There are all kinds of Complex Training out there (I've written about it before here at MMAWeekly.com), but one of my favorite styles is to put 4-6 exercises back-to-back.  When you use multi-joint movements, and pick exercises that (more or less) use a similar weight, then you're in for a hell of a workout. 

The thing that's so great about this style of training is that, once you're in shape and can get through a circuit without having to rest between exercises (just between circuits), it really increases the density of your workout.  This means you're getting a lot more work done in the same amount of time... maybe even less. 

You're able to do this, to put it simply, because though your entire body (as a whole) is still working, you're using different muscle groups with each exercise.  This allows an amount of localized muscular recovery while another part of the body is working.  

In other words, if you follow up a press with a row with a squat, your 'pushing' muscles work, while your 'pulling' muscles and legs rest.  Then, your 'pulling' muscles work, while your 'pushing' muscles and legs rest.  Then your legs work while your 'pushing' and 'pulling' muscles rest.  Yet, the entire time, your body is still working as a unit.  

This style of training can also be demanding for cardiovascular training.  Toss in some Bob Gajda-inspired "PHA" ("Peripheral Heart Action") type of exercise sequence by placing exercises that target extreme ends of the body one after another, and the heart gets even more work, as it has to constantly pump blood from one end of your body to the other and back again. 

If you're fairly strong, I recommend you start your Complex Training with what I call LRC - Low Rep Complexes.  These are complexes that, for the most part, keep the rep range for each exercise in the 6-8 range.  Though you can utilize any type of equipment you like, I really like dumbbell (DB) movements, as you can mix-up how movements are performed:

-2 DBs (one in each hand)

-1 DB (one limb performed at a time)

-1 DB (1 heavy DB held/moved with both hands at once) 

HINT - Performing one limb at a time work will take your workload and virtually double it. Though many exercises may only be performed with one limb, there is still going to be a large part of the body that is still involved with every rep. 

For example, take the 1 DB Clean & Press.  Say you C&P a DB 6x on each side.  Now, while that DB was only pressed overhead 6x with each arm, it was still cleaned to the shoulder 6x with each arm.  This means that the hips snapped forward (if you're doing your cleans properly) a total of 12x – doubling the amount of stress on the lower body. 

The same principle could be applied to DB Snatches, DB Swings, and a variety of other exercises. 

The other good thing about this kind of training is that you can many times use a heavier DB than you normally would.  So, if you could C&P a 50-pound DB in each hand, you very well might be able to C&P one 70-pound DB, as the entire body can be used into working that one DB.  It's less weight in a sense (70 pounds vs. 50 + 50 = 100 pounds), but since you're doing the work with each side, you can more or less double the weight of that one DB (in this case, to 140 pounds) when figuring up your total volume. 

Here's a good, overall program you could use (done heavy enough, this could constitute the majority of your S&C program outside of possibly a dynamic warm-up and mobility work).  The beauty of this is that you could perform the entire program with no more than maybe 2 DBs (two different pair at the very most) and a pull-up bar. 

-1 DB Clean & Press x 6 reps each side

-(Weighted) Chins x 8

-1 DB Row x 6 each side

-1 DB Snatch x 8 each side

-Jump Squats x 10

-1 DB Swing (both hands on 1 DB) x 15

*Repeat 4-6x 

Perform one set of each exercise back-to-back until you've done a set of every exercise listed.  This equals 1 circuit.  For exercises in which you perform one side at a time, perform all the reps with one side, switch to the other side, do those reps, then move onto the next exercise. 

For example, start off with DB Clean & Press x 6 reps with your left side, then DB Clean & Press x 6 reps with your right side, then move on to (Weighted) Chins. 

If you're not used to performing complexes, then I *highly* recommend you start off with 30-40 seconds rest between each set, and rest 90 seconds between circuits.  Each workout, try to reduce the rest between sets, keeping the 90 seconds between circuits constant.  Once you can perform all the exercises back-to-back without resting, then you can work on reducing the time between circuits.  Once you've got that down to roughly 60 seconds, it's time to increase how much weight you're using across the board. 

At this point, you can increase the rest between circuits back up to 90 seconds or so, but you don't want to have much rest between exercises – no more than 15 seconds or so. 

Try this workout an average of 2-3x/week with at least a day of rest in between workouts.  This workout performed a consistent 3x/week for the next 2-3 months will make a man out of you. 

Train Hard, Rest Hard, Play Hard.  

Matt "Wiggy" Wiggins is a strength coach and author living in Cameron, N.C. Having trained and designed Workout Plans for 16+ years, Wiggy is a strength moderator at mma.tv, columnist for MMAWeekly.com, and an avid fan of Mixed Martial Arts Training. His site, Working Class Fitness.com, is dedicated to designing low-tech, high-result Workout Programs; earning praise from the likes of UFC commentator and martial artist Joe Rogan, Ultimate Fighter alumnus Jules Bruchez, world famous strength and conditioning coach Charles Staley, UFC veteran Leigh Remedios, and others. 

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