Thanksgiving Full-Body Workout: Earn Your Plate

By Jon Klipstein, U.S. Army Combat Veteran & Founder of Die Tryin Co., and Jenna Fiscus, Die Tryin Co. Athlete & Coach

Protocol verified by Jenna Fiscus, Die Tryin Co. Athlete & Coach.

Science reviewed by Onur Oncer, BS Physiology (Phi Beta Kappa) and peer-reviewed published researcher.

Note: this video is from our UXO Supplements era — we've since rebranded to Die Tryin Co. Same team, same standards, same athletes.

EARN YOUR PLATE

Thanksgiving is the one day even disciplined people plan to eat too much. Good. Jenna's move isn't to skip the feast — it's to earn it. This is her full-body Thanksgiving workout: one session that hits everything, built for the week when you're traveling, the gym's packed, or you've got family in town and twenty minutes to spare.

No machines required, no perfect setup. Just a barbell, a couple of bands, and a dumbbell. Here's the whole circuit, plus her honest take on eating through the holidays without blowing it up.

What Jenna says in the video (transcript)

"Happy Thanksgiving, guys. We're doing a full-body workout today — a lot of people are traveling or have family in town, so it's hard to get to the gym. This is going to be really effective. Enough talking, let's warm up. We're using this barbell — if it's too heavy, grab a lighter one, no slacking. Deadlifts: weight in your heels, hinge forward with your glutes and hips, 20 reps to activate your legs and back. Then a clean into push presses — slight bend in the knees, push up, slow down, 10 reps. Then glute bridges, feet hip-width, push through your heels, squeeze your glutes and hamstrings, 20 reps. Three rounds through."

"First exercise is a superset: an advanced inchworm burpee with a light band around your arms — walk out to a push-up, four spider-mans for the obliques, walk back, explode into a squat jump, 10 of those. Then 15 situps with a shoulder press, working chest and shoulders too. Next, 20 plank tucks with your feet propped on the ball — squeeze your core, tuck your hips so your back is flat and glutes are on. Then curtsy lunges with a sumo squat between each side."

"Side note on Thanksgiving: you don't want to be too restrictive unless you're prepping for a show. What helps me is portion control — smaller sizes of everything. Honestly I used to load up a giant plate of mashed potatoes and eat as fast as I could so I could go get seconds, eating till I couldn't move. We've all been there. This year I'm going to be better — smaller portions, a little slice of pumpkin pie, and then the next day go get a killer leg workout and use all those carbs to make some gains."

"Final superset: 12 deadlifts, then an upright row into a shoulder press, 15 reps. Then we finish with glutes — dumbbell glute kickbacks, tabletop on your elbows, flex your foot and press it to the ceiling, tuck your hips under at the top, 15 each leg for three sets. That's a wrap — total-body workout. Put all those goodies to use. Happy Thanksgiving."

THE WORKOUT AT A GLANCE

Run the warm-up as a 3-round circuit, then move through the supersets and finish on glutes:

Block	Movement	Reps
Warm-up ×3 rounds	Barbell deadlift → clean & push press → glute bridge	20 / 10 / 20
Superset 1	Banded inchworm burpee + situp-to-shoulder-press	10 / 15
Core	Stability-ball plank tucks	20
Legs	Curtsy lunge + sumo squat (each side = 1)	per side
Superset 2	Deadlift + upright-row-to-shoulder-press	12 / 15
Finisher	Dumbbell glute kickback (tabletop)	15/leg ×3

THE WARM-UP IS THE WORKOUT

"Deadlifts, clean and push press, glute bridges — three rounds through. If it's too heavy, grab a lighter bar. No slacking."

This isn't a token warm-up — three rounds of deadlifts, push presses, and bridges already cover hinge, press, and glute work before the "real" session even starts. That's the whole point of full-body training: every block earns its place. Drive the deadlifts and bridges from the glutes and hips, keep the weight in your heels, and treat the lighter-bar option as smart, not soft.

THE SUPERSETS: FULL BODY, NO WASTED REPS

From there it's a circuit that touches everything. The banded inchworm burpee chains a push-up, oblique work, and a squat jump into one move; the situp-to-shoulder-press hits abs, chest, and delts together. Then the stability-ball plank tucks lock in the core with a hip-tuck that keeps your glutes engaged, and the curtsy-plus-sumo combo lights up the inner thighs and glutes through a plane most leg days skip. The final superset pairs deadlifts with an upright-row-to-press so you close with both ends of the body. If you want the heavier, dedicated version of the lower-body work, our best leg exercises guide has it.

FINISH ON GLUTES

"Press your foot to the ceiling, tuck your hips under at the top — add a dumbbell behind the knee to make it harder."

The dumbbell glute kickback is the closer. From a tabletop position on your elbows, flex the foot and press straight up, tucking the hips under at the top so the glute does the work instead of the lower back. Bodyweight is plenty to start; squeezing a dumbbell behind the knee adds the load as you progress. Fifteen per leg, three sets, and you're done.

WHY FULL-BODY WORKS WHEN LIFE GETS BUSY

Here's the part that makes this more than a holiday gimmick. When your week falls apart — travel, family, a packed gym — a full-body session is the highest-return way to train. A 2016 meta-analysis on training frequency found that hitting each muscle group at least twice a week produces better growth than once a week, on equal volume. Full-body training is how you guarantee that frequency: even if you only make it in two or three times that week, every muscle still gets trained every session. One full-body day beats a missed "leg day." For the full framework on training each muscle often, our guide to picking a split breaks it down.

JENNA'S HONEST TAKE ON THANKSGIVING EATING

Jenna's the first to admit the old move was loading a giant plate and eating fast to get back for seconds. Her fix isn't a crash diet — it's portion control: smaller servings of everything, eat slower, have the slice of pumpkin pie, then put the carbs to work with a hard session the next day. One big meal doesn't undo anything; it's the two weeks of grazing around it that does. For the full no-restriction strategy on getting through the holidays without losing the plot, read how to stay on track through the holidays — then enjoy the day.

JENNA'S STACK

The basics she leans on to train hard and recover through a busy week, in the current Die Tryin Co. lineup:

• Pre-workout: SEND IT 3.0 for clean energy, plus creatine monohydrate and L-glutamine for strength and recovery.
• Post-workout: Post Iso to hit her protein number, holiday week or not.
• Daily health: a Daily Essentials multivitamin and Ghillie Greens for the produce that falls off the plate when you're traveling.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Can I really get a good workout in on Thanksgiving?

Yes. A full-body circuit like this takes 30–40 minutes and hits every muscle group, so even one session that week is worth it. You don't need a full gym — a barbell, bands, and a dumbbell cover it.

Is a full-body workout as good as a body-part split?

For most people, yes — especially when life is busy. Research shows training each muscle at least twice a week beats once a week, and full-body sessions make that frequency easy to hit even on a short week.

How do I not undo my progress on Thanksgiving?

You won't from one meal. Use portion control, eat a little slower, enjoy the pie, and train hard the day before and after. The damage comes from two weeks of grazing, not a single dinner.

Do I need the band and stability ball?

No — they add a challenge but aren't required. Do the inchworm burpee without the band, and swap the ball plank tucks for standard plank-ups or mountain climbers if you don't have one.

Should I eat before this workout?

A light meal with some protein and carbs an hour or so before helps you push the circuit, but it's not mandatory. If you're training fasted, just expect to pace yourself.

READY TO GEAR UP?

Earn the feast and recover for round two. SEND IT 3.0 gets you through the circuit, creatine monohydrate backs your strength, and Post Iso covers your protein when the kitchen's busy. Want more from Jenna? Run her leg & glute day and back day, build a routine with the muscle-building guide, or take the quiz to build your stack. Don't forget her code BODYSHOP for 10% off.

ALWAYS FORWARD.