Full Body Training Made Simple

Aug 01, 2023

Who’s pressed for time? You are. And even if you’re not, you likely don’t want to spend every day in the gym. The truth is, if you can’t train five or more days per week, you probably shouldn’t be using a body-part split. Full-body strength training is a great option since you can cover all of your bases in just three strength sessions per week.

And don’t think of this as just a beginner thing. Experienced lifters with decades of training often get better with a “less is more approach,” too.

Smart Full Body Training

Full body training may not sound hardcore, but if you do it right, you can improve your body composition, mobility, and posture, have fewer aches and pains, and do it all while spending less time moving weight around.

For a complete full-body session, you’ll need three things:

An upper body pushing pattern
An upper body pulling pattern
A lower-body exercise

To take this a step further, break down your sessions by:

A Squat Variation: Goblet Squat, Front Squat, Box Squat, Back Squat, Zercher Squat
A Single-Leg Exercise: Split Squat, Reverse Lunge, Forward Lunge, Lateral Lunge, Rear-Foot Elevated Split Squat
An Upper Body Press: Push-Up, Dip, Overhead Press, Floor Press, Close-Grip Bench Press
An Upper Body Pull: Pull-Up or Chin-Up, Pulldown, Inverted Row, Chest-Supported Row 3, Face Pull
A Hinge Exercise: Romanian Deadlift, Glute-Ham Raise, Glute Hip Thrust, Back Raise, Kettlebell Swing
A Loaded Carry: Farmer Carry, Front Rack Carry, Single-Arm Carry, Overhead Carry, Trap Bar Carry

Choose one variation from each category and perform in pairings, giant sets, or circuits. Here’s an example for each.

Pairings

	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1.	Squat	4	6	1 min.
A2.	Row	4	12	1 min.
B1.	Press	3	10-12	1 min.
B2.	Hinge	3	10-12	1 min.
C1.	Carry	3	100 ft.	45 sec.
C2.	Direct Arms	3	12-15	45 sec.

Giant Sets

	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1.	Single-Leg	3	8-10/side	1 min.
A2.	Pull-Up	3	sub-max reps *	1 min.
A3.	Dip	3	sub-max reps *	1 min.
B1.	Hinge	4	6-8	45 sec.
B2.	Carry	4	100 ft.	45 sec.
B3.	Triceps	4	10-12	45 sec.

* One shy of failure.

Circuits

	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1.	Deadlift	5	5	45 sec.
A2.	Bench Press	5	5	45 sec.
A3.	Face Pull	5	12-15	45 sec.
A4.	Lateral Lunge	5	8-10/side	45 sec.
B.	Loaded Carry	4	150 ft.	90 sec.

Here’s an example of a favorite circuit I do when pressed for time:

	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1.	Dip	4	sub-max reps *	1 min.
A2.	Neutral-Grip Pull-Up	4	sub-max reps *	1 min.
A3.	Single-Leg Skater Squat	4	6-8/side	1 min.