100 Burpee Challenge

I get called out on Facebook all the time. Awesome. This time my call out came from amazing trainer Jared DiCarmine. He sends us this challenge below. Also, you’ll see my video results for the 100 burpee challenge, so read on…

Take it away Jared:

I have to say that the best time that I come up with ideas for workouts, exercises, and just plain torturing myself and my clients is when my insomnia kicks up and for the life of me, I just can’t fall asleep. Usually this happens at least 1-3x per week on opposite days. The worst is when I have some big projects going on and my mind is racing 1,000 m.p.h. Always, during one particular sleepless night, I came up with this challenge workout and started implementing it with my clients the very next day…So what is it?

Simple, do 100 burpees as fast as possible. Sometimes the best programs for fat loss or muscle building are usually the simplest ones. People and trainers like to make things complicated sometimes and go after the new shiny object…Well don’t. If you just use the K.I.S.S. method (keep it simple stupid) you can get great results.

(ADD A PUSH UP!)

So this challenge is really simple, just have a timer, a stop watch, or a friend time you while you do your 100 burpees. Also it’s a lot easier to have someone who is there with you to count and let you know how much further you have to go. This allows you to just be able to focus on the task at hand.

 

 

I have to be honest though and tell you upfront that this workout is going to flat out suck, but of course like anything that is hard, it will be worth it in the end. So who is a perfect fit for this workout?

ANYONE

If you goal is to build muscle, you can do this  quick little challenge workout to rev up your metabolism, increase insulin sensitivity through GLUT 4, and to increase work capacity. If your goal is fat loss, you can do this workout first thing in the morning when you wake up and down a cup of coffee. You can even do it again once you come home right before you eat dinner.

 

You can even do it before your workout or even after your workout as a nice little metabolic finisher.

So here are some preliminary results I’ve had with some clients…

Client A) 31 year old female. 5’7 140 lbs smoker, average build: Workout 1 – 9:04, Workout 2 – 8:44, Workout 3 – 7:57, Workout 4 – 8:13, Workout 5 – 7:08

Client B) 55 year old male. 5’9 157 and lean: Workout 1 – 5:49, Workout 2 – 5:43, Workout 3 – 5:39

Client C) 54 year old female. 5’7 137 and lean: Workout 1 – 6:34, Workout 2 – 6:13, Workout 3 – 6:10

 

These are the only clients that I have tried it with but I wanted to show you some results so far that have been happening. The biggest thing that you are going to face is not so much the cardiovascular aspect, but the lactic acid build up in your legs. This you will just need to push through.

So there you have it, a great workout that you can do at anytime all under 10 minutes without any equipment. If I come up with anymore, I’ll be sure to let you know, but of course that means no sleep for me so we’ll just have to wait and see what my insomniac brain comes up with 😉

100 burpee challenge

Jared earned his degree in Applied Exercise Science at Springfield College and graduated magna cum laude. Ever since he picked up his first weight at the age of 14 and after experiencing an unfortunate family event, he always wanted to be part of the exercise science and fitness field. He considers himself truly lucky to be able to help people on a daily basis and he wouldn’t trade it for any other career in the world. Jared has an awesome program called The Love Handle Cure. Check it out!

 

So I had to try Jared’s challenge…you’ll see it below. I want to point out that I do a push up with the burpee as well, not sure if Jared has his clients do that or not.

I timed how long it takes to do 20 burpees. This is so I can help myself count, find out how much I’m slowing down and it’s really the only way for me to mentally tackle 100 burpees…20 at a time:

  • 20 burpees: 1:14
  • 40 burpees:running clock at 2:51 (1:37 for this set )
  • 60 burpees: running clock at 4:37 (1:46 for this set)
  • 80 burpees: running clock at 6:36 (1:59 for this set)
  • 100 burpees: running clock at 8:08 (1:32 for this set)


And on a side note,  for all those that are just starting to do burpees, here’s part of an email a good friend sent me after his first attempt at 100 burpees:

Burpees are stupid!

Had never done a one and I got to 62 in 7:13 before stopping. The first. 20 or so were text book. The next ten looked ok if you squinted.

The following 20 could only be described as a guy falling to the ground and then getting back up – only to fall again.

The final ten or so: Ugly. Quads were cramping. Heart was threatening a heart attack. Lungs were on fire and all I wanted to do was take a hammer to one of the three cars in my garage where I train.

So all in all 62 burpees in 7 and a half minutes. I’ll build up to it.
(Where’s a video camera when you need one??)

In any case, don’t be discouraged over my beloved burpee…keep at them, they do get easier.

Peace, love and burpees!

UPDATE:

Looking for a return to ‘old school’ training? No gimmicks, just the fat burning power of the burpee in short do anywhere workouts. You’ll find 21 all new burpee challenge workouts with coaching previews along with a 500 and 1000 Rep Challenge Workout. Check out Challenge Burpees.

challengeburpee