Isolation and compound excercises?

Whats the difference between the two types of exercises? How do you perform each type? In both exercises, are there different times you are supposed to contract the muscles?Isolation and compound excercises?
Compound exercises are exercises which use two or more joints in the movement. For example, a push-up - uses the shoulder joint and the elbow joint.





Isolation exercises are exercises which involve only one joint. Eg, bicep curl - only uses the elbow joint.





If you are new to strength training, I would suggest concentrating on compound exercises for a while. It will give you a good base to work from. Then you can do some isolation exercises to work on muscle groups that you think need it.





The basis of any good strength training routine uses the 4 BIG compound exercises.... Bench Press, Chin-ups, Squats and Deadlifts.





Hope this answers your question!