Burpees - An exercise I Love to Hate

What is it about Burpees that makes most active people break out into a cold sweat? Burpees are one of the best fat burners out there! So why do we avoid them like the plague?

Burpees are a popular exercise within the Crossfit Community (of which I will totally advocate)  and also with Elite Military Forces for obvious reasons! Burpees can be performed anywhere; in your lounge room, bedroom, hotel room, on the balcony, in the bathroom..... no excuses!

THE BENEFITS OF A BURPEE
Burpees are the ultimate full body exercise!  When performed correctly, they burn fat, increase your heart rate, increase your strength and conditioning, and most of all, they are FREE - No equipment required! Your own body weight is all you need. But, beware, they are HARD!

THE ANATOMY OF A BURPEE

THE SQUAT  
Squat down and place your hands on the floor beside your feet.




THE THRUST
Using a powerful Hip Extension, thrust your feet back into a full plank position

THE PUSHUP

Drop down so that your chest and hips both touch the floor (Crossfit Burpee). Or you can do a regular pushup. You can omit the pushup if you are a raw beginner.



THE FORWARD JUMP
Jump your feet forward so you are in the squat position again.


THE VERTICAL JUMP
Jump up vertically as high as you can. Give a loud clap at the top, arms fully extended. Also known as giving yourself a much deserved round of applause.

This is just ONE rep! Continue performing reps as fast as possible without sacrificing form. Aim for 12 - 15 reps per 30 seconds.

I promise you, regular Burpee workouts will provide you with immediate positive results. I've currently set myself a challenge of performing 100 x Burpees per day. I WILL increase this as I increase my fitness!


To monitor your results, you can time your reps, e.g. how long to perform 100 x Burpees or count how many Burpees you can perform in 30 seconds etc. Keep a record and check your progress.

GREAT BURPEE CHALLENGES

100 x BURPEES
How fast can you perform 100 x Burpees? Keep a record. Can you improve on your last time?

30 SECOND CHALLENGE
How many Burpees can you perform in 30 seconds? Again, keep a record.

DESCENDING BURPEE LADDER
Start with 10 x reps, followed by 9 x reps etc until you reach 1 x rep. Record how long this took you. Try and improve.

NOTE:
Burpees were named as such by an American Physiologist Royal Huddleston Burpee, he earned a PHD in Applied Physiology at Columbia University in 1940 and created the "Burpee" exercise as part of his PHD thesis as a quick and simple way to assess fitness.

Personally, I think the guy was MAD!

:)