable curls to failure, followed immediately by cheating eccentric curls to failure, followed by an isometric hold to failure).

Adjust your grip or foot position: Rotating a wrist, adjusting the angle of the toes by a few degrees, or shifting grip position two-inches can mean an entirely different group of muscles get some extra blood flow.  That said, a lot of of people forget the infinite combination of exercises that lie hidden in the details.  Have fun experimenting with the spice of life.

Change up the flow: How do you structure the order of a complex?  It’s often advised that you place the most skill-demanding exercise first.  Some argue that you should kick off with your weakest.  Try both.

Regardless of what you start and end with, you need to consider how to connect the dots.  For “ease” of transition, conventional wisdom suggests to start low-and-anterior (e.g., bent over row), work your way up (e.g., front squat) to the top (e.g., military press), and bring it behind the neck to high-and-posterior (back squat).  You can also go in reverse order, or go around the world and back again.

If you’ll notice in the example above, not only did we progress in a logical path, but we also alternated between upper and lower body exercises.  While this variation allows half of your body to experience a fleeting respite while the other half works, it also ironically stimulates the most metabolic disturbance (that’s one reason the GBC is so effective for fat loss).  A similar result can also be attained by alternating push and pull movements (e.g., presses and rows).

Finally, while the majority of complexes call for a total body experience, you can focus your flow onto one poor muscle group at a time to achieve total annihilation.  Defranco’s Tricep Finisher from Hell is a terrific example of this (10 tricep extensions, 8 diamond push-ups, 6 plank to push-ups each arm, 4 eccentric push-ups).

Wrap-up

There isn’t much more to cover.  In short, complexes are the Swiss-Army knives of workouts you love to hate.  You can find a use for them in any program for any goal; they’re applicable to just about any piece of equipment; they allow you do fit a massive amount of awesome crap into a compact package; they offer unlimited ways to make you bleed.

Please use the database to find new workouts, and apply what you’ve learned in this article to customize to your heart’s delight.  All I ask is that you please let me know if I’m missing your favorite complex, and I’ll gladly add it.