Guys tend to view at-home workouts as lighter, maintenance routines, or as timesaving substitutes for when they can’t make it to the gym. To build “real muscle,” the thinking goes, you need to go to a fully equipped facility loaded with heavy iron.

And sure, there’s something to be said about going to the gym. Sometimes you need to get in a different headspace. But you can build muscle without leaving home. (If you’ve tackled yard work, planted trees, moved furniture, or repaired stuff around the house, you probably already know this, but that’s a topic for another article.)

For now, we’re going to focus on quick, efficient workout to build muscle at home with a simple pair of dumbbells and (optional) bench.

How It Works: The At-home Workout to Build Muscle Fast

In this at-home workout to build muscle, we’ll perform these seven exercises in a circuit, moving from each exercise to the next without rest. Do three rounds total.

These exercises alternate between pushing and pulling, or between upper- and lower-body. That way, you can keep moving without any particular muscle group getting too tired. You’ll maximize your muscle-building time while even getting some cardio benefit along the way.

Pete Williams is a NASM-certified personal trainer and the author or co-author of a number of books on performance and training.