March 27, 2025, 2:00 pm | Read time: 4 minutes
Burpees are the supreme discipline when it comes to functional full-body exercises. The burpee has become indispensable, especially in the functional and crossfit sector. For many, however, this exercise is a challenge — especially when it comes to performing many repetitions in a row. Personal trainer and FITBOOK fitness expert Alina Bock explains how you can double your burpee record in just one month.
The burpee, consisting of a squat, push-up, and jump, effectively combines strength and endurance through the integration of strength exercises and speed. This is precisely why many fitness athletes include it as an effective exercise in their training plan. Are you still at the beginning of your burpee journey? Or, on the contrary, are you already more advanced but want to improve and do even more burpees? Then, we’ll guide you through your fitness challenge and explain how you can double the number of burpees you’re able to do within 30 days.
Overview
Learn the Right Technique
Even though the burpee may look simple to outsiders, it is a complex full-body exercise that includes a squat, push-up, and jump. The sequence of several exercises during one repetition effectively targets the glutes, thighs, chest, shoulders, triceps, and the entire core.
Step-by-step instructions for the correct burpee technique:
- In the starting position, your feet are about hip-width apart, with the tips of your toes pointing slightly outwards. The knees are slightly bent, and the upper body is slightly bent forward.
- From the starting position, go down into a squat. Once at the bottom, bend your upper body forward and place your palms on the floor. Now, jump backward with your feet until you are in the plank position. To effectively work the abdominal muscles, it is important that the belly button is pulled inwards and the pelvis is tilted towards the floor. The abdominal tension should be noticeable here.
- From the plank position, perform a push-up. If this is still too difficult, you can lie down completely on the floor and then push yourself up again explosively.
- Return to the plank position and then jump forward towards your chest. Then, release your hands from the floor and return to the squat position.
- From here, the last step is to jump upwards. Extend your arms upwards.
Train the Right Components
To successfully perform a burpee and increase the number of burpees you can do, it is essential to train the individual exercises that make up the burpee and the associated muscles. As already mentioned, the burpee consists of a squat, a push-up, and a stretch jump. The aim now is to train the muscles involved in order to be able to perform the burpee as well as possible.
Exercises that train the muscles involved in the legs and buttocks
- Squat
- Leg extension
- Lunges
To strengthen the muscles involved in the chest, shoulders, and triceps, the following exercises can be helpful:
- Push-ups
- Chest press
- Bench press
- Incline bench press
- Butterfly with dumbbells or on the machine
- Tricep press on a cable pulley
- Shoulder press
In addition, focus should be placed on the core muscles, which have a stabilizing effect during the burpee.
The following exercises are recommended for the core:
- Plank
- Mountain Climber
- V-sit
- Russian Twist
Regularity and Recovery
Another key component to doubling your burpee record within a month is consistency. For this reason, the burpee should be practiced at regular intervals, for example, every two days. An exception to this is if you have sore muscles. If this is the case, you should take a break until the sore muscles have healed.
In order to boost recovery, stimulate muscle growth, and achieve an increase in performance, a protein-rich diet should also be emphasized. It is also helpful to consume carbohydrates before and after training. These fill the energy stores and can therefore promote performance during training and regeneration after training. Carbohydrates that have a high glycemic index and are, therefore, quickly available as a source of energy are particularly suitable here. These can be found, for example, in bananas, rice, pasta, rice cakes and the like.
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Continuous Increase
If you are serious about increasing the number of burpees, you need to increase the number of burpees from time to time. These don’t have to be significant increases; the goal is to ensure a gradual rise in the number of burpees performed. Nevertheless, attention should be paid to the correct execution and tension in the body. The rule here is technique before quantity.