One of the things I love most about compound exercises is how many muscles they activate at once making them incredibly efficient. When you throw in some twists on classic moves— like adding a rotational press to a squat—it keeps things varied, fun and challenging.
This 20-minute workout by personal trainer Britany Williams ticks all the boxes for me. It's a short and sweet circuit designed to work the whole body. Scroll down to see the moves and learn how to do it.
How to do Britany Williams's 20-minute full-body workout
Williams recommends choosing six of her 10 exercises and doing eight to 10 repetitions (reps) on each side using a weight that’s challenging for you.
Not sure what that means? "The dumbbell should be heavy enough that doing more than 10 reps would be too fatiguing," Williams explains in her caption. You can dive deeper into the subject in our piece on what dumbbell weight you should use.
Williams suggests resting for 15 seconds between exercises and taking a longer 45-second break between rounds. Complete three rounds in total.
What is the difference between compound or isolation exercises?
In strength training, you’ll come across two exercise types: compound and isolation. An isolation exercise—like a biceps curl—focuses on a single muscle group. While a compound exercise engages multiple joints and muscles simultaneously.
Which is better? It depends on your fitness goals and many fitness programs feature a combination.
Isolation moves are ideal for targeting specific muscles, helpful if you’re aiming to build strength in a particular area. For most people though—especially if you’re looking to build general strength, boost fitness levels or lose weight—compound exercises are more efficient. They engage multiple muscle groups, increase endurance, elevate your heart rate and ultimately burn more calories.
Shop adjustable dumbbells
Need some new home workout equipment? Below are our top picks for the best adjustable dumbbells. These compact free weights are ideal if you need to save space but want access to a range of loads.
