Bodyweight Circuit Routine – Programming Options

So now that you know which exercises you’ll use for this circuit, how do you put them into practice? Well, as I mentioned above, there are really four ways to approach this circuit, depending on what your current goals are.

This circuit routine can be modified to focus on strength, stamina, hypertrophy, or skill development. On the following tabs, you’ll find instructions for each of these training goals.

If your current goal is to get stronger, what you’ll do is incorporate longer rest periods between exercises, focusing on a higher level for each movement.

So, for instance, with the push-up, you’ll perform a hollow body push-up, rather than a full push-up, and rest for a minute, rather than 30 seconds, between exercises.

• Perform each exercise for 30-45 seconds, doing as many reps as possible in that time frame for dynamic exercises, and holding for that amount of time for static exercises.
• Rest for 1-2 minutes between each exercise.
• Do a total of 3-5 rounds of the circuit.

For strength-based programming, perform the routine 2x/week on a Monday/Thursday or Tuesday/Friday split.

To use this circuit to build stamina, you’ll perform the exercises at a faster pace, with shorter breaks between exercises. Spend less time on each exercise and increase the number of rounds you perform.

• Perform each exercise for 1-2 minutes, doing as many reps as possible in that time frame for dynamic exercises, and holding for that amount of time for static exercises.
• Rest for 30 seconds between each exercise.
• Do a total of 5-10 rounds of the circuit.

For a stamina goal, perform the routine 3x/week.

If your training goal is hypertrophy, or “packing on muscle,” the important thing is to increase the “time under tension.” What that means is doing each exercise more slowly, and taking shorter rest periods between each exercise.

• Perform each exercise for 1 minute, doing as many reps as possible in that time frame for dynamic exercises, and holding for that amount of time for static exercises. For hypertrophy, pay special attention to reaching muscular failure with each exercise.
• Rest for 1 minute between each exercise.
• Do a total of 3-5 rounds of the circuit.

For hypertrophy, perform this routine 3x/week.

All of the movements included in this circuit are great for skill training as well, if that’s something you’re interested in. For skill development, spend more time on each exercise, slowing down the movements to focus on quality, not quantity. Increase your rest time between exercises, as well as the number of rounds you complete.

• Perform each exercise for 1 minute, but rather than trying to do as many reps as possible, only do as many reps as you can with perfect form in that time. This means you’ll perform each exercise slower and with more concentration. Make sure not to go to fatigue for skill development.
• Rest for 2 minutes between each exercise.
• Do a total of 3-5 rounds of the circuit.

For skill work, you can practice this routine up to 4x/week.