Yes, you can work every muscle in your body with one piece of kit. We love kettlebells, medicine balls and resistance bands, but if we had to choose just one piece of equipment, it would be a single dumbbell.

The game plan? Three times a week, you’ll grab one of the simplest tools in the gym and use it to build muscle and burn fat in a super-dense half-hour workout. It’s an efficient way to train when time is tight, and it’s exactly how Hollywood-based trainer Ben Bruno, C.F.S.C., guides time-strapped clients including Justin Timberlake and NBA star Klay Thompson.

‘They want quick, efficient workouts that hit everything,’ Bruno says. ‘So we need to move fast.’

It doesn’t get much more efficient than this one-dumbbell workout.

One-Dumbbell Full-Body Workout

Circuit A

Do 4 rounds of this circuit

1. Single-Arm Standing Shoulder Press

How to do it:

Stand holding a dumbbell at your left shoulder, feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, glutes squeezed and core tight. Keeping your chest level, straighten your arm to press the dumbbell overhead. Pause, then slowly lower the dumbbell back to your shoulder.

That’s 1 rep; do 8 per arm.

2. Goblet Reverse Lunge

How to do it:

Stand holding a dumbbell at your chest. Tighten your core and step back about three feet with your right leg. Keeping your chest up and the dumbbell high, bend your knees and lower your torso until your left thigh is parallel to the floor. Your right knee should be a few inches from the floor.

Pause, then push off your right leg and stand back up.

That’s 1 rep; do 10 per leg.

Eb says: Squeeze your glutes when you stand up. This will help you avoid lower-back pain when doing lunges.

3. Single-Arm Chest-Supported Batwing Row

How to do it:

Set a bench to a 45-degree angle and position yourself so your chest is against it. Squeeze your abs and glutes. With your left arm out at shoulder height, hold a dumbbell in your right hand, allowing the arm to hang naturally.

Squeeze your shoulder blades. This is the starting position. Keeping your shoulders and hips steady, row the dumbbell towards your right hip. Pause, then return to the starting position.

That’s 1 rep; do 10 per arm.

Eb says: This is more than a back move; your glutes and abs should be working, too. Tighten them up so your torso doesn’t tip down towards the side of the weight.

Circuit B

Do 3 rounds of this circuit

1. Hollow-Body Single-Arm Press

How to do it:

Lie on your back, holding a dumbbell in your left hand with your arm straight and directly over your chest. Press your lower back into the floor and lift your legs slightly off the floor. Lift your shoulder blades slightly, too.

This is the starting position. Bend at the elbow and shoulder, lowering the dumbbell to your chest without losing your torso position. Press back to the starting position.

That’s 1 rep; do 8 per arm.

Eb says: Struggling with the position? Bend your knees to make it easier.

2. Single-Leg Bodyweight Hip Thrust

How to do it:

Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Lift your right foot off the floor and tuck your right knee towards your chest. Tighten your core.

Driving your left heel into the ground, push your lower back off the floor and squeeze your left glute as you do so. Pause, then return to the starting position.

That’s 1 rep; do 10 per side.

How to do it:

Set up in a push-up position with your glutes and abs tight, gripping a dumbbell with your right hand. Squeeze your shoulder blades.

Pull the dumbbell off the floor, rowing it towards your rib cage while keeping your hips and shoulders square. Pause, then return the dumbbell to the starting position.

That’s 1 rep; do 8 per arm.

Eb says: Focus on flexing the oblique on the rowing side as hard as you can to keep your hips level.

Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S., is the fitness director of Men’s Health and a certified trainer with more than 10 years of training experience. He’s logged training time with NFL athletes and track athletes and his current training regimen includes weight training, HIIT conditioning, and yoga. Before joining Men’s Health, he served as a sports columnist and tech columnist for the New York Daily News.