Workout: Burpee Fat Burner

First things first. Here is a workout that is super-simple but extremely effective fat burner:

Burpees: Why it’s the Best Home Workout

The word “burpee” is derived from the word “burp,” right? Or maybe not…If you’re new to burpee exercises you may have originally thought a burpee was someone who burps frequently or maybe you thought a burpee was the name of a burping competition. These seem like plausible conclusions based on the name, but as silly as the name burpee is, it actually has nothing to do with burps at all. So how did the burpee get its name?

The burpee was developed in the 1930s by an American physiologist by the name of Royal H. Burpee. As you may have concluded, he named the exercise after himself, and why shouldn’t he? When Royal Burpee was earning his PhD in Applied Physiology, he developed the “Burpee Test” as part of his doctorial thesis. The test was meant to assess a person’s level of agility, strength and overall coordination in a short amount of time. Because performing a burpee is quick, it wasn’t long before the United States Armed Services adopted the burpee as a means to test potential recruits for World War II.

Since the war, the burpee has become a universally used exercise all across the world and the basic “Burpee Test” expanded from one exercise to a variation of about 19 known to date.

Here is how to do the burpee our way:

Below are the names of a few popular burpee variations you may like to try with a brief description of how to perform the exercise:

Burpee Variations

The Tuck-Jump Burpee: As the name suggests, for this variant of the burpee, at the peak of your jump, lift your knees to your chest (tucking motion).

The Long-Jump Burpee: You’ll need extra space in your home for this variant. Instead of jumping straight up, jump forward like a rabbit.

The Box-Jump Burpee: For this variant of the burpee, instead of jumping up and down, jump on top of a box (or other stable surface in your home) and then back onto the floor. This is great for targeting those troublesome cellulite areas.

The One-Arm Burpee: This variant is very advanced and difficult. Perform a classic burpee all the way through, but only use your dominate hand (Yes, even a one-handed push-up! You can do it!)

Double Burpee: This is another variant for your arms. Do two push-ups in a row before moving on to the next steps of your burpee. To intensify this exercise even more, do two of each part of the burpee in a row.

Please Note: It is not recommended you try any of these burpee variations until you have successfully mastered the classic burpee outlined on our “Top 10 Home Workout Moves.”

So why should you give the classic burpee a try or take on these harder versions of the burpee exercise as part of your home exercise routine?

If you have ever chased after your kids and found yourself heaving over out of breath or needed to rest as you walked up those treacherous flights of stairs, it doesn’t have to be that way. Even if you can chase your kids and walk up stairs with ease, I’d venture to say you’ve probably had days you just felt lethargic and didn’t want to do anything. We’ve all had those days, right? And there will always be excuses not to exercise, but when you can do an exercise that only takes a few minutes or less per day in the comfort of your own home without any gym equipment, why not give it a try? The health benefits of burpees are amazing.

Health Benefits of Burpees: Why Burpees are a Great Exercise

• Burpees are a full body workout, targeting your arms, legs, back, abs and butt
• Burpees are a cardiovascular exercise that gets your heart rate up, which means your body burns more calories to supply energy to your muscles
• Burpees can improve the health of your heart and lungs since it’s a form of anaerobic training, meaning you’re performing a high-intensity workout for short periods of time that produces energy without the need for oxygen
• Burpees can burn up to 50% more body fat versus traditional strength training (Burn more calories and fat in less time!)
• Burpees can increase your strength since it involves classis strength building exercises (push-ups and squats)
• Burpees can increase your level of endurance since they are performed fast (in rapid succession) while moving and shifting your entire body weight frequently
• Burpees promotes weight loss since several calories are used in order to perform just one burpee
• Burpees can increase your metabolism when performed in high volume. A high number of burpees can cause the state of Excessive Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption (EPOC) to occur. EPOC is also referred to as “afterburn.” What this means is your body will continue to burn more calories than normal after the conclusion of your workout. So you get a double calorie burning effect (calories being burned while working out and after your workout has already concluded)
• Burpees can increase the interaction between your nervous system and your muscles (balance, agility and coordination) known as your motor fitness

As you can see, there are several health benefits of doing burpee exercises on a regular basis, and if these aren’t enough reasons to spark your interest, what if I told you the burpee is an exercise even the celebrities do?

Celebrities like famous movie star Jessica Alba are on the burpee fitness plan. After having her second baby, Alba admitted her secret to getting that bikini body back in only five months was burpees! Although in our photo demonstrations, the burpee seems like a realistically easy workout, after only a few, you’ll begin to the feel the burn and I promise you, if preformed correctly, your body will be sore the next day. For a beginner, this can be an intense calorie and fat burning exercise, so just start slow and work up your level of endurance. You’ll get there!

Burpee World Record

The burpee is even in the Guinness Book of World Records. Paddy Doyle of the United Kingdom set a burpee record in 1994 by performing an astounding 1,840 burpees in one hour. This record has not been beat since.

We aren’t suggesting you aim to beat this record, but why not set some realistic goals for yourself? After all, this isn’t a worldwide phenomenon for nothing. Fitness enthusiasts and experts around the world agree the burpee is the number one best way to receive an all-inclusive workout. Some have even gone as far to call it the King of Conditioning.

About Elisa Lindholm

I'm a sports and fitness enthusiast, all into working out at home and developing home workouts that take your breath away! I follow the Paleo diet and I'm constantly searching for new recipes to try out. I have quite a bit of a sweet tooth, so if you know good paleo dessert recipes, send them my way, please! :)

View all post by Elisa Lindholm »