Burpee Workouts For The Ultimate Badass

(Disclaimer: Burpee workouts are hard. They’re kickass for conditioning and fitness but they shouldn’t be taken lightly. I’d advise you to have at least a basic level of fitness before attempting any of the burpee workouts I’m about to discuss.)

So you think you’re ready to roll with the big dogs, do you?

Before you do a word of caution. Burpee workouts aren’t for the timid or weak.

Like my good friend Rocky once said…
“It ain’t about how hard you can burpee. It’s about how hard you can keep doing burpees, and not get tired.
That’s how winning is done.” Rocky Balboa…

As well as the obvious benefits of burpees

• They’re Free
• You can do them anywhere
• They melt fat faster than throwing butter on to a fire

And with the exception of maybe the deadlift, they’re probably the best tool available for working just about every single muscle group in your body.

But before we get into the wonderful world of burpee workouts. I feel it’s important to give you some insight into the progressions you can use to get the most out of your training.

Let’s get rolling…

 

Burpee Workouts – Ultimate Progression Guide

 

Progression 1: Squat Thrusts

The first progression on our list of burpee workouts is the squat thrust.

Although not technically a burpee. I feel it’s important to add it to the progression list for those of you who are less familiar with regular burpee workouts. As a gentle way of easing you into the process before you go hell for leather.

Here’s how to do the squat thrust:

• Stand up straight with your arms by your side
• Squat down while simultaneously placing your hands on the floor (slightly wider than shoulder width apart)
• Kick your legs back into the pushup position
• Pull your legs back into the squat position
• Stand up

That’s one rep.

The only difference the squat thrust and a standard burpee is the obvious lack of a jump at the end.

It’s only a small difference I know but it’s a great way of building up your basic conditioning before you attempt a full burpee.

Here’s the video to help you get your form down…

 

Progression 2: The Burpee

Not much more to add to this progression.

The only difference is that instead of standing up like you would when you perform the squat thrust. You’re going to leap into the air while reaching your hands above your head.

Here’s how to get down and dirty with the burpee:

• Stand up straight with your arms by your side
• Squat down while simultaneously placing your hands on the floor (slightly wider than shoulder width apart)
• Kick your legs back into the pushup position
• Pull your legs back into the squat position
• Jump as high as you can while propelling your arms above your head

That’s one rep.

Watch below for a video demonstration…

 

Progression 3: Burpee With A Pushup

Now I know that many of you will argue that this is the ONLY way to do your burpee workouts.

If this is you feel free to leave me you most cutting insult in the comments below.

Personally, I don’t usually add the pushup to my regular burpee workouts as I feel it slows down the movement too much.

But then again I suck at burpees

Anyway, here’s the breakdown:

• Stand up straight with your arms by your side
• Squat down while simultaneously placing your hands on the floor (slightly wider than shoulder width apart)
• Kick your legs back into the pushup position
• Do one FULL pushup
• Pull your legs back into the squat position
• Jump as high as you can while propelling your arms above your head

That’s one rep.

The pushup really does add an extra element of difficulty into the exercise. Working nearly every muscle you have in quick succession.

Watch the master at work in the video below…

 

Progression 4: Burpee With A Pushup & Tuck Jump

Now we’re starting to get into to the nitty-gritty stuff.

If you thought burpee workouts with a pushup were hard. Then this is going to take you way beyond your comfort zone.

Here we go:

• Stand up straight with your arms by your side
• Squat down while simultaneously placing your hands on the floor (slightly wider than shoulder width apart)
• Kick your legs back into the pushup position
• Do one FULL pushup
• Pull your legs back into the squat position
• Jump into the air while simultaneously tucking your knees into your chest before landing

That’s one rep.

Here’s how the real boys and girls do it…

 

Progression 5: Burpee Box Jumps

I’ve done these a few times when I used to train down at my old boxing gym.

They’re F*cking brutal

Attempt these if you dare:

• Stand up straight with your arms by your side
• Squat down while simultaneously placing your hands on the floor (slightly wider than shoulder width apart)
• Kick your legs back into the pushup position
• Do one FULL pushup
• Pull your legs back into the squat position
• Jump up onto a step or plyometric platform 12-24 inches high
• Jump back onto the floor landing with your knees slightly bent to absorb any impact

That’s one rep

IMPORTANT: Please be careful when attempting this workout. As fatigue sets in your concentration and coordination can start to dwindle. The last thing I want is for you to injure yourself when attempting this workout.

Anyway, here’s how the athletes get it done…

 

Burpee Workouts To Take You From B*tch To Badass

 

Beginners Burpee Workouts – 100 Day Challenge

If you new to burpee workouts and your conditioning sucks then this is where to start.

What your going to be doing is adding just 1 burpee to your workout every single day.

Sound easy?

Well that’s because it is for the first 10-20 days or so

But as the days go by and you start getting into the high double digits, it is going to start feeling like torture.

So here’s the breakdown:

Day 1: One Burpee

Day 2: Two Burpees

Day 3: Three Burpees…

….Day 99: Ninty Nine Burpees

Day 100: One Hundred Burpees

If one burpee is just too easy of a starting point then, by all means, start the challenge from 10, 20 even 30 burpees and work your way up from there.

The important thing is to keep progressing and before you know it you’ll be the ultimate burpee ninja.

 

100 Burpees A Day

This one’s a little more difficult but completely doable once you’ve achieved a basic level of conditioning.

Simply put, you’re going to be knocking out 100 burpees a day. EVERYDAY

You can break your burpee workouts into mini sets throughout the day.

So for instance:

• 10 sets of 10
• 5 sets of 20
• 4 sets of 25

Or you can be a brave warrior and attempt all 100 in the same workout…

The choice is yours.

All that matters is that you complete 100 burpees every day.

 

Tabata Burpee Workouts

I’ll be honest.

Tabata burpees suck.

Just the thought of going through the torture of this workout sends shivers down my spine.

That’s the bad news.

The good news is that the workout is only 4 minutes long. But it’s going to be the hardest 4 minutes of your life.

Here’s how to do the workout:

• 20 Seconds: Burpees
• 10 Seconds: Rest
• Repeat 7 more times for a total of 8 sets

Tabata training is an awesome way of stripping body fat from your frame in record time.

But there’s a catch.

You’ve got to go all out, balls to the wall for the full 4 minutes.

Do this and you’re not only going to melt away excessive unwanted poundage. But you going to increase your aerobic and anaerobic threshold immensely.

Watch the video below to see Tabata burpees in action…

 

Burpee Pyramids

From the desert of Egypt comes the burpee pyramid.

And as the name suggests, you’re going to be doing burpees (again) in a pyramid style.

This means that for every set of burpees you do you will reduce the number of burpees you perform by one.

Let me give you an example:

Let’s say you start your burpee pyramid at 10 burpees.

You will perform 10 burpees followed by a 10-second break.

The next set you will perform 9 burpees followed by a 9-second break.

You then continue this pattern until you have reached just 1 burpee.

Now, there are many ways you can tackle this exercise depending on your fitness level.

You can do a 5-1 burpee pyramid, a 10-1 pyramid, a 20-1 pyramid.

Hell, you can even do a 50-1 burpee pyramid if you feel like taking a trip to the emergency room afterward.

Just to be clear, that’s 1,275 burpees in total.

Related: 51 Addictive Workout Finishers For The Ultimate Afterburn

 

The Burpee Mile

Many times I like to leave the best workout on my lists until last.

Well, NOT this time…

Often referred to as death by burpees, the burpee mile is as it states, one full mile of nothing but pure burpees.

Here’s how to do it:

Find a large area, preferably a running track so you can keep track of your distance.

What your going to be doing is performing 1 burpee.

But instead of jumping up vertically and landing back in the same position. You’re going to be performing a broad jump. Jumping forward as far as you can before starting the next burpee.

Continue to do this for one whole mile.

Watch this video to see how truly exhausting this burpee workout really is…

 

BONUS: Burpee Workouts – Mixing Things Up

By now you’re probably sick and tired of hearing about nothing but burpees so let’s add a little flavor into the mix by adding some additional exercises into your burpee workouts.

 

Burpee Workout 1: Pure Cardio

First up we’re going to be adding a jump rope into the mix of your burpee workouts.

Here’s how to do it:

• 60 Seconds: Jump Rope
• 60 Seconds: Burpees
• 60 Seconds: Rest
• Repeat x5

Both burpees and jump rope on their own burn serious calories.

But when added together They’re going to send your heart rate through the roof.

 

Burpee Workout 2: The Boxers Burpee

Similar to the last exercise.

Only this time you’re going to be performing straight 1-2 punch combinations on a heavy bag followed by burpees.

Like this:

• 60 Seconds: Non-stop 1-2 punch combination on the heavy bag
• 60 Seconds: Burpees
• 60 Seconds: Rest
• Repeat x5

 

Burpee Workout 3: The Sprinter

Next up were adding some sprints into the equation.

Here’s what you’re going to do:

• 10 Burpees
• 100m Sprint
• Rest for 30 Seconds
• Repeat x10

If you can find a hill to add some extra intensity to the workout then well played. However, sprinting on a flat surface will be sufficient in most cases.

 

Burpee Workout 4: The Prowler

And last but not least we have the prowler.

Similar to the sprinter workout only this time you’re going to be pushing a huge heavy prowler across the room.

Here’s the breakdown:

• 10 Burpees
• Prowler Push 10-25 meters (depending on the space you have available)
• Rest for 30-60 seconds
• Repeat x10

Here’s how to do prowler pushes like a beast…

 

Bringing it to a close

The sky really is the limit with any of these burpee workouts and there are literally 100’s of other variations you could put together with a little creativity.

They’re not easy but honestly, easy doesn’t produce results.

What does produce results is pushing yourself that little bit harder every workout.

Striving to be that little bit better every day.

That’s how you get to where you want to be.

Have any of your own burpee workouts to add? Let me know in the comments below…