If you have one goal in mind — weight loss — and if you are obsessed about it, then all you need is one exercise to achieve your dream. Yes, it’s THE BURPEES.
Whenever you talk about holistic weight loss solutions, you are sure to find burpees in that list. That’s because this one move targets every single muscle of your body. Secondly, it is not just a great cardio exercise but also helps in muscle strengthening and toning.
If you talk about a basic burpee, then the move is something like this – you jump, you squat, you go on all your fours, and with a jump you move back up. We know it’s a very fast forward version, but it is just to give you a quick preview of how burpees fire up each and every part of your body – then may it be your shoulders, back, chest, arms, core, thighs, calves, hamstrings, quads, etc. Hope we haven’t left anything out!
But doing the same old classic burpees isn’t just boring, it also makes the routine stagnant.
Firstly, you should learn how to do classic burpees, because all the variations work on this principle only. So, this is how you do a classic burpee:
Stand straight, take a jump, and go into a squat. Now, put your palms on the floor and jump backwards, while being parallel to the ground. Next, with a jump bring your feet ahead (towards your chest), go back to the squat position, and stand up with a jump. Alright! Hope you’ve got the move.
Now with this move, you can add these five variations to take burpees a notch higher.
You remember doing mountain climbers? Yes, you need to do 20 mountain climbers first and then do the burpees move.
Do 15 reps and 5 sets of this.
This burpees variation is mixed with a box jump. So, you can take a stepper or anything that is elevated, on which you can jump without slipping. Now take a jump, get back down on the floor slowly, and then do a burpee.
Do 15 reps and 5 sets of this exercise.
It goes without saying that when you do a full burpee, it incorporates a push-up. So, when you are on all your fours, then you go for a push-up. Now, it is totally your call whether you want to take a knee push-up or a classic one.
20 reps and 5 sets is what you need to do, if you go for a full burpee.
When you do a classic burpee, your legs go back in a straight line. But in this variation, you have to move your legs sideways. This way, you can work your side muscles as well. Do each side alternatively.
Do 10 reps on each side and 5 sets.
In this variation, while taking the jump, you have to pose like a star. As in, your legs and hands will open up sideways. And when you land, you will do the same old burpee move. Get it?
Do 15 reps and 5 sets of this as well.
There you go, ladies. Just by adding a few simple steps, we have re-designed the good old burpee.
Try them all, and get set to lose weight in no time.