Compound exercises only

How would ones physique looked if they focused on compound movements such as bench press(any variation of it),pull ups/chin-ups , deadlifts /squats. Would any muscle group not develope such as biceps/triceps/shoulders.

If you specifically do chinups and dips to emphasize the biceps and triceps I can see this working to some degree. If you don't specifically do them for that purpose I doubt your arms will develop a lot. At least I got up to a pretty decent weighted pullup/chinup with tiny arms as I never did direct arm work (I realize this is n=1). So I think it will really come down to doing variations that target things. If you do some front squats for quad-focused movement and do various types of chins/pulls, bench presses (ie, close grip, incline), and also some shoulder presses then you should be able to get pretty good all around development. If you lean back a lot with pullups you'll hit the rear delts to some degree too but I can see these lagging with this approach. Other lagging muscles may be lateral delts, forearms, calves.

I don't do direct arm work other than a couple sets of curls after pull day, and my arms got too big for my t shirts. In a good way. Also arms are still what everyone comments on. I did this mechanical bull competition at a local bar and some random dude commented on my triceps. I almost never do direct tricep work. But still, a little extra arm work never hurt anyone, right?

You can do quite well based on compounds alone - but they do leave gaps which need to be filled by specific isolation exercises. Some examples from my experience:
- lateral delts are not well targeted by OHP. Need lateral raises or possibly upright rows
- rear delts and upper traps are use through shortened ROM by compounds like rows, cleans and deadlifts
- bi articulate muscles are often not well targetted by multijoint movement - eg. hamstrings, glutes, on of the heads of the quads
- some heads of the bicep and tricep are inadequately targetted by just one type of press or pull. You do need arm isos.

I'm not saying there will be glaringly obvious flaws in your phsique but if your goal is maximal muscle growth then it doesn't make sense to doggedly stick to an idea like "compounds only", the right tool for the right job is what produces best results - not the smallest possible set of tools.

If you want to do a proper study of this question, look at menno henselmans muscle specific hypertrophy article series.

[QUOTE=jonyc1;1601564221]How would ones physique looked if they focused on compound movements such as bench press(any variation of it),pull ups/chin-ups , deadlifts /squats. Would any muscle group not develope such as biceps/triceps/shoulders.[/QUOTE]

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I think a compounds only routine can work, to a point. If the goal is aesthetics though, there's a limit to how far you can get with them, most cases. It also matters which compounds you're using, the frequency, overload pattern, etc. Like mentioned above, there will be gaps left behind if compounds are the main reliance, and that's why we have isolations - to pick up the slack and train the weak points left behind. Some days if i'm running low on time, i'll prioritize the compounds and leave it at that, but I aim include a few isolation exercises per muscle group to maintain a balance long term.

[QUOTE=TheShadowMan;1601610781]I think a compounds only routine can work, to a point. If the goal is aesthetics though, there's a limit to how far you can get with them, most cases. It also matters which compounds you're using, the frequency, overload pattern, etc. Like mentioned above, there will be gaps left behind if compounds are the main reliance, and that's why we have isolations - to pick up the slack and train the weak points left behind. Some days if i'm running low on time, i'll prioritize the compounds and leave it at that, but I aim include a few isolation exercises per muscle group to maintain a balance long term.[/QUOTE]

Interesting post with some good points, but beauty and balance is in the eye of the beholder. I think the classic bodybuilder look is ugly and unbalanced and quite frankly, looks stupid. To each their own, though and if someone likes to admire their physique, it's quite alright. I did when I was a teenager.

EDIT: Just to add that very few 'naturals' IMO look stupid. I was mostly referring to the juiced up narcissists.

Why would you do this if you are interested in physique?

Compounds should be the main lifts but isolations have their place.

Especially curls, medial and rear delts.

Why not add curls and or delt isos at the end of your without?