Who needs weights? This bodyweight workout strengthens your whole body in 20 minutes

woman doing plank exercise
(Image credit: Shutterstock)

The most important factor when it comes to getting in shape and staying fit is consistency. Maintaining your training routine in the long term will always lead to better results than flash-in-the-pan fitness kicks, and the key to keeping at it is to focus on doing enjoyable and achievable workouts.

That’s why I like this 20-minute workout from Viv Addo, one half of fitness duo Mr and Mrs Muscle. It doesn’t require any weights to do the session, and it is time-effective in that it strengthens the whole body while also boosting your heart rate to improve your cardio fitness.

All you might need for the workout is a yoga mat to provide grip and protect your floors, but otherwise you’ll be all set once you’ve changed into your kit and found enough space to move. It’s also a workout that’s suitable for all levels — if you are finding it tough you can always shorten the work periods and increase your rest.

Watch MrAndMrsMuscle’s 20-minute full-body workout

20min Full Body Workout - BODYWEIGHT | Build Muscle & Strength - YouTube 20min Full Body Workout - BODYWEIGHT | Build Muscle & Strength - YouTube
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During the workout you’ll be working for 45 seconds and resting for 15 seconds, doing 20 moves in total in two round of 10, though some will be the same move done on each side of your body. The video also includes a short warm up and cool down, which are well worth doing if you have the time to spare.

Addo does the workout with you, and the upcoming exercise is shown on screen, so you can follow along with her form to make sure your technique is right. There’s also a useful graphic showing which muscles are targeted by the move you’re doing, which you can use to make sure you’re engaging the right parts of the body.

As you get more comfortable with the moves you can speed up to increase the amount of reps you fit into each work period

With the long sets and short rests, plus the fact you’ll be doing a lot of compound exercises that work multiple muscle groups at once, the session will get your heart pumping, so you also get fitter while building strength.

As you get more comfortable with the moves you can also speed up to increase the amount of reps you fit into each work period, but always make sure you focus on form above all and slow down if you have to in order to maintain good technique. You’ll get better results from moving slowly and working the right muscles than rushing and getting sloppy with your form.

Once you’ve done the workout a couple of times and are looking to progress it, you can add in weight to make a lot of the exercises more challenging. Holding a dumbbell or kettlebell while doing exercises like lunges and deadlifts will increase the difficulty considerably. You can also give this 20-minute full-body dumbbell workout a go if you’re looking to mix up your routine.

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Nick Harris-Fry
Senior Writer

Nick Harris-Fry is an experienced health and fitness journalist, writing professionally since 2012. He spent nine years working on the Coach magazine and website before moving to the fitness team at Tom’s Guide in 2024. Nick is a keen runner and also the founder of YouTube channel The Run Testers, which specialises in reviewing running shoes, watches, headphones and other gear.

Nick ran his first marathon in 2016 after six weeks of training for a magazine feature and subsequently became obsessed with the sport. He now has PBs of 2hr 27min for the marathon and 15min 30sec for 5K, and has run 13 marathons in total, as well as a 50-mile ultramarathon. Nick is also a qualified Run Leader in the UK.

Nick is an established expert in the health and fitness area and along with writing for many publications, including Live Science, Expert Reviews, Wareable, Coach and Get Sweat Go, he has been quoted on The Guardian and The Independent.