How to Do a Full Body Workout (in 45 Minutes or Less)

Achieve the ultimate reward without wasting any time. 

One of the biggest struggles about working out is actually finding time to work out. No matter how early you crawl into bed, the blaring sound of that 7:30 AM alarm isn’t enough motivation to roll your ass into a pair of running shoes. In contrast, no one ever wants to go fight over the weights at the gym after a strenuous and meeting-filled day at the office. The solution here is finding the perfect workout that you can squeeze into your day-to-day routine that’ll turn you into the size of Chris Hemsworth without having for you to start paying rent at Planet Fitness. Lucky for you, we have the answer. 


Fitness expert and personal trainer Don Saladino of Drive495 (the guy who trains Ryan Reynolds and Sebastian Stan, among others) shared his expert tips on just how to hit the gym in the perfect amount of time, which is in a solid 45 minutes or less. By following his guidelines and expertise, you’ll be bulging out of your shirt in no time.



This is a full body workout that works on everything, including: strength, power, coordination, hypertrophy, flexibility, and endurance. You will also torch body fat on this program. The program should take around 45 minutes.

Day 1

You should start with 5 minutes of foam rolling. Here are 5 movements to get the body activated and ready to work: 

1. Legged Glute Bridges  (15 each leg)

2. Cats and Dogs (30 seconds) 

3. Reach Backs (10 each side) 

4. Toe Touches (10 reps) 

5. 20 body weight squats




This activation should take you no more than 5 minutes. You might even break a sweat! Then, move on to the following and perform 2-3 rounds of each:

1. Med Ball Slams (10 reps)

2. 1 Arm Suitcase Carries (50 yards then switch hands) 

3. Box Jumps (10 reps)

Do 3-4 rounds of these, with as little rest possible: 


1. Goblet Squat (8 reps)

2. RDL (8 reps)

3. Dumbbell Alternating Incline Bench (8 reps)

4. Inverted Rows (8 reps) 

Do 3 rounds of these, with as little rest possible:


1. DB Hammer Curl (10 reps)

2. DB Floor Tricep Extension (10 reps)

3. Reverse Crunches (10-15 reps) 

For more metabolic training, choose battle ropes or KB swings, and go 20 seconds on and 30 seconds off. Do this for 5 minutes.

https://www.instagram.com/p/7tIZK4iVLo

A photo posted by Don Saladino (@donsaladino) on Sep 16, 2015 at 1:38pm PDT



Day 2 

Again, start with 5 minutes of foam rolling. Here are another 5 movements to get the body activated and ready to work: 

1. Neck Circles (5 each side)

2. Dynamic Hamstring (10 reps)

3. Dynamic Quad (10 reps) 

4. Open Books (10 reps) 

5. Inverted Hamstring (10 each leg)



Then, move onto the following and perform 2-3 rounds of each: 

1. Med Ball Wall Toss (10 each side) 

2. Double Arms Carry (50 yards down and back)

3. Lateral bounding (10 each side) 



Do 3-4 rounds of these: 

1. Spilt Squats (8 reps each leg) 

2. Good Mornings (8 reps) 

3. 1 Arm Over Head DB Press (8 reps each arms)

4. Pull-Ups On a Ladder (Work as far up as you go until you are almost at failure) 

Do 3 rounds of these:


1. Barbell Bicep Curls (10 reps) 

2. DB Tricep Overhead (10 reps) 

3. Crawling (Crawl 20 yards forward then go backward – great for the core and overall mobility, and a personal favorite)

For more metabolic training, choose sprints on the treadmill, for 10 seconds all out, along with 50 seconds of walking. If you’re not used to this, gradually work your way up to a top speed. This should be very difficult!

Ideally, you want the routine from these two days. This routine can be done 3-4 days a week. 


It’s not easy, but it’s worth it. 

Photos by Getty Images

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