You may have heard how wonderful bodyweight exercises are for fitness. They build strong bodies, improve endurance, strength and flexibility, and don’t require any equipment. One of the best bodyweight exercises is burpees. It’s a total-body workout. Knowing how to do the exercise correctly is important, so here’s a guide to burpees for beginners.
Burpees were originally a test for sedentary people.
Burpees may sound like something you do after drinking a cola too fast, but it was named for the man who created the exercise, Dr. Royal H. Burpee. It was created to test total body fitness. The exercise Dr. Burpee created was just five steps. The modern version is seven steps and a lot harder. 1. Squat. 2. Kick feet back to a plank. 3. Do one push-up. 4. Frog kick and jump your feet back to squat position. 5. Stand up and reach your arms upward. 6. Jump. 7. As you land, bend your knees and get back into the squat position.
Like all types of exercise, form is important.
Do burpees slowly at first to ensure you have proper form. When you lower yourself to a squat position, your feet should be shoulder-width, with your knees bent and your back straight. Place your hands on the floor in the space between your feet and kick back your feet, landing so your weight is on your hands and toes. You’ll be in the push-up position. Do one push-up, then do a frog kick that brings your feet back to the starting position. Stand. Immediately raise your hands above your head, reaching for the sky as you jump up quickly while bending your knees as you come down, allowing your body to go back to the starting position.
Burpees are great exercise, but not everyone can do them right away.
This complex exercise has many steps. Not everyone can do every step. You don’t have to miss all the benefits and can work your way to doing a proper burpee by making adjustments for steps that are too difficult for you. Is a straight-arm push-up too hard? Lower your body to your knees after doing the plank and do a knee-bent push-up. You can also skip the push-up entirely, holding the plank longer. You can then work on push-ups and upper body strength separately. The last jump in the air can be skipped until you get into shape.
- Focus on keeping your back straight when you’re in a push-up position. Don’t allow your midsection to drop or push your butt in the air.
- You’ll work large muscle groups doing burpees, which provide a multitude of benefits. It increases nitric oxide in the body, causing blood vessels to dilate and lower blood pressure.
- Burpees work core muscles, glutes, quads, shoulders, calves, chest and triceps. It’s an excellent cardio workout. Start slowly, focusing on form and doing just a few, especially if you’ve lived a sedentary lifestyle.
- If your goal is to burn fat, burpees can be your go-to exercise. While they’re hard to do and make you sweat, they burn a lot of calories. You’ll build muscle tissue at the same time, which boosts your metabolism.
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