Understanding the benefits of full body workouts will give you insight into deciding which fitness program is appropriate for you. There are many workout programs out there that recommend different styles of training and should be followed systematically to reach your goals. One of the main advantages to full body workouts is how flexible they are for your weekly schedule and how effective they are for reaching your goals.

Full body workouts incorporate all major muscle groups working together simultaneously unlike other workout programs. When the whole body is working together it stimulates muscle activation all over and leads to positive results.

What are two main benefits of full body workouts?  

1. Workout Efficiency
2. Schedule Flexibility

Workout Efficiency

For a workout to be efficient it should include following exercises needed to reach your goals with minimal wasted time or effort. Full body workouts allow you to receive the same benefits as any other program styles but in a shorter, more adaptable, and flexible way. Workout efficiency improves in three ways including:

1. Adaptability
2. Increased Muscle Recovery Rates
3. Muscle Flexibility and weight loss

Adaptability

For long term success in your fitness journey adaptability is crucial. Knowing how to manipulate and change your workouts can mean the difference between staying consistent in the long run or quitting when not knowing how to adapt.

Full body workouts have fewer sets per muscle group verses other program styles that are higher sets per muscle group. Sets are specific exercises performed in a row for a certain amount of reps. Reps are the number of times an exercise is performed before resting.

An example of a high set program many people follow is a 5 day muscle group split. This involves training different and specific muscle groups on each day. A weekly workout schedule example for a 5 day split is below:

• Monday- Chest
• Tuesday- Back
• Wednesday- Legs
• Thursday- Arms
• Friday- Shoulders
• Saturday- Rest
• Sunday- Rest

For a person using a 5 day split they would only train the muscle groups listed for that day. This way they can exercise that muscle group to exhaustion and use various exercises to train that muscle group. As you can imagine this can start to feel time consuming and too restrictive of a program to stick with over time.

Full body workouts have less sets so you would do less exercises for a specific muscle group. You would also need to commit less days of the week to your fitness program.

Increased Muscle Recovery Rates

It is important for any program you chose to have enough muscle recovery time in between workouts. A muscle group should be trained on separate days that are not too close to each other. Your muscles need enough time to repair and rebuild before training them again.

Because full body workouts have less sets you don’t need as much time in between workouts to recover. With high set workouts you would need more time to recover. When creating a full body workout program it can be acceptable to only have one day of rest in between workouts without conflicting with the recovery process.

Muscle Flexibility and Weight Loss

If your goals revolve around flexibility or weight loss then full body workouts are a plus. Full body workouts are still effective for other goals such as building muscle or strength however weight loss and flexibility are the two most attainable.

Flexibility is improved when we  maintain our joint range of motion. Flexibility is the range of motion for a joint and how far a muscle can bend to reach that range of motion. Joint mobility is what determines range of motion. When exercising the whole body in one movement our range of motion increases. Therefore more muscle groups connect to more joints compared to a program that only trains one muscle group per day. 

Weight loss is more easily attainable when multiple muscle groups work together to increase your metabolism. An increased metabolism burns more calories even when your not exercising. Full body workouts that require strength turn fat into muscle and increase your metabolism. Your workouts should have a combination of strength and cardio to reach optimal levels of metabolism.

Schedule Flexibility 

Full body workouts help keep your schedule flexible and your workouts adaptable. Knowing how to fit in your workout during the week when life gets in the way helps you stay consistent for the long run. Three ways schedule flexibility is improved includes:

1. Workout Timing
2. Workout Variety
3. Location Variety

Workout Timing

Not having enough time to workout is one of the biggest reasons people fail to reach their goals. Some people genuinely don’t have enough time to commit to a high set workout program at the gym five times a week which is understandable.

Full body workouts can be done 2-3 times a week around a schedule that works for you. They can also be done in a 20-45 minute time range when done efficiently so there is no excuse to not find enough time throughout your week.

Workout Variety

Having variety in your full body workouts is another strategy to avoid boredom and stay consistent. Not only it is important to switch up your workouts to prevent plateaus but it cognitively makes it more interesting when you know you can change up your workouts.

One thing that can make fitness feel dreadful is doing the same exercises at the same intensity every time you workout. With a full body program your workouts should change every few weeks or months. This will speed up your progress and make your workouts fun.

Location Variety

Knowing efficient workouts that can be done in different locations help make full body workouts more sustainable. Workout programs that require gym equipment tie you down to relying on their equipment and being in a specific location every time to workout.

Full body workouts can be done at home, a park, or another outside location. You don’t have to restrict yourself to only working out at a gym. When you understand full body workout concepts and how to workout with your own body weight there are no limits.

What types of full body workout subcategories exist?

There are many different full body workout subcategories. Each subcategory has different benefits and workout styles. Three popular full body workout subcategories include:

1. Circuit Training
2. HITT
3. Yoga

Circuit Training

Circuit training is when you rotate around several different exercises which workout different muscle groups. The muscle groups are typically different for each rotation. For example you could do a leg exercise, then switch to an upper body exercise, and finish with a core exercise. All three muscle groups would be trained back to back with little to no rest in between each. There can be up to 8-12 different exercises to perform in a circuit.

The benefit behind this type of training is you are training one muscle group while the other muscle group is resting. By doing this your heart rate stays up which improves cardiovascular health, strength, muscular growth, and is time efficient.

HITT

HITT training or High Intensity Interval Training has similarities and differences compared to circuit training. Circuit training is focused on what specific exercises you are rotating through whereas HITT is focused on the intensity you perform your exercises. In HITT you can have periods of low intensity or high intensity in between exercises.

HITT and circuit training can be combined as one as long as there is intensity fluctuation in the exercises you perform. With HITT it is essential to find an intensity you are putting maximal effort into when performing a specific exercise. You also want intervals of moderate and low effort so your heart rate is fluctuating and to give yourself periods of full rest or active rest.

YOGA

Yoga is one of the best full body workouts for flexibility. These workouts include a series of poses performed in a fluid and consistent flow. Many poses are static poses with no movement and focus on strength, balance, and flexibility. Several different forms of yoga exist and each have different benefits.

Yoga typically includes slow and controlled movements unlike circuit training or HITT. Yoga focuses on stretching muscle groups and holding them in place. When combined with circuit training or HITT on separate days it can give you excellent variety in your workout program.

Conclusion

Learning the benefits of full body workouts compared to other workout programs will give you a good idea which program is best for you. If time and workout efficiency is most important to you then it could be a good fit. To learn more about full body workouts and if they are appropriate for you from a real life personal trainer click here for a free fitness assessment.