Exercise Tutorial: Burpee
Table of Contents
What Is A Burpee
The Burpee is a full-body exercise that combines two movements, a jump squat and a push-up. They are a challenging and fun bodyweight exercise that is great for High Intensity Interval Training, or any Cardiovascular workout. The Burpee is a fantastic way to increase muscular strength, endurance and cardiovascular health.
How to Do Burpees
The Burpee is a simple exercise to learn. To perform the Burpee, follow these steps:
Begin in the starting position for a Jump Squat. Your feet should be about hip-width apart. Bend your knees to come into a low Squat.
As you are returning to the upright position, swing your arms and drive through your feet to propel the body upwards as you jump as high as you can.
When the body is returning to the ground after your jump, be ready to get transition back into a low squat.
About mid-way through the squat, bring both hands to the ground in front of you. Put pressure on your hands as you bring your legs back behind you into a high plank position.
Perform one push-up, then return to the high plank position.
Shift your weight towards the hands to bring your feet back underneath the torso.
Stand tall and repeat the movement.
Burpee Form
The Burpee can become a very physically and mentally demanding exercise, especially when you are performing it for longer than one minute. Depending on your conditioning the Burpee can quickly cause fatigue, resulting in breakdowns in your form. It is important to maintain proper form during the Burpee because your movement habits in one exercise will continue in others. Here are some tips to remember for the next time you are performing Burpees.
Keep your back straight during the push-up and the squat (no rounding!).
Use your arms to help propel the body into a jump.
Keep the knees in line with the ankles during the squat.
Bend your knees as you land from the jump to reduce the impact.
Keep the shoulders down and back as you are performing the push up.
Remember to breathe and pace yourself.
Burpee Benefits
There are so many benefits to including the Burpee in your exercise routine! Some immediate benefits include you do not need much space to perform a Burpee, (which is great for those in Condos) and you need no equipment to do Burpees. Additional benefits of Burpees include,
Full-body workout (builds strength in both the upper and lower body).
Can be included in HITT training.
Increased cardiovascular fitness.
Burns fat and calories.
Can improve blood flow and lower blood pressure.
Elevates heart rate.
Increased endurance.
Why Is The Burpee Useful
The Burpee is useful because it is such as simple exercise that has so many health benefits. They can be performed virtually anywhere which makes them a great exercise to do while travelling. As well, the Burpee can be added to other movements, so you will always have variety in your exercise routine.
For example, the Burpee can be added to a box jump to create the Burpee Box Jump. In this variation, you will perform a modified push-up on the box, and then perform a box jump. Another variation of the Burpee involves a Bosu ball. You will do a modified push-up on the Bosu ball, and then lift the Bosu ball above the head as you come up from the squat.
Additionally, the Burpee is useful as a component during fitness testing, to assess an athlete’s endurance. This is another great indication that the Burpee is an effective exercise for improving muscular strength and endurance.
Burpees Muscles Worked
The burpee is an interesting exercise because it engages multiple muscle groups including the hamstrings, quadriceps, glutes, calves, core muscles, back, chest and shoulders. It is a comprehensive full-body workout that enhances conditioning.
How to Incorporate Burpees Into a Workout
When incorporating burpees into your workout, consider them as a conditioning exercise, usually performed at the end of a session or as part of a high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workout. It’s important to master the proper form before attempting to increase speed. Burpees can be structured in various ways; for example, you might do 30 seconds of as many burpees as possible, followed by rest, or you could perform 3 to 5 sets of 5 to 10 burpees. Beginners should take ample time to rest, while more advanced individuals may minimize rest time. Understanding the mechanics of the exercise is crucial to prevent injury.
Is Doing Burpees Everyday Bad
The rumour of doing burpees every day is not inherently bad for you. However, a common issue is that many people perform them incorrectly. The burpee is a complex, full-body exercise that requires precise technique. We have a video breaking down the movements and explanations. I recommend that everyone learns the correct form before attempting burpees, especially when performing many repetitions quickly for speed and endurance. If done incorrectly, burpees can have negative effects, so it is important to learn the proper movements before focusing on speed.
