Benefits of Burpees for Runners
Burpees are no one’s favorite but they have enough benefits for runners to outweigh the discomfort.
By Marnie Kunz
Burpees for runners are not something most of us want to be prescribed — who even likes burpees anyways?! But before you judge, let’s go over some of the many benefits of burpees for runners. We will also look at some simple ways to do burpees and ways you can modify your burpees to suit your fitness level or needs.
What Are Burpees?
First of all, let’s get this out of the way: a burpee is a form of high intensity interval training (HIIT) using just your body weight, making them versatile so you can do them anywhere. A burpee is basically composed of three exercises: the push-up, squat jump and squat. See my above burpee demonstration.
Burpee Benefits for Runners
There is a reason so many fitness trainers love to dole out burpees: Burpees offer a great full-body strength and cardio workout that will boost your fitness level and improve your running. Burpees are especially effective for strength training right now as many of us can’t go to the gym due to coronavirus. Here are just a few of the benefits of burpees for runners:
Weight loss. Since burpees are a form of HIIT workout, they are one of the most effective ways to burn a high amount of calories and lose weight. In addition to working several of your major muscle groups, burpees elevate your heart rate and help you burn more calories faster than other aerobic exercises. Think of burpees as a sprint workout for your whole body.
Build lean muscle mass. Burpees target and strengthen your major muscle groups - hamstrings, quads, glutes, chest, arms. If you do at least 10 burpees a day for a month (see our Runstreet Challenge!), you will see a difference in your muscle definition.
Increase endurance. Burpees are similar to short bursts of speed that you would do in an intense interval workout on the track. By repeating the burpees and working through your elevated heart rate and fatigue, you are building your aerobic capacity and endurance. Over time as you do burpees, you will see an improvement in your running endurance and interval training performance.
Burpee Modifications
If burpees are too challenging starting out or you have certain injuries or back pain or knee pain, you can try one of these modifications:
Modify the push-up. You can do the push-up portion on your knees if needed, just be careful you don’t jump back onto your knees but kick your feet out as usual behind you and then lower your knees to the ground for a push-up. You can also remove the push-up entirely. Do a plank when you are on the ground instead of a push-up and then jump up to squat and continue your burpee.
Remove the jump. If you have knee pain or injury, you can do the burpee without the jump. Simply stand and squat instead of jumping to squat.
Have you tried burpees to improve your running? Are you doing your burpees for our Runstreet Challenge? Share your tips below.
Disclaimer: Runstreet may get a commission from affiliate links in this post.
Resources: Runstreet YouTube
Related Posts: Summer Running Tips, Strength Training Exercises for Runners
Marnie Kunz is a NASM-certified trainer and USATF- and RRCA-certified running coach, a dog lover, an Akita mom, and the founder of Runstreet. She is based in Brooklyn, New York.
