The Difference Between Auxiliary & Core Lifts

When it comes to strength training and weight training in general, most people are already performing the popular Auxiliary and Core lifts during most, if not each, of their workouts. Even if you do not know what either an Auxiliary or Core lift exercise is, chances are that you incorporate them into every weight training routine.

What Are Core Lifts?

Your Core exercises or lifts, which I am going to discuss first, are the exercises that we also call compound movement lifts. These exercises require the use of multiple joints in order to be performed properly and the lift to take place, regardless of the weight load. Examples of these would be back and front squats, power cleans, snatch, deadlifts, bench press, incline press, barbell rows, etc. These are your heavy compound exercises that although they do target a specific muscle region, they also engage most the entire body as well.

So, how exactly do core lifts work the body? Let’s talk about a popular core lift, the deadlift. When we perform deadlifts, our body engages multiple muscles at once, and we end up creating tension on the: Glutes, Quads, Adductor, Soleus, Hamstrings, Gastrocnemius, Spinae Erectors, Traps, Scapulae, Oblique’s, and many more. As you can see, the deadlift is considered a core exercise because it engages almost every major muscle group in the body. A deadlift really only lacks tension on the chest, arms, shoulders and outer back area. Since it targets around 70% of the entire body or so, we can see why we call it a core lift or heavy compound exercise.

What Are Auxiliary Lifts?

When it comes to Auxiliary lifts, otherwise known as assistance exercises, you are performing exercises that target a smaller muscle region and can focus on a singular muscle instead of a large group of muscles. When you hear the word auxiliary, you should think of something providing supplementation or support to something else. With these kind of exercises, you are performing lifts that focus on weaker, smaller muscle groups of a lagging muscle in order to help build strength in such region. Any exercise that can focus on a minor muscle group or an individual muscle is considered an Auxiliary lift. Examples of these exercises would be bicep curls, tricep extensions, leg curls, leg extensions, shoulder press, lateral raises, etc.