At your office, doing more in less time causes stress. In the gym, it builds strength. “The key to sculpting more muscle and burning more fat is increasing workout density, not duration,” says BJ Gaddour, creator of Speed Shred from Men’s Health DeltaFIT. Put that principle into practice with one move: the burpee. The burpee is one word that can induce sweat and fear from even the fittest guys. And that’s why it is great! It’s a total body fat blaster that absolutely obliterates everyone who tries to take it on. But that’s why we love it, nothing gets you ripped quite like the good old-fashioned burpee.
How To Do It
Start at Level 1, doing six reps a minute and using any leftover seconds to rest. Try to maintain this for 15 minutes; stop if you can’t. Once you’re able, move to Level 2 – and so on. “Your workout density will increase as you progress,” says Gaddour. Use an aerobics step to promote good form. For a bigger challenge, try one of the harder variations below.
READ MORE: How To Pack On Muscle Over The Holidays
Too Easy?
Dial up the intensity with these variations:
- Burpee with push-up: Do a push-up after you kick back into a push-up position.
- Burpee with push-up and jump: Perform a burpee with a push-up, but instead of returning to a standing position to finish each rep, jump up and land on the step. Then step down and repeat.
- Single-arm burpee: do a burpee using only your right arm. Switch arms halfway through each set.
- Single-leg burpee: perform a burpee while holding one foot off the floor. Switch feet halfway through each set.
| LEVEL | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| REPS* | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 |
* per minute/set
