A 10-minute bodyweight pyramid workout!

You guys, this is a fun one. We are going to work really hard and these 10 minutes are going to fly by. This is a high-intensity workout consisting of three moves: burpees, squats, and push-ups. That’s it, just those three. No equipment necessary.

By the time we are finished we will have completed 50 burpees, 50 squats, and 50 push-ups in just 10 short, heart-pumping, sweaty minutes. Afterwards, we will reap all the benefits of high-intensity exercise, like increased calorie burn, increased aerobic and anaerobic fitness, and boosted metabolism.

GREAT. This is what is going to happen -> We are going to do a round of burpees, squats, and push-ups, 2 reps each. Then in increments of 2 we are going to work up to 10 reps of each. This is the tip of the pyramid – more than halfway done! Then we are going to work back down to 2 reps of each and give ourselves a pat on the back for a job well done.

A few cues:

• BURPEES: Begin in a standing position. Lower down into a squat, place your hands on the ground in front of you, and quickly kick your feet back into the push up position. Lower your body to the floor, raise back up, and return your feet back to the squat position as quickly as possible. Immediately jump up as high as you can.
• SQUATS: Begin in a standing position. Lower your body by pushing your hips back until your thighs are parallel to the floor. Make sure to keep your back straight and your knees behind your toes. Raise your body back to standing position, pushing through your heels, and engaging your glutes.
• PUSH-UPS: Begin in push-up (plank) position. Keeping your body in a straight line with your core engaged, slowly lower your body while bending your elbows to 90 degrees. Push your body back up to starting position.

This cycle of burpees, squats, and push-ups is really working our whole body: lower body, upper body, core, and cardio. And if you think about it burpees are basically squats and push-ups combined in one move with some jumps in it. Sooo… a pretty great combination of moves going on here.

I recommend doing this 10-minute bodyweight pyramid workout 1-2 per week. It would be great to do after a 30- or 45-minute session of steady state cardio or after a strength training routine. However, this would be just as effective to do as a stand-alone workout for days when you are in a time crunch.

If you really love burpees (who doesn’t?!), make sure to check out this burpee run!