Are burpees the most hated exercise of all time? While I’ve not been able to find any actual evidence, I think it’s quite possible – as a fitness instructor, I’ve heard far more people curse than praise the invention of the burpee. Invented by Royal H Burpee Sr, it was adopted by the US Army as part of their physical fitness test in 1942.
How many burpees can you do in 20 seconds? According to the Army, 10 burpees is “fair”, while 13 or more is “excellent”. In order to be considered strong enough for “the rigor of war”, you’d be expected to do 40 or 50 burpees without pausing, in an easy rhythm.
