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These exercises come to you from DailyBurn Fitness/Nutrition Coach Bentley Garton and DailyBurn 365 trainer Prince Brathwaite. You can find more low-impact moves from DailyBurn’s trainers at DailyBurn.com/365.
If you avoid burpees like the plague, we don’t blame you. They’re hard, they’re exhausting, and they’re undeniably uncomfortable. And hey, many of us can’t do standard burpees. Maybe we’re just getting back into fitness, maybe we’re recovering from injury, or maybe our bodies simply just don’t respond well to high-impact exercises. (No shame in that!)
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But if you’re sitting off to the side when your favorite fitness instructor brings the burpee pain in class, you’re missing a great opportunity to strengthen your body with a modified move. Yet, it’s totally understandable if you’ve got weak joints, limited mobility or any kind of situation where the full burpee just can’t happen. The good news: There are modifications to make it easier — and still as effective. What’s the best burpee variation that’s not too easy but not too tough?
“The key to making the burpee easier on the joints is by making the move less explosive,” says DailyBurn Fitness/Nutrition Coach Bentley Garton. Think about it: Every time you jump your legs out from behind you, stand up from a squat or jump into the air, you’re putting an immense amount of pressure on your body, especially your joints. Plus, if you have limited mobility, your form might suffer and as a result, you’ll put unnecessary stress on yourself. Because at the end of the day, it’s all about having the proper form down. Your best bet is to do a movement that’s the right amount of challenging for you.
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Below we’ve got not one, but two easy-to-learn burpee variations to try from Garton and our own DailyBurn 365 trainer, Prince Brathwaite. Trust us, you’ll still be breaking a sweat with these demanding yet lower-impact exercises.
Two Ways to Modify a Burpee
1. Incline Bench Burpee
Targets: Core, legs, glutes, calves, shoulders
How to: Stand facing an incline bench or sturdy chair with your feet hip-width apart. Squat down and place your hands on the incline bench or other sturdy surface (a). Making sure shoulders are directly above hands, step your feet back, one foot at a time. (b). Engage your core so your body forms a straight line from head to toe. You should be in a plank position, using the bench or chair to balance and steady yourself (c). Activate glutes and stand up, rising onto toes while swinging both arms up overhead (d). Repeat 15 times, keeping a brisk pace.
2. Step Back Burpee
Targets: Core, legs, glutes, shoulders
How to: Start standing with your feet hip-width apart. Bend your legs and squat down, putting you hands on the ground slightly in front of your feet (a). With your shoulders directly over your hands, step your feet back one at a time. You should now be in a plank position, keeping your core engaged (b). Then, step your feet forward one at a time (c). Use your glute muscles in squat position to rise back up to your feet (d). Repeat movement 15 times, again keeping a brisk pace.
Want more no-equipment exercises like these? Head to DailyBurn.com/365 to get a new live workout every day.
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