In this article, we share 10 great circuit training workouts.
From beginner bodyweight to strength-focused, bodybuilding-style, and endurance or conditioning workouts, these circuits will help you reach your fitness goals and get your heart racing (in the best possible way).
Table of Contents
What Is Circuit Training?
Circuit training is a style of workout where you cycle through several exercises training different muscle groups, often with minimal or short rest in between.
Once you’ve completed one round of all the exercises (one circuit), you catch a quick breather and then dive back in for another round.
Circuit training is like a buffet, but with fitness goodies instead of dainties. You get a little bit of everything and leave feeling both satisfied and breathless.
It’s a fun, fast, and effective way to get a full-body workout.
All the following circuits are available in our free workout log app, StrengthLog. The beginner circuits are free to follow in-app.
Download StrengthLog and start tracking your circuit training workouts today:
Beginner Bodyweight Circuit
- Goal: Build functional strength without equipment
- Experience Level: Beginner and up
- Equipment: Bodyweight
What Is It?
The Beginner Bodyweight Circuit is a free, beginner-friendly circuit training workout you can do at home with no equipment. It’s simple to follow and is designed to build strength, muscle, and mobility.
| Exercise | Rounds | Reps |
| Bodyweight Squat | 2–3 | 20 |
| Kneeling Push-Up | 2–3 | 10 |
| Glute Bridge | 2–3 | 12 |
| Inverted Row | 2–3 | 8 |
| Plank | 2–3 | 30 seconds |
| Jumping Jack | 2–3 | 30 |
Who Is It For?
This circuit is for anyone, but is especially useful if you are:
- New to strength training.
- Prefer working out at home.
- Want to build a foundation of strength with your body weight..
- Looking for a quick but effective full-body workout.
Format
- Repeat 2–3 rounds total
- Rest for ≤30 seconds between exercises
- Complete all exercises (the circuit) = 1 round
- Rest 1–2 minutes after each round
- Do this circuit 2–3 times per week
Beginner Gym Circuit
- Goal: Build muscle and functional strength
- Experience Level: Beginner and up
- Equipment: Dumbbells (barbell optional)
What Is It?
The Beginner Gym Circuit is a free, beginner-friendly circuit training workout designed for building muscle and strength. It uses six exercises that work your entire body, and you can do them all with only dumbbells.
| Exercise | Rounds | Reps |
| Squat or Goblet Squat | 2–3 | 10 |
| Dumbbell Chest Press | 2–3 | 10 |
| Dumbbell Row | 2–3 | 10/side |
| Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift | 2–3 | 10 |
| Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press | 2–3 | 10 |
| Plank | 2–3 | 30 seconds |
Who Is It For?
This circuit training workout is best for:
- Beginners new to strength training who want a safe, structured routine.
- People looking for an efficient full-body workout in under an hour.
- Anyone looking to build a foundation of muscle and strength with free weights.
- Those who prefer straightforward exercises with easy progression.
Format
- Repeat 2–3 rounds total
- Rest for ≤45 seconds between exercises
- Complete all exercises (the circuit) = 1 round
- Rest 1–2 minutes after each round
- Do this circuit 2–3 times per week
Full-Body Strength Circuit
- Goal: Build maximal strength
- Experience Level: Intermediate and up
- Equipment: Free weights
What Is It?
The Strength Circuit is designed to improve your maximal strength in the five fundamental movements: push, pull, hinge, squat, and carry. The strength you gain translates beautifully to the big three powerlifting moves: the squat, deadlift, and bench press.
| Exercise | Rounds |
| Squat | 4 |
| Bench Press | 4 |
| Deadlift | 4 |
| Barbell Row | 4 |
| Farmer’s Walk | 4 |
You can see the exact loading recommendations in StrengthLog.
If you feel your grip is trashed when it’s time for carries, you can rearrange the circuit to push → pull → hinge → squat → carry, and you’ll get a few minutes to rest your hands and forearms in between.
In a circuit, you’re not pushing 90% singles. You’re more in the 70–80% range, and the technical drop-off from fatigue will be correspondingly smaller, so doing deadlifts before squats works fine for most lifters.
Who Is It For?
This heavy circuit is for:
- Intermediate to advanced lifters already familiar with heavy barbell work.
- Athletes who want a time-efficient full-body strength workout.
- Lifters who want to maintain powerlifting carryover during busy weeks when they can’t do full workouts for each lift.
- Anyone wanting to train all five fundamental movements in one session.
Format
- Repeat 4–5 rounds total
- Rest for ~60 seconds between exercises
- Complete all exercises (the circuit) = 1 round
- Rest 2–3 minutes after each round
- Do this circuit 2–3 times per week
Upper/Lower Strength Circuit
- Goal: Build maximal strength
- Experience Level: Intermediate and up
- Equipment: Free weights
What Is It?
These Upper/Lower Strength Circuits are similar to the Full-Body Strength Circuit, but you split your body into two parts so you focus more on each without your workouts becoming overly long.
Upper-Body Strength Circuit
| Exercise | Rounds |
| Bench Press | 4–5 |
| Barbell Row | 4–5 |
| Overhead Press | 4–5 |
| Pull-Up | 4–5 |
Lower-Body Strength Circuit
| Exercise | Rounds |
| Squat | 4–5 |
| Deadlift | 4–5 |
| Bulgarian Split Squat or Lunge | 4–5 |
| Farmers Walk | 4–5 |
You can see the exact loading recommendations in StrengthLog.
Who Is It For?
The upper/lower strength circuits are for:
- Lifters who want full-body strength work split across two days.
- Powerlifters who need time-efficient training for busy weeks.
- Intermediate athletes familiar with heavy training.
- Anyone wanting balanced push/pull and squat/hinge development in circuit form.
Format
- Repeat 4–5 rounds total
- Rest for ~60 seconds between exercises
- Complete all exercises (the circuit) = 1 round
- Rest 2–3 minutes after each round
- Do these circuits 2 times per week (upper, lower), 3 times per week (upper, lower, upper one week; then lower, upper, lower the next), or 4 times per week (upper, lower, upper, lower).
Bodybuilding Full-Body Circuit
- Goal: Build muscle, bodybuilding style
- Experience Level: Intermediate and up
- Equipment: Free weights and machines
What Is It?
This is a Full-Body Bodybuilding Circuit training workout that includes both compound and isolation exercises to hit every major muscle group in a single workout.
| Exercise | Rounds |
| Incline Dumbbell Press | 2–3 |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 2–3 |
| Overhead Cable Triceps Extension | 2–3 |
| Lat Pulldown | 2–3 |
| Seated Machine Row or Seated Cable Row | 2–3 |
| Dumbbell Curl | 2–3 |
| Leg Press or Squat | 2–3 |
| Seated Leg Curl | 2–3 |
| Leg Extension | 2–3 |
| Cable Crunch | 2–3 |
You can see the recommeded rep ranges and loading suggestions in StrengthLog.
Who Is It For?
This bodybuilding circuit training workout is for:
- Intermediate-level (and above) bodybuilders who want to train 2–3 times per week
- Bodybuilders who prefer full-body training
- Anyone who wants to build muscle while doing circuit-style training
Format
- Repeat 2–3 rounds total
- Rest for 30–45 seconds between exercises
- Complete all exercises (the circuit) = 1 round
- Rest 2 minutes after each round
- Do this circuit 2 or 3 times per week
Bodybuilding Push/Pull Circuit
- Goal: Build muscle, bodybuilding style
- Experience Level: Intermediate and up
- Equipment: Free weights and machines
What Is It?
This is a Push/Pull Bodybuilding Circuit where you split the body into pushing and pulling movements, allowing for more work for each muscle per workout.
Bodybuilding Push Circuit
| Exercise | Rounds |
| Incline Dumbbell Press | 3–4 |
| Cable Chest Fly | 3–4 |
| Overhead Cable Triceps Extension | 3–4 |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 3–4 |
| Leg Press or Squat | 3–4 |
| Leg Extension | 3–4 |
| Cable Crunch | 3–4 |
Bodybuilding Pull Circuit
| Exercise | Rounds |
| Lat Pulldown | 3–4 |
| Barbell Row | 3–4 |
| Dumbbell Curl | 3–4 |
| Reverse Dumbbell Flyes | 3–4 |
| Romanian Deadlift | 3–4 |
| Seated Leg Curl | 3–4 |
| Hanging Knee Raise | 3–4 |
You can see the recommeded rep ranges and loading suggestions in StrengthLog.
Who Is It For?
This bodybuilding circuit training workout is for:
- Intermediate-level (and above) bodybuilders who want to train 2 or 4 times per week
- Bodybuilders who prefer splitting their body parts into two workouts.
- Anyone looking to build muscle with circuit-style training.
Format
- Repeat 3–4 rounds total
- Rest for 30–45 seconds between exercises
- Complete all exercises (the circuit) = 1 round
- Rest 2 minutes after each round
- Do this circuit 2 (push, pull), 3 (push, pull, push one week, then pull, push, pull the next), or 4 (push, pull, push, pull) times per week.
Conditioning Circuit
- Goal: Muscular endurance, cardiovascular fitness
- Experience Level: Intermediate and up
- Equipment: Kettlebells
What Is It?
This is a 10-exercise Conditioning Circuit for intermediate to advanced trainees. It mixes strength, power, and cardio using bodyweight and kettlebell exercises. It hits every major muscle group, challenges your strength and endurance, and keeps your heart rate high.
| Exercise | Rounds |
| Kettlebell Swing | 3 |
| Jump Squat | 3 |
| Push-Up | 3 |
| Renegade Row | 3 |
| Goblet Squat | 3 |
| Kettlebell Clean & Press | 3 |
| Jumping Lunge | 3 |
| Lateral Bound | 3 |
| Farmer’s Walk | 3 |
| Mountain Climbers | 3 |
Who Is It For?
This conditioning circuit training workout is for:
- Intermediate to advanced lifters who want a balance of strength, power, and conditioning in one session.
- Athletes looking for high-intensity, full-body functional training.
- Time-efficient trainees looking for a challenging circuit that builds strength and endurance simultaneously.
Format
- Repeat 3 rounds total
- Rest ≤20 seconds between exercises
- Complete all exercises (the circuit) = 1 round
- Rest 1–2 minutes after each round
- Do this circuit 2–3 times per week
Endurance Circuit
- Goal: Cardio fitness
- Experience Level: Intermediate and up
- Equipment: Bodyweight (plus battle ropes)
What Is It?
This Endurance Circuit uses primarily bodyweight exercises to boost your heart rate and get maximum cardiovascular benefits in minimal time.
| Exercise | Rounds |
| Jumping Jacks | 5 |
| Core Twist | 5 |
| Jump Squat | 5 |
| Mountain Climbers | 5 |
| Battle Ropes | 5 |
| Burpees | 5 |
You can see the recommended times and rep ranges for each exercise in StrengthLog.
Who Is It For?
The endurance circuit is for:
- Those who want to improve cardio fitness and muscular endurance without equipment.
- Anyone with limited time who still wants a full-body cardio challenge.
Format
- Repeat 5 rounds total
- Minimal rest between exercises
- Complete all exercises (the circuit) = 1 round
- Rest 1 minute after each round
- Do this circuit 2–3 times per week
Follow These Circuit Training Workouts In StrengthLog
To follow these circuits, download our workout log app and start tracking your progress today.
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Thank you for reading, and good luck with your training!
Last reviewed: 2025-09-09
