Shape Studio: 20-Minute Kickboxing-Inspired HIIT Workout

While you might be a fan of having dedicated leg days and upper-body training days, there's something undeniably energizing and confidence-boosting about a full-body blast. Take a HIIT workout like kickboxing, for one. Just try to throw a series of jabs, punches, and kicks with all of your might and not feel like a total badass.

Plus, kickboxing is a killer workout. Not only has it been proven to boost upper-body muscle power, but it also enhances your flexibility, speed, and agility, according to research published in Muscles, Ligaments, and Tendons. Talk about a lot of bang for your energy buck.

You'll get a major cardio workout, too. Doing kickboxing three days a week for about one hour at a time was also shown in a 2014 study to lead to increased maximum oxygen uptake or VO2max, which is an indicator of cardiovascular fitness and endurance.

Best of all, you don't need to head to a posh fitness studio or gym to score the benefits of kickboxing. It's a stellar do-anywhere workout.

Looking for an example? Dive into this high-energy routine that combines conditioning and kickboxing moves, courtesy of Mary Onyango, an Equinox instructor and a top trainer in New York.

20-Minute Shape Studio Kickboxing Blast to Boost Your Confidence

For the Shape Studio workout video shown above, you'll need is a set of dumbbells (Buy It, $20 - $50, amazon.com), an exercise mat (Buy It, $17, amazon.com), a towel (Buy It, $18, shop.lululemon.com), and a bottle of water (Buy It, $22, amazon.com). Don't worry about having a limited amount of space, either — this routine was designed by Onyango with tighter indoor spaces in mind.

You'll start your kickboxing blast by learning how to perfect a simple jab cross, moving on to exhilarating punch combos and fiery roundhouse kicks with squats. Along the way, you'll also work in classic body weight moves, like mountain climbers and burpees. For a total-body burn, you'll also see some strength training moves, like bent-over rows and chest presses that incorporate dumbbells. (

And FTR: Those weights will really come in handy if you're working on chest strength. After all, the top six exercises for recruiting and strengthening the pectoral (chest) muscles all involve using weights (or a weight machine) as resistance, according to a study done by the American Council on Exercise.

Onyango's bottom-line goal for this routine? Help you build strength, speed, power, and conditioning aka "being able to push yourself over a longer period of time." And doing these moves consistently will also allow you to add more boxing or more strength to your regimen, she says.

Ready to get your kickboxing fix? Follow along with the video above as Onyango instructs you through every thrilling, drippy second.