Today, however, really pushed the boundaries on our relationship though. Our intense, love-hate relationship. There may even be some divorce paperwork in the works, who knows.
May I present to you, my workout from today...
Yes, just LOOK at that thing. It says to do for time, so I honestly thought I could get through this once in about 20 minuets, count it as some cardio, and finish up with some strength training. HA, no.
One round took me about 40 minuets! And of course, being the overachiever I am, I did this routine twice today (second time included some weighted burpees!)
No, I do not work out for hours at a time. The reason I did this circuit twice was because I also used it while training some clients today... a teacher from my school and her poor husband whom I had not met until today! Talk about bad first impressions. Now every time he thinks of me, he will only remember my voice shouting "15 more burpees! Go!"
I had not done this myself yet and felt uncomfortable presenting a workout that I was not familiar with. So as a "warm up" (ha, yeah right) before class this morning I thought I would run through it and see how it would flow. I didn't realize how intense it was! Each round I did it just as shown, with the exception of hollow rocks- those are still pretty confusing to me, so I substituted with double leg drops with a hip lift at top. On my second go around (the one with my clients), I used weighted narrow squats and plie squats in place of the two different lunge sets, due to a previous injury my teacher had. Definitely felt a burn, especially on those triceps plank lifts!
So I totaled my burpee counts today, with it coming out to 240 burpees. Whaattt?
I thought I would share with you some of the benefits of burpees:
1) They burn TONS of calories! Because multiple muscle groups are being used (legs, arms, chest, core), tons of calories are torched. High intensity movements like these burn fat more efficiently than steady aerobics and even lead to the "after burn" effect (in other words, you will continue to burn calories throughout your day after your workout).
2) They make you strong and conditioned. Again, burpees use almost every muscle group in your body. If preformed correctly (especially if you add in variations found on this page- pushup burpees anyone?), you should be burning within a few reps. As with any exercise, with consistence you will become stronger and more fit. They also get your heart rate souring and really build your endurance!
3) They are FREE and PORTABLE. Who needs a gym for a burpee? There are no excuses for not being able to workout at home or on the go! Burpees are completely free (all you need is yourself) and portable (they can EASILY be done in a small room). They also are great to add in to nearly every workout, from intense cardio to heavy weight lifting. Throw in 10 or so after you complete a set of weights, or add them in the start or end to a workout!
For the record, burpees ARE modifiable. Instead of jumping into plank position, walk out. Or make it even simpler: start in a standing position, bend down into a squat and place both hands flat on the floor. Walk a single leg back, then return to squat position. Stand up, and repeat with other leg.
There is obviously tension in anyone's relationship with these grueling things... however, I really think that if you just get past the thought of "ugh, burpees", they can be a part of an enjoyable workout routine! Its kind of like leg day... you love to hate it. Or hate to love it.
What am I saying? No one loves leg day.
So what are your thoughts on burpees? What are the most you've done at once, how do you use them in a workout?
Do you have any favorite variations?
Id love to here your opinions!
Natalie
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