Part one of our look at the five movements that make up the WOD for God has been nicknamed “the devil’s pushup.” That makes it a great candidate for a mission prep workout. Mastering this movement is a good indicator that our physical prep is paying off!
The burpees is a cornerstone of CrossFit and countless other fitness regimes. They’re simple enough to do anywhere but challenging enough to give world-class athletes the shivers. The most sadistic of my friends are stuffing the ballot boxes with votes for this one. Gotta love them. My friends, that is. Nobody lives burpees.
The basic idea is to go from a standing position to face down on the floor and then back up again. A little hop at the top finishes it off. That’s one. To perform the movement, start standing straight up with your hands at your side. Put your hands on the floor while squatting and then quickly kicking your legs out behind you. Now you should be in the top of a push up. Take it all the way down to the floor, then push back up. At the top of push up, kick your legs up by your hands and then spring up to a standing position. Finish it off with a hop. And then do it all again. If that’s too many words, just watch the official video here.
Every movement in the WOD for God can be scaled, even the burpee. If you want to play along but aren’t up for 50 burpees, that’s ok. To make it manageable, step back and step forward instead of springing. That one modification slows the exercise down, giving your heart and lungs a break.
Simple enough? That’s the burpee.