Why The Burpee Should Be Part of Your Exercise Rotation

​Ahhhh… the dreaded burpee…the reason I’ve been on the receiving end of more eye rolls and cussing than I care to mention. We love to complain about this uniquely punishing movement, and most try to avoid doing them as much as possible. But have you ever stopped to wonder which sick, twisted individual invented this this torturous exercise and why? And wouldn’t you love to know why fitness professionals across the globe love to torture their clients with it? -And it’s not because we’re sadistic. ​

Burpees: A short history of the most hated exercise in the world

​Royal H. Burpee was a physiologist in New York City in 1939. He invented the first version of the burpee as a part of a fitness test. The original movement was milder than the burpee we know and love hate today.

Mr. Burpee never intended for his fitness evaluation tool to become the form of exercise that it has become today. The burpee was intended to be performed 4 times in a row, and he would measure the participant’s heart rate before and after in order to assess their heart’s efficiency at pumping blood, thus determining their overall fitness rate.

Burpees: An Evolution

​Over time the burpee was modified from its original, fitness evaluation form to the more vigorous modern movement. Here’s how the burpee evolved:

Original Burpee: Squat down and place both hands on the floor in front of you. Jump feet back into plank position. Jump feet forward. Return to standing. Perform only 4 times in a row, measuring heart rate before and after.

Modern Burpee: Bend over or squat down and place both hands on the floor in front of you, just outside of your feet. Jump both feet back into plank position. Drop to a pushup — your chest should touch the floor. Push or snake up to return to plank position. Jump feet back in toward hands. Explosively jump up into the air, reaching arms straight overhead. Perform as many times in a row as instructed by your personal trainer or coach!

Burpees: The Most Effective Exercise Ever for Busy People?!?

​When you perform a modern burpee you are essentially doing a vigorous six-count bodyweight movement that requires you to move between six unique positions as quickly as possible. It’s time efficient and works several major muscle groups in one exercise. What’s there not to love?

Everything burns as you go through a series of burpees: your lungs, your legs, your arms, and most of all…calories. Burpees cultivate agility, strength, coordination and stamina while burning fat. This full body exercise is a key staple in my arsenal of fat loss workouts for exactly these reasons.

So the next time that you are told to do 20, 30, or 100 burpees: smile to yourself, think of Royal H. Burpee and be happy that you are doing an exercise that gets you enviable results in the shortest possible time –I know I’ll be smiling thinking of you doing them. ;)