Want a full-body workout that you can do anywhere? Pick up this budget fitness tool and you'll be able to build muscle wherever you go

Portable, lightweight and effective

woman performing a squat with a short loop resistance band around her legs, facing the camera in a living room setting.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

When I travel I always pack a set of resistance bands.

They’re lightweight, portable and versatile, helping me stay on track with my fitness routine.

I even swapped my dumbbells for resistance bands for 30 days once to prove just how effective they are for building strength.

Latest Videos FromFit&Well

As well as being great for strength training, you can also use them for toning, conditioning and stretching after a long day.

I’ve created this quick five-move full-body resistance band workout that you can do anywhere.

It takes just 13 minutes if you do three rounds—here’s how to do it.

How to do the 13-minute full-body bands workout

All you need for this workout is a medium-heavy resistance loop band like this one from a set for $9.99 at Amazon.

Perform 10-12 repetitions of each exercise, taking 15-20 seconds of rest in between moves and one-minute recovery after each set. Complete three rounds if you can.

Narrow squat and lateral leg raise

Sets: 3 Reps: 10-12

  • Stand with the band around your ankles and feet hip-width apart, toes slightly turned out.
  • Lower into a squat, keeping your heels flat on the floor and chest up.
  • Pause for a few seconds at the bottom, then push through your heels to stand.
  • Extend one leg out to the side to roughly a 45° angle.
  • Repeat the squat then lift the other leg. That’s one repetition.

Overhead pull apart

Sets: 3 Reps: 10-12

  • Stand with feet hip-width apart and the band around your wrists, arms in front of you.
  • Raise your arms overhead and pull the band apart as far as possible, keeping the arms straight.
  • Keep your knees soft and your core engaged.
  • Return to the start. That’s one repetition.

Lying toe tap

Sets: 3 Reps: 10-12

  • Start lying on your side, with the band around your ankles.
  • Prop up on your elbow, placing your other hand in front of you for support.
  • Raise the top leg, rotate your hip forward and tap the floor in front of you.
  • Raise the leg behind you and tap the floor again.
  • Complete the repetitions then switch sides.

Glute bridge with adduction

Sets: 3 Reps: 10-12

  • Lie on your back with your knees bent and the band around your thighs.
  • Keep your arms by your side to help you balance.
  • Push through your heels and raise your hips to form a straight line from your shoulders to your knees.
  • Once up, push your knees outward, squeezing your glutes, then bring them back in. That’s one repetition.

Lying leg extension

Sets: 3 Reps: 10-12

  • Lie on your back with your legs at 45° angles from the floor and a band around both feet.
  • Extend one leg fully down to the floor.
  • Return to start and repeat on the other side. That’s one repetition.
Maddy Biddulph

Maddy Biddulph is a journalist specializing in fitness, health and wellbeing content, with 26 years in consumer media working as a writer and editor for some of the bestselling newspapers, magazines and websites in the US and UK, including Marie Claire, The Sunday Times and Women’s Health UK.

She is a CIMPSA-certified PT and works one-on-one with clients, as well as running Circuits Club classes which mixes cardio and strength training, chair-based exercise classes for seniors and MenoFitness classes for perimenopausal women to help build strength and support bone density.