A 20

By Jenny McCoy

Reviewed by Christa Sgobba, C.P.T.

When you don't have much time or exercise equipment at your disposal, it can be tough to squeeze in a workout. No worries, though: We’ve got an awesome kettlebell circuit that will hit your entire body in just 20 minutes—no fancy machines required.

This five-move routine is super efficient and functional, in part because it targets your whole body instead of honing in on just a few muscle groups. Full-body training tends to be a more functional way of training, since so much of day-to-day life—from walking the dog to carrying a basket of laundry to wrangling a squirming toddler—involves lots of different muscle groups working together simultaneously.

"I personally always do a full-body workout," certified personal trainer Alicia Jamison, MA, coach at Bodyspace Fitness in New York City, tells SELF. These full-body workouts can deliver a good bang-for-your-exercise buck since many times they involve compound moves that work multiple muscle groups at once—meaning you don't need to do a whole bunch of exercises to hit all those muscles.

The following full-body kettlebell circuit, which Jamison created for SELF, is especially efficient because it alternates between upper-body and lower-body dominant exercises, which gives half of your body time to actively recover while the other half works. This cuts down on the overall workout time because you don't have to rest as much in between moves, says Jamison.

Another plus of this routine? It can build well-balanced, total-body strength, thanks to moves like the renegade row and Romanian deadlift that target your posterior chain (backside muscles) as well as exercises like the chest press and forward lunge that fire up your anterior chain (frontside muscles). Think of a muscle, and it's pretty likely that this workout targets it: You’ll hit your quads, hamstrings, and glutes in your lower body, as well as your back, biceps, chest, shoulders, and triceps in your upper body. Your core will also be working too, not only in the sit-up to press—what you may consider an "abs exercise"—but also in the other movements as well, as it fires to keep you steady as you lunge, hinge, row, and press.

Want to give this full-body kettlebell workout a try? Just make sure you do a quick warm-up first so you don't jump in with cold, tight muscles. Taking five minutes to do moves like the world's greatest stretch, single-leg glute bridges, and monster walks with a mini band can do the trick, says Jamison.

With that, let's head into this awesome kettlebell circuit that will smoke your entire body in just 20 minutes. Here's everything you need to know.

What you need: Two sets of kettlebells: one light set for the chest press, renegade row, and sit-up to press, and one medium set for the alternating forward lunge and Romanian deadlift. If you don't have kettlebells, use dumbbells instead. You may also want an exercise mat for comfort.

Demoing the moves below are Angie Coleman (GIF 1), a holistic wellness coach in Oakland; Salma Nakhlawi (GIFs 2 and 4), the founder of StrongHer Girls and a strength coach; and Amanda Wheeler (GIFs 3 and 5), host of the Covering Ground podcast.

In a traditional deadlift, you bring the weight all the way to the ground and rest it there before picking it up again. But with the Romanian deadlift, the weight either just taps the ground (like the GIF shows) or doesn't reach the ground at all, which means your muscles stay under constant tension, explains Jamison. This move fires up your posterior chain, hitting everything from your back to your butt to your hamstrings.

This upper-body exercise works your chest muscles, which help you perform pushing movements, says Jamison. Plus, you’ll work your triceps (the back of your upper arms) as well, and the lying-down position of this move is very stable, she adds.

Any lunge variation, including this forward alternating lunge, works your quads, glutes, and hamstrings, says Jamison. Compared to the reverse lunge, the forward lunge is a more advanced variation. That's because when you step forward in the forward lunge, you have to work to decelerate your bodyweight and the kettlebell, whereas in a reverse lunge, your bodyweight is stacked on top of your center of mass the entire time and you're just slowly controlling it as you lower down, Jamison explains. Make this move easier and more knee-friendly by doing a reverse lunge.

This is a full-body move that especially works your core and upper back. When you raise the kettlebell off the ground and row it toward your chest, you go from four points of stability to just three, which really smokes your core. That motion also challenges your upper back muscles since that's what's primarily pulling the weight up, Jamison explains. Make it easier by placing your hands on an elevated surface (like a box or step), says Jamison.

This is a dynamic move that involves hip flexion and works your core, shoulders, and chest. As you sit up, make sure your entire back comes off the ground in as straight a line as possible (it's okay if your back rounds a little, Jamison says). It can help to anchor your feet—tuck them under a couch, for example, or place two kettlebells on the ground and loop your feet through the top.

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SELF does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Any information published on this website or by this brand is not intended as a substitute for medical advice, and you should not take any action before consulting with a healthcare professional.