First of All, What is a Burpee and Why Did I Do 1000 of Them?
Burpees work on your muscular strength and endurance simultaneously. I love them because they can be done anywhere. Here’s me doing them on my driveway at home:
The Burpee is the most dreaded exercise for so many people! This is the reason why I decided to give myself a little Burpee Challenge this past month.
In addition to exercising five to six days weekly, I added one additional minute of Burpees into each of my days. I know, many of you are thinking “Big deal, she’s a fitness trainer, what can one extra minute of exercise do for her?”
While, let me tell you, I was surprised at what this little challenge did teach me. Here are my biggest takeaways from completing 1000 Burpees.
My Key Learnings From Completing 1000 Burpees
1. It’s hard to do ANYTHING every day.
I was twelve days into the challenge when…I missed a day! At first I thought, “Forget this, I’m not starting again.” Then I realized I wouldn’t want one of my personal training clients to say that, so I sucked it up, and began the challenge again from day one. Sure enough, two week in, I missed another day! At this rate, I started to fear I’d have to complete one minute of Burpees for the rest of 2019! I decided to give myself a pass for the prior day, and continue on with the challenge until the end of the month and then end it. Because of this challenge, I’ve experienced first hand, that when you miss a day of your healthy habits, the most important thing is to get back into the healthy routine as quickly as possible, rather than dwell on the negative. Life will get in the way sometimes, so focussing the the 80/20 rule is critical to maintaining a healthy lifestyle over the long term.
2. Energy levels fluctuate.
Some of us are morning people, and some of us aren’t. No matter how much energy I thought I had in the morning, I always completed one or two fewer Burpees when I tried doing them first thing first thing in the day. Pay attention to when your energy is at its highest, and try to exercise during this time frame to get the most out of your workouts.
3. Improvements can happen quickly.
I began the challenge with only being able to complete twenty-one Burpees in a minute. I finished it by reaching twenty-six Burpees within the same time frame. This works out to me getting 24% faster in just over one month! Building multiple exercise sessions into each week pays off.
4. Variety really is critical.
During the last week of the challenge, I was VERY bored of doing Burpees. The challenge didn’t motivate me as much because I dreaded performing yet another twenty-five burpees. There are so many ways you can shake up your exercise routines to keep you more motivated; be sure to use them!
To Sum it Up…
I was surprised at what this short Burpee challenge taught me. First and foremost, following the 80/20 rule is crucial to long term success with your healthy habits. I gave myself a pass on the one day I forgot to complete them, and moved on. I experienced the importance of exercising when energy levels are at their highest, to get the most out of the workout. Quick changes in strength and endurance are possible, especially if you introduce variety into your fitness routines.
Give the one minute Burpee Challenge a try, I’d love to hear how your experience goes!