Best Total Body Workouts: The Ultimate Guide

Sep 2

Walking into the weight room for the first time can be seriously intimidating. With so much equipment and so many complicated-looking exercises, it’s easy to feel lost and unsure of where to even begin. Many people get bogged down by complex workout splits before they’ve even mastered the basics. That’s why a full-body routine is one of the best ways to start strength training. It simplifies the process by focusing on fundamental movements that build a solid foundation of strength across your entire body. The best total body workout for a beginner is one that builds confidence and competence. In this guide, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know, from the most effective exercises to how to structure your sessions for real, sustainable progress.

Key Takeaways

Embrace Full-Body Training for Maximum Efficiency: A total body workout engages all your major muscle groups in one session, making it the most effective way to build strength and burn fat when you're short on time.
Prioritize Quality Movements for Faster Progress: Focus on mastering compound exercises like squats and rows with perfect form. This is safer and delivers better results than lifting heavy with poor technique.
Create a Sustainable Plan for Lasting Results: True progress comes from consistency, not intensity alone. Schedule two to three workouts a week, prioritize rest days for muscle recovery, and set small, achievable goals to stay motivated.

What Is a Total Body Workout?

A total body workout is exactly what it sounds like: a single session designed to train all your major muscle groups. Instead of dedicating separate days to "legs" or "arms," you engage your entire body—upper, lower, and core—in one efficient, powerful routine. This approach is perfect for anyone with a busy schedule who still wants to get stronger, burn fat, and improve their overall fitness.

At Armourbody, our classes are built on this principle. We combine strength circuits and cardio intervals to ensure you get a comprehensive workout every time you show up. By working multiple muscle groups together, you create a greater demand for energy, which helps you see results faster. It’s a smart and effective way to train, whether you’re just starting or you’re a seasoned gym-goer.

Why Start with a Full-Body Routine?

If you're new to strength training, a full-body routine is one of the best ways to begin. It’s incredibly efficient because you’re working so many muscles at once, giving you the most bang for your buck in every 50-minute class. This approach helps you build a solid foundation of strength and master essential movement patterns without getting bogged down by complicated splits. You’ll learn how your body moves as a single, coordinated unit, which is key for both gym performance and everyday life. It’s a straightforward path to building confidence and competence on the gym floor.

What the Science Says

This isn't just a convenient way to train; it's also highly effective. Research suggests that training muscle groups more frequently can lead to better results. With a total body plan, you’re stimulating muscles like your chest, back, and legs multiple times per week instead of just once. Some studies show this increased frequency can lead to more significant muscle growth compared to traditional bodybuilding splits. By hitting all your major muscles in each session, you’re consistently signaling your body to adapt, repair, and grow stronger. It’s a science-backed method for building a powerful, balanced physique.

Is Total Body Training Right for You?

The short answer is yes. Total body training is incredibly versatile and can be adapted to fit almost any fitness goal. If you want to lose weight, it helps you burn a high number of calories while preserving lean muscle. If your goal is to build strength, you can focus on lifting heavier weights over time. Even experienced lifters can benefit from this style of training by adjusting the intensity and exercise selection. It’s a sustainable and effective approach that delivers results, no matter where you are on your fitness journey. It teaches your body to work as an integrated system, building functional strength that serves you well beyond the gym.

The Keys to an Effective Workout

Getting real results from your time in the gym is about more than just showing up and going through the motions. It’s about working smart. An effective workout is built on a few core principles that ensure every minute you spend sweating is a minute spent getting stronger, leaner, and more powerful. Think of these as the non-negotiables for building a routine that actually works.

At Armourbody, we build every single 50-minute class around these fundamentals. We focus on proven methods that combine strength and cardio to help you hit your goals efficiently. By understanding these keys, you can walk into any workout with the confidence that you’re doing what it takes to see real, lasting change. It all comes down to choosing the right exercises, executing them perfectly, and consistently challenging yourself to do a little more. Let’s break down exactly what that looks like.

Master Compound Movements

If you want the most bang for your buck, compound movements are your best friend. These are exercises that work multiple muscle groups at the same time, like squats, deadlifts, push-ups, and overhead presses. Instead of isolating one tiny muscle, you’re recruiting a whole team of them to work together. This is incredibly efficient for building functional strength and torching calories. As one article from Men's Health explains, these moves are the foundation of full-body workouts because they are so effective for building strength and muscle mass. By focusing on these multi-joint exercises, you get a more comprehensive workout in less time.

Work Every Muscle Group

A truly effective routine doesn’t play favorites. Total body workouts are designed to train all your major muscle groups—like your chest, back, legs, and core—in a single session. This approach creates a balanced physique, helps prevent injuries caused by muscle imbalances, and keeps your metabolism fired up. For anyone with a packed schedule, this is the most practical way to build strength and improve your overall fitness without spending hours in the gym every day. It ensures no muscle is left behind, giving you that strong, capable feeling from head to toe. This is why our classes at Armourbody are structured to give you a complete, full-body challenge every time.

Nail Your Form and Technique

You’ve probably heard it before, but it’s worth repeating: quality over quantity, always. Moving with proper form is absolutely essential for two reasons. First, it keeps you safe and prevents injury. Second, it ensures you’re actually working the intended muscles, which is how you get results. Focusing on your technique maximizes the effectiveness of every single repetition. It’s far better to lift a lighter weight with perfect control than to ego-lift with sloppy form. This is where having an expert coach guide you through a workout can make all the difference, as they can provide real-time feedback to help you refine your movements and stay safe.

How to Keep Getting Stronger (Progressive Overload)

Your body is smart. If you do the same thing over and over, it adapts and the workout starts to feel easier. To keep making progress and avoid hitting a plateau, you need to apply the principle of progressive overload. This simply means you have to gradually increase the demand on your muscles over time. You can do this by lifting a slightly heavier weight, adding an extra rep or two to your sets, or reducing your rest time between exercises. This constant challenge is what signals your body to keep building muscle and getting stronger. It’s the secret to long-term, sustainable results.

The Best Total Body Exercises

The most effective total body workouts are built on a foundation of powerful, multi-joint exercises. These are the moves that give you the most bang for your buck, working several muscle groups at once to build functional strength, burn more calories, and make you feel like a total powerhouse. Instead of isolating tiny muscles, you’re teaching your body to work as a single, coordinated unit—which is exactly how you move in real life.

We’ll cover the essential exercises that form the core of any great strength program. Mastering these movements will help you build a balanced physique, improve your overall fitness, and give you the confidence to walk into any workout knowing you’re doing what works. Think of these as your non-negotiables for building a stronger, more resilient you.

Build Your Lower Body

A strong lower body is your foundation for everything, from lifting heavy to sprinting for the finish line. Squats are a must-do; they’re a powerhouse move for a reason, hitting your quads, hamstrings, glutes, and core all at once. Deadlifts are another essential, engaging your entire backside—glutes, hamstrings, and back—while also strengthening your core and grip. For single-leg strength and stability, lunges are fantastic. You can do them forward, backward, or to the side to challenge your muscles in new ways. And for a dynamic, explosive movement, nothing beats the kettlebell swing, which targets your posterior chain and gets your heart rate soaring.

Strengthen Your Upper Body

Building upper body strength helps with everything from carrying groceries to pulling yourself up and over an obstacle. The bench press is a classic for developing your chest, shoulders, and triceps. To build a strong back and biceps, nothing beats pull-ups and chin-ups. If you can’t do one yet, there are plenty of progressions to help you get there. The overhead press is key for building strong, defined shoulders, while the humble push-up is one of the most versatile bodyweight exercises you can do. By changing your hand position, you can target different parts of your chest and arms, no equipment required.

Define Your Core

A strong, stable core is about so much more than a six-pack—it’s the center of all your strength and protects your spine from injury. Planks are a fundamental exercise for building core endurance and stability. Then there’s the burpee, the ultimate love-to-hate exercise that combines a push-up and a jump for a full-body challenge that works your arms, chest, legs, and abs. For a more controlled movement that really hones in on stability, the dead bug is fantastic. It teaches you to keep your core engaged while your limbs are moving, a skill that translates to nearly every other exercise you do.

No Equipment? No Problem.

You don’t need a room full of weights to get an incredible workout. Some of the most effective exercises rely on just your body weight. Foundational movements like squats, push-ups, and lunges can be done anywhere, anytime, making them perfect for home workouts or when you’re traveling. The key is to focus on perfect form and challenge yourself with different variations. A great bodyweight routine should also include movements that take you in different directions, like side lunges or skater hops. This improves your balance, agility, and overall movement quality, building strength that’s ready for anything.

How to Structure Your Workout

Walking into the gym with a solid plan is the difference between a good workout and a great one. When you know exactly what you’re doing, you can focus your energy on pushing yourself instead of wondering which machine to use next. Structuring your workout isn’t complicated—it just means paying attention to a few key details: how often you train, how many sets and reps you do, how long you rest, and how you warm up. Nailing these fundamentals will help you get stronger, avoid injury, and see the results you’re working for. Think of it as your roadmap to a more effective fitness routine.

How Long and How Hard to Train

Consistency is more important than intensity, but the sweet spot is finding both. For total body workouts, aim to train two to three times per week. This frequency allows you to hit all your major muscle groups multiple times while giving your body essential time for rest and recovery between sessions. When you’re in the gym, the goal is to challenge yourself. Each session should feel tough but manageable. If you’re looking for a structured plan that takes the guesswork out of it, our class schedule is designed to help you build strength and endurance safely and effectively.

A Guide to Sets and Reps

“Sets” and “reps” are the building blocks of any strength workout. A “rep” (repetition) is one full movement of an exercise, and a “set” is a group of reps. For most strength exercises, you should aim for 3 sets of 8-12 reps. The key is to choose a weight that challenges you but still allows you to maintain proper form throughout the entire set. The last two reps should feel difficult, but not impossible. This is how you signal to your muscles that they need to adapt and grow stronger. Don’t be afraid to adjust the weight as you go—what matters is finding that perfect level of challenge for you.

The Importance of Rest Between Sets

It might feel productive to jump from one set to the next without a break, but rest is a critical part of your workout. That time between sets is when your muscles get a chance to recover and prepare for the next round. For most strength exercises, you should rest for about 60 seconds between each set. This allows your muscles to replenish their immediate energy stores so you can perform optimally and maintain good form in the next set. Think of rest as a strategic tool—it ensures the quality of every rep you do, leading to better, safer results over time.

How to Warm Up Properly

Never skip your warm-up. It’s the single most important thing you can do to prepare your body for what’s ahead and reduce your risk of injury. Begin with a 3- to 5-minute warm-up to get your heart rate up and increase blood flow to your muscles. Instead of holding static stretches, focus on dynamic stretching—active movements that take your body through a full range of motion. Think arm circles, leg swings, torso twists, and bodyweight squats. This wakes up your central nervous system and tells your body it’s time to work, ensuring you’re ready to perform at your best from the very first set.

How to Start and Stay Motivated

Starting a new fitness routine is exciting, but let's be real: motivation can be tricky. Some days you feel unstoppable, and other days, the couch just seems to have a stronger gravitational pull. The key isn't to have perfect, unwavering motivation—it's to build habits that carry you through even when you're not feeling it. It’s about creating a system for yourself that makes showing up easier and more rewarding.

Think of motivation not as a spark you have to find, but as a fire you build. It starts small, and you have to tend to it. By setting yourself up for success, celebrating small wins, and finding a community to share the journey with, you can keep that fire burning bright. Let’s get into how you can build momentum and make fitness a consistent part of your life.

Overcome Common Challenges

When you’re just starting, it’s easy to make a few common mistakes. One of the biggest is trying to do too much, too soon. You might see someone else lifting a heavy weight and think you should be doing the same, but that’s a fast track to injury. Focus on your own journey and master your form first. It’s also tempting to skip the warm-up to save time, but those first few minutes are crucial for preparing your body for the work ahead and preventing strains. At Armourbody, our expert coaches guide you through every movement to ensure your form is solid, so you can get stronger safely.

Find Your Motivation

Motivation comes from within, but it’s fueled by your environment. Working out shouldn't feel like a punishment. Find a way to move that you genuinely enjoy. For many people, the energy of a group class is what makes all the difference. When you’re surrounded by people pushing themselves alongside you, it creates a powerful sense of shared purpose. You’re not just showing up for yourself; you’re showing up for the community. This shared experience can be the single most important factor in staying consistent. Find your people, and you’ll find your motivation follows.

How to Track Your Progress

Watching your progress unfold is one of the best ways to stay motivated, but it’s important to look beyond the scale. Your body weight can fluctuate for a million reasons. Instead, pay attention to performance-based metrics. Are you able to lift a little heavier than you did last month? Can you complete more reps or hold a plank for longer? Keep a simple workout journal to jot down your numbers. Also, notice the non-scale victories: your clothes fitting better, having more energy during the day, or feeling mentally sharper. These are all signs that you’re getting stronger and healthier.

Set Goals You Can Actually Reach

Big, ambitious goals are great, but they can also feel overwhelming. The secret is to break them down into smaller, manageable steps. Instead of saying, "I want to get in shape," set a specific goal like, "I will attend three fitness classes a week for the next month." This gives you a clear, actionable target. And remember that fitness isn't just about what happens in the gym. Setting realistic goals also means prioritizing things like getting enough sleep and eating nutritious food, which are the foundation of any solid routine. Celebrate each small milestone—it’s proof that you’re moving in the right direction.

Sample Total Body Workouts to Get You Started

Okay, theory is great, but let's get practical. Seeing a plan on paper can make all the difference. These sample workouts are designed to show you how to apply the principles we've talked about, from compound movements to progressive overload. Whether you're just starting out, ready to push harder, or need a workout you can do at home, there's a starting point here for you. Think of these as templates you can adapt as you get stronger and more confident. The most important step is the first one, so let's find a routine that works for you and get moving.

Your First 4-Week Program

This is a fantastic way to build a solid foundation. The goal is to challenge every major muscle group to create a balanced physique and consistent fitness gains. Aim to do this workout three times a week on non-consecutive days. Each session should start with a quick warm-up, followed by three rounds of your main strength exercises. A great way to begin is with about 12 reps per exercise. To keep making progress, you can follow a simple rule: each week, try to add a little more weight while reducing your reps by one. This is a straightforward way to implement progressive overload and ensure you keep getting stronger.

Ready for the Next Level?

Once you feel comfortable with the basics, you can introduce more variety to keep your muscles guessing. An intermediate plan often involves rotating between two or three different full-body workouts throughout the week. This approach helps spur muscle growth by hitting each muscle group multiple times with different exercises. Because you’re using more muscles in each session, you’ll also burn more calories. Each workout might consist of about six main exercises, focusing on those big compound movements. This structure is perfect for breaking through plateaus and taking your strength and conditioning to the next level. You can find great examples of an updated full body workout plan to guide your next phase of training.

Workout Modifications for Home

No gym? No problem. You can get an incredible full-body workout using just your bodyweight, which is perfect for busy days, travel, or if you simply prefer working out at home. The key is to focus on intensity. Try structuring your workout with intervals: perform each exercise for 40 seconds, rest for 20 seconds, and then move straight to the next one. This keeps your heart rate up and muscles working. Your routine can include classics like squats, push-ups, lunges, burpees, and mountain climbers. These bodyweight exercises are effective, require zero equipment, and can be done just about anywhere, proving you don’t need a lot to achieve great results.

How to Mix Up Your Exercises

To build a truly effective and balanced routine, think about your movements. A well-rounded workout shouldn't just be a random collection of exercises. It should intentionally include different patterns to ensure you're working your body from all angles. Make sure you have an upper-body "push" exercise (like a chest press or push-up) and an upper-body "pull" exercise (like a row). It's also important to move in different directions, not just forward and back. Adding exercises like side lunges helps you work in a different plane of motion, which is great for improving balance and functional strength. This approach ensures you’re building a body that’s not only strong but also moves well in everyday life.

How to Stay Consistent and See Results

The secret to getting real, lasting results from your workouts isn't a magic exercise or a complicated plan. It's consistency. Showing up for yourself, even on days you don't feel like it, is what builds strength and transforms your body over time. But consistency isn't just about pushing through; it's about working smart. That means creating a sustainable schedule, giving your body the rest it needs to rebuild, fueling it with the right nutrients, and knowing when to push harder.

Think of these four elements—your schedule, recovery, nutrition, and progression—as the legs of a table. If one is wobbly, the whole thing becomes unstable. When you get them all working together, you create a solid foundation for success. It’s not about being perfect every single day. It’s about building habits that support your goals and making choices that move you forward, one workout at a time. Let’s get into how you can create a routine that you can actually stick with to see the results you want.

Your Weekly Training Schedule

When you're doing total body workouts, aiming for three to four sessions per week is a great starting point. This gives you a perfect balance of work and rest. Spacing your workouts out on non-consecutive days—like Monday, Wednesday, and Friday—is key. This structure gives your muscles the downtime they need to repair and grow stronger between sessions. Full-body routines are incredibly efficient because they target all your major muscle groups in a single workout, focusing on fundamental movements like squatting, hinging, pushing, and pulling. This approach is ideal for building overall fitness and strength, especially if you have a busy schedule. If you need help building a routine, a group fitness setting can provide the structure you need. You can check out our class schedule to see how we program workouts throughout the week.

The Role of Rest and Recovery

Let’s clear something up: rest days are not lazy days. They are productive days. Exercise creates tiny micro-tears in your muscle fibers, and it’s during rest that your body gets to work repairing them, building them back stronger than before. This is where the real progress happens. You simply cannot do an intense, full-body workout every single day and expect to see results. Your body needs time to recover. Aim for at least one full rest day each week, and listen to your body. If you’re feeling exceptionally sore or fatigued, take an extra day. Things like getting enough sleep, staying hydrated, and gentle movement like walking or stretching on your off days can also significantly improve your muscle recovery.

Fuel Your Body: Nutrition 101

You can’t out-train a bad diet. What you eat is just as important as how you train. Think of food as the fuel your body needs to perform in the gym and recover afterward. You don’t need a complicated diet plan, just a focus on the basics. Prioritize lean protein to help rebuild muscle, complex carbohydrates for sustained energy, and healthy fats to support hormone function. And remember, building muscle is a great way to support fat loss. Muscle tissue burns more calories at rest than fat tissue does, so the stronger you get, the more efficient your body becomes at burning calories all day long. A beginner's guide to healthy eating can help you get started with the fundamentals without feeling overwhelmed.

When and How to Change Your Routine

It can be tempting to jump from one workout to the next, but changing your routine too often can actually stall your progress. To get the best results, you should follow a consistent workout plan for at least four to six weeks. This gives your body time to adapt to the exercises and allows you to focus on progressive overload—the key to getting stronger. Progressive overload simply means gradually increasing the demand on your muscles over time. You can do this by lifting heavier weights, doing more reps, or taking shorter rest periods. This consistent, gradual challenge is what forces your body to adapt and change. A well-designed program, like the ones we run at Armourbody, has this principle built right in.

Workout Safely and Avoid Injury

Getting stronger and seeing results is exciting, but pushing for progress without a solid foundation can lead to setbacks. The goal is to build a sustainable fitness habit, and that means making safety a priority. By focusing on smart training principles, you can challenge your body, get the results you want, and stay in the game for the long haul.

Focus on Proper Technique

Before you even think about adding more weight to the bar, your number one focus should be mastering your form. It’s a common mistake to try lifting more than you can safely handle, but combining poor form with excessive weight is a fast track to injury. Each exercise has a specific movement pattern designed to target certain muscles while protecting your joints. At Armourbody, our expert coaches guide you through every movement to ensure you’re performing exercises correctly and effectively, so you can build strength on a safe and stable foundation.

Tips to Prevent Injury

A few simple habits can make a huge difference in keeping you healthy and injury-free. First, never skip your warm-up. A good dynamic warm-up prepares your body for the work ahead by increasing blood flow to your muscles and mobilizing your joints. Second, remember to engage your core in every exercise, not just ab work. A tight core stabilizes your spine and protects your lower back. Finally, don’t neglect strength training. Building strong muscles creates a resilient body that’s better equipped to handle high-intensity workouts.

Know When to Take It Easy

High-intensity training is effective, but more isn’t always better. Overtraining can lead to burnout and injuries, so it’s crucial to listen to your body and learn the difference between being challenged and being pushed past your limit. Persistent muscle soreness or fatigue are signs you might need to pull back. Building rest days into your weekly schedule is just as important as your workouts. This is when your muscles repair and grow stronger, so give your body the time it needs to recover properly.

How to Recognize Your Progress

Progress isn’t always measured by the amount of weight you’re lifting. In fact, focusing only on that number can sometimes lead you to sacrifice form for ego. True progress shows up in many ways: nailing your form on a complex movement, finishing a cardio interval without stopping, or feeling more energetic. To keep moving forward, make sure to mix things up. Doing the same routine every day can lead to plateaus. By tracking your workouts and celebrating all types of wins, you’ll stay motivated and build confidence in what your body can do.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many times a week should I do a total body workout? The sweet spot for most people is three times a week on non-consecutive days, like Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. This schedule gives your muscles enough time to recover and rebuild, which is when you actually get stronger. If you're just starting out, even two days a week is a fantastic way to build a consistent habit. The key is to listen to your body and prioritize rest just as much as you prioritize your workouts.

Can I actually build significant muscle with total body workouts? Absolutely. Total body workouts are incredibly effective for building muscle because you're stimulating all your major muscle groups multiple times per week. As long as you focus on progressive overload—gradually lifting heavier or doing more reps over time—your body will respond by getting stronger. You don't need to switch to a complicated split routine unless you have very specific bodybuilding goals. For building a strong, balanced, and athletic physique, total body training is a proven method.

What should I do if I'm really sore after a workout? A little muscle soreness is a normal sign that you've challenged your body. However, if you're so sore that it's painful to move, it's a good idea to take an extra rest day or opt for some light, active recovery like walking or gentle stretching. Pushing through severe soreness can increase your risk of injury. As you get more consistent with your training, you'll find that the post-workout soreness becomes much more manageable. It's all about learning the difference between "good" sore and "warning sign" sore.

How long will it take before I start seeing results? While everyone's body is different, you'll likely start feeling results—like having more energy and sleeping better—within the first couple of weeks. Visible changes, like muscle definition or clothes fitting differently, typically start to appear after about four to six weeks of consistent training and solid nutrition. The most important thing is to focus on non-scale victories, like lifting a heavier weight or mastering your form on an exercise. Those are the true signs that you're making real, lasting progress.

I'm a complete beginner. Is a high-intensity class the right place for me to start? It might sound intimidating, but a well-coached group class is one of the best environments for a beginner. In a class setting like ours at Armourbody, you have expert coaches watching your form and providing modifications for every exercise. This ensures you learn the movements safely and effectively from day one. Plus, the energy of the group provides a ton of motivation, which can be a huge help when you're just starting out and building new habits.

Reid Carver