Total Body Torcher: 8 Week Full Body Fat Loss Workout

This past year has forced a lot of us re-invent our "normal" training routine. Gyms may be closed, travel might be restricted, or you're forced to workout at home. Don't let that be an excuse to keep you from reaching your weight loss goals.

Fortunately, you don’t need too much to have a great fat burning workout. If you have space, a pair of dumbbells, and a step, then you can burn some serious calories and train the entire body in around 45 minutes. Perform this workout twice or three times a week for eight weeks and you’ll see some positive changes in how you look and feel.

Recommended: Need help losing fat? Take our Free Fat Loss Course

The Concepts

You’re going to combine several different techniques to help you make the most of your training time. These methods are great on their own. Combined, they will set calories on fire.

Dynamic Resistance – This principle is when you perform bodyweight movements with no resistance but in a forceful manner. You’ll start and end the workout with these exercises that pair muscle against muscle.

Circuit Training – There will be four exercises grouped together that you perform consecutively before taking a rest.

Tabata Training – This is the four-minute workout you may have heard of. You alternate 20 seconds of all-out effort with 10 seconds of rest. Eight cycles will equal four minutes of serious work.

Every Minute on the Minute (EMOM) – During this phase, you’ll perform a number of reps at the top of each minute. You get to rest during the duration of that minute, but the moment the next minute starts, you start.

Part One – Dynamic Resistance

You will warm up by walking for five minutes. After that, you’ll perform the following exercises for 10 reps each. They are in groups of two so the opposing muscles are working at the same time.

Shoulder Press and Pulldown – Hold your hands up at shoulder height. Press up slowly like you’re pressing a weight overhead. When your arms reach the top, make fists like you’re grabbing a bar and pull down forcefully, focusing on contracting your back muscles. That is one rep.

Chest Press and Row – Hold your hands at chest level. Press forward like you’re pushing against a wall. Contract your chest while doing so. When your arms are straight, make fists, and simulate a row. Contract your back muscles. That is one rep.

Biceps and Triceps – Hold your arms to your sides palm up. Bend your arms like you’re doing a curl. Flex your biceps at the top. Turn your hands palms down, and straighten your arms like you’re doing a triceps pressdown. Squeeze the triceps when the arms are straight. This is one rep.

Squat and Touch the Toes – Stand straight and tall with your feet shoulder-width apart. Go down into a squat position. When your thighs are parallel with the floor, slowly stand up. Flex your quads at the top. Next, reach down and touch your toes. Stretch your hamstrings at the bottom. Focus on contracting your hamstrings when you stand back up. This is one rep. Alternate between the two exercises.

Part 2 – Circuit Training

Now we are going to start using the dumbbells. All of these exercises are multi-joint movements. They will work multiple muscle groups which will help you burn more calories and train the entire body efficiently. If you have access to different dumbbells and need to use different weights for different movements, that is okay. Just make sure the transitions between exercises are a bare minimum. This is what helps make the workout more effective.

Complete the following exercises back-to-back with no rest between exercises. This counts as one round. Rest 90 seconds between each round. Repeat 4 times.

Related: 3 Day Total Body Sculpting Circuit Workout

Part 3 – Tabata Training

For the Tabata phase, we’re going to do four exercises twice. This is where you get to add some spice to the workout. You can either perform each exercise twice before moving on to the next, or you can perform all four in a row, and then perform each again. Examples of both workouts are below.

Tabata Option A

Tabata Option B

Advanced Option: I know some of you are already thinking this. “Can I do both?” If you’re a seasoned veteran of training and really want to push it, then give yourself five minutes of rest between Tabata workout A and Tabata workout B. Then if you feel froggy, go for it. If you’re new to Tabata, or not as experienced, it’s highly recommended that you stick to one of the workouts.

Part 4 – Every Minute on the Minute

For the fourth phase, we’re going to focus on the core. You will perform the first two exercises for 10 reps and rest for the remainder of the minute. On the third and fourth exercises, you’ll perform for a sustained amount of time because there is actually no rep scheme.

Repeat 2-5 times with no rest.

For the sprints, you will determine a set distance, sprint as hard as you can, and stop at the finish line. This can be a basketball court, track, or distance in your yard. If you are inside, run in place. You should be moving for 10-15 seconds. As long as you go and go hard, you’ll be doing what you need to do. Perform five sprints if possible. If you feel five is too many, make sure you do at least two.

Related: EMOMs for Time-Efficient Training (Plus 8 Workouts Under 20 Minutes)

Part 5 - Dynamic Resistance

The final phase is the exact same as Phase 1. The only difference is now you’re doing it to cool-down instead of warming up. When you do these movements this time, take the time to connect to your body and determine how everything feels. You can use this to help you figure out what needs extra focus on recovery. Should you stretch your legs more? Would a shoulder massage be beneficial? Doing this can help you determine where to commit that recovery time as well as prepare yourself for the next time you do the workout.

How Do I Improve?

So what do you do when this workout gets easier? There are a few options. You can use heavier dumbbells for the dumbbell work. During the EMOM phases, you can add more reps and decrease rest time to challenge your endurance. During the Tabata phases, you can try to move faster during the 20 second phases. Keep a log of how well you do each workout and make it a goal to improve. Even if it’s by one rep, you’ll still be doing better than the last workout, which is the overall goal.