Burpees, the classic exercise everyone loves to hate, is also known as a squat thrust. No matter what you call it, this full-body move will work you. But, we know burpees can be intimidating, so we've broken the exercise down into three variations: beginner, intermediate, and advanced.
Beginner: Walk Out
Aside from introducing your body to the basic mechanics of a burpee, this version makes for a great active warm-up exercise. Going from standing to the plank gets your heart pumping and wakes up your core.
- Start standing, bend your knees and bring your hands to the floor just in front of your feet.
- Walk your hands out into a plank position, then walk yourself back to a low squat and stand up. This complete one rep.
- Do 15 reps for a set.
Intermediate: Push-ups and Plyometrics
Adding a push-up at the bottom of the move and jump at the top increases the difficulty level and your heart rate.
- Begin standing. Bring your hands to the floor just in front of your feet; jump your feet into a plank position.
- Do one push-up.
- Jump your feet back to your hands, and from this crouched position jump up, similar to a squat jump. Do jump as high up as you can. This completes one rep. (Here's a detailed description of the classic Burpee with photos illustrating each move.)
- 15 reps completes a set.
