Compound Moves VS Isolation Moves: Which Do You Focus On?

The answer to this question is definitely compound movements. When you're trying to lose weight, you always want to get the best bang for your buck during your workouts. Compound movements will give you that.

What are compound movements?
Compound movements stimulate several large muscle groups and are generally, multi-joint movements. A squat is a compound movement. It trains the hips, thighs, buttocks, quadriceps and activates your core muscles. This is a fantastic compound move.
A calf raise, however, is an isolation movement. It only works the calf muscles. So, the number of calories you burn with this exercise will be far less than what you'd get with a squat.
It only makes sense to focus on squats so that you burn more calories and shed more fat.

What's the purpose of isolation movements then?
Isolation movements do have their time and place. A bodybuilder who wants to specifically add mass to his calves, will do the calf raises. Or he may wish to add a peak to his biceps and he focuses on bicep curls, which is another isolation movement.
Their goals are different from yours. Very often, these are pro athletes who are lean and already have a fantastic body. The isolation movements are akin to using a chisel to really carve out their bulging muscles.
Most overweight people are not in this position. What they do have though is a double digit body fat percentage, fat hanging off their belly and poor stamina.
To fix these issues, they absolutely need compound movements, NOT isolation movements.

What are the best compound movements?
Below you'll find a list of compound exercises. You don't have to do them all in one workout, but you should create different routines for yourself utilizing the different moves. This will add variety to your workouts.
You'll not be bored, and your body will constantly be challenged and not have a chance to adapt. This will force it to burn more calories and get stronger.
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* Barbell Bench Press
* Incline Barbell Bench Press
* Dumbbell Bench Press
* Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
* Weighted Dips for Chest
* Decline Bench Press
* Barbell Deadlift
* Bent-Over Barbell Row
* Weighted Pull-ups
* Wide-Grip Pull-up
* Standing T-Bar Row
* Wide-Grip Pull Down
* Close-Grip Pull Down
* Seated Cable Row
* Cable Crunch
* Hanging Dumbbell Knee Raise
* Ab-Wheel Rollout
* Plank
* Weighted Decline Sit-up
* Bicycle
* Flag
* Standing Barbell Overhead Press
* Seated Dumbbell Overhead Press
* Arnold Shoulder Press
* Bent-Over Reverse Fly
* Lateral Raise
* Front Dumbbell Raise
* Handstand Push-ups
* Barbell Squat
* Standing Calf Raise
* Romanian Deadlift
* Leg Press
* Hack Squat
* Dumbbell Lunge
* Weighted Chin-ups
* Incline-Bench Curl
* Weighted Dips
* Cable Push-Down

If you're trying to lose weight, your goal should be cardio 2-3X a week and resistance training 2-3X a week. On those days when you're doing resistance training, use the compound moves and ensure that you train your full body during your workout.
For example, a routine with squats, pull ups, dips and mountain climbers will work your legs, arms, chest, back and core. This is a full-body workout and it will burn a lot of calories and keep your body in fat burning mode for hours. Overall, you will lose more weight in a shorter time.