full body

8 Exercises for Your Best Full-Body Workout Maybe you want to break out of your split-routine. Or maybe your current workout regimen isn’t effectively hitting all of your major muscle groups. Either way, you could benefit from a full-body workout plan. Rather than focus on specific types of movement or parts of the body the way you would with a workout split, a total body workout is designed to engage muscles from head to toe. And for those whose usual routine is simpler — think running, cycling, etc. — a full-body workout may target otherwise-neglected muscles and energy systems. Whether it’s HIIT or heavy lifting, many BODi programs and workouts are comprised of exercises for total body engagement. Follow the full-body workout below made up of moves from several of these programs and discover the benefits of total body training. Why Do a Full-Body Workout? A full-body workout forgoes the compartmental focus of a split routine in favor of exercises that work all major muscle groups in a single workout. In addition to the benefits of increased muscle mass, strength, and/or cardiovascular capacity you might get from any workout, full-body workouts offer a number of advantages. 1. Train functional fitness Using exercises that challenge multiple joints and muscle groups, full-body workouts emphasize functional training, promoting movement patterns that better translate to everyday life. The result is often improved coordination, proprioception, balance, and stability that make daily tasks easier to manage and can reduce the risk of injury in routine activities. 2. Save time Working your whole body at once allows you to complete your workout quicker, rather than focusing on one or two muscle groups, hammering them for a set, and having to recover before doing it again. It may even allow you to exercise fewer days per week, as you pack more overall work into each session. 3. Burn more calories The more muscles you use, the more energy you’ll need to power them, and full-body workouts engage more muscle overall — burning more calories in the process. At high intensity, they can also help stimulate increased fat loss. That’s because working multiple muscle groups simultaneously at high intensity demands additional caloric burn even after you’ve finished your workout thanks to the afterburn effect (also known as excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, or EPOC). This higher calorie burn can contribute substantially to weight loss and improved metabolic health. 4. Improve mobility Instead of simply curling a dumbbell at your elbows or shuffling your legs at jogging stride, full-body workouts take your limbs (and muscles) through complete ranges of motion. This helps improve mobility, or your ability to move your joints to their fullest extent. By consistently working on mobility through a full-body workout routine, you also support joint health. 5. Emphasize strength and cardio There’s not much cardiovascular benefit to an overhead press alone, but when you pair it with a squat, you can significantly increase your heart rate, amplifying your aerobic gains while building strength in both your upper and lower body. 6. Promote muscular balance Rather than keying solely on mirror muscles, full-body workouts require a more equitable division of labor across the various muscle groups, helping to iron out or prevent muscle imbalances. Additionally, integrating a full-body workout into your routine can prevent overtraining of specific muscles, reducing the risk of injuries and allowing for more complete muscle recovery. What to Look for in a Full-Body Workout The way you structure a workout matters. When auditioning a full-body workout, there are several key qualities to consider: Fitness-level appropriate Foremost, it’s important to choose a workout that aligns with your level of fitness in order to maintain proper form, thereby minimizing the risk of injury and maximizing effectiveness. Movements should be challenging without inducing breakdowns in execution. Compound movements Any full-body workout should take you through a variety of compound movements, whether they’re bodyweight or loaded exercises. Compound movements engage multiple joints and muscles simultaneously, or at the very least collectively, ensuring holistic muscle activation. Resistance + aerobics A well-rounded full-body workout typically incorporates a blend of strength and cardiovascular elements to promote muscle growth (hypertrophy) and endurance as well as aerobic capacity. The workouts comprising 80 Day Obsession, for instance, combine weighted compound exercises with low- and high-intensity cardio intervals. Mobility training Finally, a full-body workout should offer flexibility and mobility work to ensure healthy joint movement in the fullest possible range of motion. Dynamic stretches, yoga-inspired movements, and action in all three planes of motion can help prevent injuries and enhance overall performance, as well as improve posture and decrease pain during daily tasks. Can You Do a Full-Body Workout Every Day? While full-body workouts spread the workload more evenly across muscle groups, doing them every day isn’t recommended for everyone. Muscles require rest to recover and grow following the stress of exercise, and working the same muscle groups daily can lead to overtraining and injury. Whether or not you can safely do a full-body workout every day hinges on several key factors: Intensity: How hard are you pushing through each workout? Duration: How long are you working out each day? Training focus: Are the exercises high-impact or easier on the body? It’s generally advised to take a rest day between full-body workouts to allow for adequate recovery. However, if you do choose to exercise daily, you might consider varying the intensity and focus of your workouts. Most BODi programs are designed to be performed between four and six times per week, depending on your goals and level of commitment. Consideration is given to the type, length, and intensity of work demanded in each workout, ensuring you get the benefits of full-body engagement while minimizing the risk of overtraining. How Long Should a Full-Body Workout Be? There is no standard length for full-body workouts. However, you may find they don’t take as long as the workouts you’re used to since they economize on time by targeting multiple muscle groups simultaneously. Still, if you follow the