Burpee
- Primary muscleCardio
- EquipmentBodyweight
- DifficultyIntermediate
- TypeCardio · Complex
- Secondary muscles
- Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, Delts, Pectorals
- Body part
- Cardio
- Position
- Seated
- Laterality
- Bilateral (both sides together)
- Category
- Cardio
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Squat down, kick back to a plank, push up, and jump: four beats that turn your whole body into the conditioning tool, no equipment involved. Scale by tempo rather than by cutting corners on positions; stepping the feet back instead of jumping keeps the pattern intact when your lungs get ahead of your legs.
How to do the Burpee
- Start in a standing position with your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Lower your body into a squat position by bending your knees and placing your hands on the floor in front of you.
- Kick your feet back into a push-up position.
- Perform a push-up, keeping your body in a straight line.
- Jump your feet back into the squat position.
- Jump up explosively, reaching your arms overhead.
- Land softly and immediately lower back into a squat position to begin the next repetition.
Tip: Breathe out as you jump and keep a steady rhythm rather than sprinting.
Muscles worked
Primary
Cardio · Cardio
Burpees are a conditioning movement first and hit the heart rate hard within a few reps, so use them in timed rounds.
Secondary
- Quads — The quads drive you up from the squat and absorb every landing.
- Hamstrings
- Calves
- Delts
- Pectorals — The push-up in each rep gives the chest a steady amount of work over a long set.
Common mistakes
- Collapsing to the floor — lower yourself with control rather than dropping, since flopping into the push-up position is how wrists and shoulders get hurt.
- Sloppy push-up — if the burpee includes a push-up, do a real one with the chest to the floor and a flat back, or skip the push-up.
- Landing stiff on the jump — bend the knees on landing and go straight into the next rep.
- Sprinting the first ten — pace to the length of the set or you will be walking through the last half.
Where it fits in a workout
Burpees go at the end of a session as a finisher or as part of a circuit. Alternate them with kettlebell swings for a simple two-movement conditioning round.
How many sets, how heavy and how hard: see what the ACSM position stands support.
Variations and alternatives
When to talk to someone
- Chest discomfort, feeling faint or lightheaded, or trouble breathing during or after exercise can be signs of a heart attack. In the US, call 911 right away; elsewhere, call your local emergency number.
- Heart, metabolic or kidney disease, or symptoms like these when you are active: talk to your doctor before you start or step up training.
- Pregnant: ask your obstetric care provider which exercise suits you.
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More exercises
Sources
- ACSM position stand on exercise quantity and quality (Garber et al., 2011)
- ACSM preparticipation health screening (Riebe et al., 2015)
- ACOG Committee Opinion No. 804 on exercise in pregnancy (2020)
- CDC: About Heart Attack Symptoms, Risk, and Recovery (2024)
Sources checked on October 17, 2026. Full citations are in the exercise library.
Animation and exercise data: ExerciseDB, licensed to SetGrip. General information, not medical or coaching advice.