Dumbbells and kettlebells are great for building total-body strength, but if you want to test how strong you really are, barbells are the way to go. Barbells allow you to lift heavier with more control since you’re holding the bar with both hands and recruiting several muscles at once.

Master these moves, and you’ll not only get a great workout in — you’ll be able to set a three-rep max benchmark to continuously test your strength.

1. Barbell Squat

Targets: Glutes, hamstrings and quadriceps
How to: Walk up to the barbell on the rack at shoulder height. Hold the barbell with your hands shoulder-width apart, thumbs over the top of it. Then, dip your head under the bar and position it on top of your back (a). Raise your elbows and chest to create a shelf to rest the bar along your shoulders and below the base of your neck (b). Keeping your chest and shoulders tight, remove the bar from the rack and take three steps back. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and slightly turned out, so your knees track over your feet (c). Take a deep breath and squat down, pushing your butt back, until your thighs are parallel to the ground (d). With control, stand back up without your knees turning in towards each other (e).

2. Barbell Deadlift

Targets: Glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps and latissimus dorsi

How to: Stand with your feet hip-distance apart and slightly turned out. Keep the bar one to one and a half inches from your shins, so it’s directly over your mid-foot (a). Grip the bar with your hands just outside of your legs with your arms straight. Bend your knees, lowering them until your shins touch the bar (b). Squeeze your chest and take a deep breath in. Keeping your back flat, drag the bar up your shins, slightly shifting your weight towards your heels (c). Continue to pull the barbell up until you’re standing with your shoulders back and chest is raised (d). Lower the bar back down, bending your hips and knees, while maintaining a flat back and keeping the bar close to your shins. Once it’s back on the ground, exhale and then let go of the bar.

3. Barbell Overhead Press

Targets: Deltoids, triceps and trapezius

How to: Grip the barbell with your hands just outside of your shoulders. Place the bar in front of your shoulders with your back straight and firm, feet shoulder-width apart (a). Keeping your core tight, take a deep breath and press the bar straight up overhead until its directly above the back of your neck. The bar, your shoulder joint and your mid-foot should be in a straight line (b). When you’ve reached the top, shrug your shoulders up and lock your elbows completely out (c). Lower the bar back down to the front of your shoulders. Once the bar is touching or just above your shoulders, that’s one rep. (d).

4. Barbell Bench Press

Targets: Pectoralis major, deltoids and triceps

How to: Lie on your back on a bench and grasp the bar with your hands shoulder-width apart, feet flat on the ground. There should be a slight arch in your back, so there’s space between your lower back and the bench (a). Lower the bar to your chest, tucking your elbows in at 45 degrees by your sides (b). Once the bar touches your chest, drive your feet hard into the floor and, without pausing, press the bar back up (c).

5. Barbell Lunge

Targets: Glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps, hip flexors and calves

Although the barbell lunge isn’t part of the strength test, it helps build muscle endurance for the exercises above, especially the deadlift and squat. Beginners can do three sets of five reps, while advanced lifters can do four sets of 10 reps of forward and reverse lunges per leg.

How to: Place the barbell just beneath the base of your neck and along your shoulders. Stand with your feet hip-width apart, elbows raised and abs engaged (a). Take a big lunge forward with your right leg and lower until your left knee is one to two inches off the ground (b). Explode up and bring your right leg back to the starting position (c). Repeat the same movement with the left leg. This is one rep.

Give these exercises a go next time you’re in the gym and for any help, please ask a FWX Coach!