Engage all your muscles at once with this 30-minute strength session

You don’t need to search any farther if you’ve ever desired a workout that incorporates exercises that engage several muscles simultaneously. These workouts, known as compound exercises, have many advantages.

Compared to workouts that just target one muscle at a time, they increase your heart rate, help you move more efficiently, enhance your overall coordination, and help you become more flexible. If you don’t have a lot of time in your schedule for training, they’re ideal because they’re also more time-efficient.

The workout below focuses on pulse and hold exercises, such as hip thrusts with pulses and hollow holds. Naturally, every workout targets several muscle groups at once. The finest aspect? It takes half an hour.

The pre-workout

Spend 30 seconds performing each workout. Finish one round.

1. Walkout

1. Place your arms by your sides and place your feet hip-width apart.
2. Reach for the floor while bending forward at the hips.
3. Walk your hands forward and come into a high plank position where your shoulders are above your wrists while maintaining your foot placement.
4. Take a moment to engage your core.
5. Return to standing after walking your hands back to your feet.
6. Do it again.

2. The longest stretch in the world (alternating sides)

1. Place your shoulders over your wrists and begin in a high plank position with your feet hip-width apart.
2. Place your right foot outside of your right hand and step it forward.
3. Raise your right hand toward the ceiling while keeping your hips square and turning your chest in the direction of your right leg. Then let your eyes follow your fingers.
4. After pausing, put your right hand back on the ground and raise your right leg to the plank position.
5. Do the same on the other side.
6. Keep switching sides.

3. The Bitilasana Marjaryasana cat-cow position

1. Place your hands and knees on the floor and begin on all fours. Place your hips over your knees and your elbows and shoulders over your wrists.
2. Lower your abdomen toward the floor while slowly arching your spine. In cow posture, pull your tailbone toward the ceiling and look up.
3. Tilt your pelvis forward (cat posture) and gradually move into a rounded spine, tucking your chin toward your spine.
4. Keep switching between the cat and cow positions.

4. Alternate sides of a deep squat with a thoracic twist

1. Place your hands clasped in front of your chest and stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
2. After taking a breath, bend at the hips and knees and drop your butt until your thighs are parallel to the floor, or lower if that seems more comfortable.
3. While remaining in a deep squat, rest your left hand on the floor and raise your right arm to the sky with an exhale that presses evenly through your feet.
4. Reach for the ceiling by twisting your torso in the direction of your right hand.
5. Take a moment, then bring your torso back to the middle.
6. Do the same on the other side.
7. Keep switching sides.

5. Swing of the hamstrings (alternating sides)

1. Place your arms by your sides and stand with your feet hip-width apart.
2. Flex your toes up and take a step forward with your right foot while bending your left knee slightly. Make sure your right leg is straight.
3. Reach your arms behind you by bending your torso forward until it is almost parallel to the floor.
4. Next, bring your biceps close to your ears by sweeping your arms upward and forth. The muscles behind your right thigh should feel stretched.
5. Do the same on the other side.
6. Keep switching sides.

6. The jumping jack

1. Place your arms by your sides and stand with your knees together.
2. Raise your arms above your head and jump your legs out to the sides.
3. Return your arms to your sides and hop your feet back together to complete the rep.
4. As you jump, maintain a gentle bend in your knees and be light on your toes.
5. Do it again.

The workout

For this exercise, you’ll need a bench, box, couch, or wide chair. After completing each exercise once, take a 60-second break before starting the following cycle. Complete two to four rounds. 

• For beginners, perform each exercise for 30 seconds, then take a 30-second break before proceeding to the next one. 
• Intermediate: Perform each exercise for 40 seconds, take a 20-second break, and then go to the next one. 
• Advanced: Complete each exercise for sixty seconds before going on to the next one.

1. Pulse-driven hip thrust

1. Place your mid-back against the edge of a wide chair, box, bench, or couch while sitting on the floor. In front of your chest, clasp your hands.
2. Set your feet hip-width apart on the ground. Depending on how comfortable it is for you, you can turn your feet out a little.
3. To lift your hips toward the ceiling, contract your glutes and push through your heels. Point your head toward the wall in front of you and maintain a flat back.
4. Squeeze your glutes and fully extend your hips to lock them out at the top of the exercise. Your legs should create 90-degree angles, your shins should be upright, and your knees should be neutral or slightly externally rotated.
5. After pausing, softly drop your hips to the ground.
6. Raise your hips halfway and then drop them back to the ground.
7. With your hips fully stretched, raise them all the way up.
8. Do it again. 

2. Reach push-up

1. Place your feet hip-width apart and begin in a high plank position with your hands firmly placed on the floor just beneath your shoulders.
2. Lower your body to the floor while bending your elbows at a 45-degree angle to your torso.
3. To return to a high plank while maintaining a straight torso, push the floor away from you and press into your palms.
4. Make an inverted “V” with your hips by pushing them up and back down.
5. Tap your left shin with your right arm.
6. Go back to your high plank posture.
7. Perform one more push-up.
8. Push your hips up and back into an inverted “V” position at the top of the push-up.
9. Tap your right shin with your left arm.
10. Take a high plank position again.
11.  Do it again, switching up which arm you use to reach for your leg.

3. The hollow hold

1. Place your arms aloft so that your biceps are near your ears and lie face up with your knees bent at a 90-degree angle.
2. Raise your shoulders, head, and neck a couple of inches off the ground.
3. Straighten your legs in front of you.
4. Hold this position for the specified duration while bracing your core.   

4. The alternating-side forward lunge

1. Place both feet together and stand. In front of your chest, clasp your hands.
2. Bend both your front and rear legs to a 90-degree angle and take a step forward with your left leg.
3. Bend both knees and manage your descent toward the floor while maintaining a tall chest. Continue lowering until your back knee is as low as you can comfortably go, or approximately an inch off the floor.
4. To return to the starting position, push through your left foot.
5. Do it again, putting your right leg forward this time.
6. For the duration specified, keep switching legs.

5. Superhero pulldown

1. Place your arms in front of you and your legs behind you while lying facedown.
2. Raise your upper torso and legs a few inches off the ground.
3. Pull your elbows down to make your arms form a goalpost as you raise.
4. Return your arms to the beginning position slowly, with your hands extended overhead.
5. For the duration specified, keep reaching and pulling down.

6. Jumping jack to plank jack

1. Place your arms by your sides and stand with your knees together.
2. Raise your arms above your head and jump your feet out to the sides.
3. Return your arms to your sides and hop your feet back together to complete the rep.
4. As you jump, maintain a gentle bend in your knees and be light on your toes.
5. Do two more jumping jacks, for a total of three jumping jacks.
6. Hop your feet back into a high plank position after placing your hands shoulder-width apart on the floor. From your heels through your hips and up to the top of your head, your body should form a straight line.
7. While keeping your plank posture, leap your feet out to the sides.
8. After that, leap back together.
9. Complete two additional plank jacks for a total of three plank jacks.
10. After that, stand up, leap your feet forward, and do the jumping jacks again.
11. Keep repeating the pattern: Three leaping jacks, then three plank jacks.