When you start to make a sculpture out of a big block of granite, do you start with the details or take off big chunks to get the basic shape? I'd say that taking chunks out of the block of granite would be the first step and gets the most work done. Trying to sculpt a statue with a small chisel would be a waste of time. The debate between compound and isolation exercises is the same thing. You will get more sculpting done with the squat than you will using the leg extension machine.
