Unless your hips are super flexible burpees are going to be detrimental to your lower back. Just do mountain climbers then stand up and do squat jumps. That’ll get your heart rate up and spare your back. 💪🏻
Dr. Rob, What are your thoughts on modifying the burpee by using an elevated surface, (ie; the flat bench in the video or a pair of parallettes that are high off the ground)? My line of thinking is that by utilizing the bench, could eliminate the majority of spinal flexion for most, as one's knees would hit into the bench if there was too much flexion. Also it eliminates being too explosive from a closed packed position of the knees in a repetitive fashion, on the secind flexion cycle. Depending on one's anthropometry and the height of the bench, it also could put the knees in a more functional angle as well as get an extra bang for your buck if one is focused on keeping a neutral or hollow spine during the extension phase of the legs by bracing at the bench with the UEs, (if the person is cued correctly), by getting some TVA and serratus activation. Curious on your thoughts with this
Thanks Dr I have 2 lower back disc hernia and I have doing burpees for 3 month Now I feel my right leg and especially right foot is numb What exercises do you suggest for me? FYI, I am 53 years old
Thanks! Never done a really burpee because of back issues. So you're saying mountain climbers are the better alternative with a stand up then squat? I try not to do too much jumping as well
Burpees are best for athletic guys (or girls) without large stomachs....the movement is asking for trouble when you have a lot of fat on your torso....
Sad. Very sad that a doctor will tell you this. Listen up, i fell of a two story building 10 years ago, crushed my l5 and l4 was. Legs broken, concussion. I am doing crossfit now, i healed up with metal plates in my anckle, wrist and knee. I couldn't walk. The only movement that helps now to relief some lower back pain in burpees and a good run. Its laziness. So called doctor talking shit on youtube. What do you know. They told me i would never walk again. Well guess doctors dont know much afterall
If you add a squat jump super set after your mountain climbers you should be able to attain the heart rate that a full burpeee will give you AND your back will stop hurting! 💪🏻
Denise, So glad you’re feeling better! Typically when people have low back pain with planking their abdominal bracing isn’t efficient enough to stop the lower back from hyper-extending. Practice a much harder brace (pretend you are wearing a tight belt around your core and you are trying to expand your core muscles OUTWARD to break it from the inside out). Start with a knee plank with this bracing mechanism. Once that is easy progress to a full plank with that harder bracing mechanism. Once you’re efficient with the new bracing mechanism your pain while planking should be gone. Also, watch my UA-cam video on intraabdominal pressure/bracing (the one with the balloon). Thanks for your support! Enjoy a healthy back! 💪🏻👍🏻
Great video mate.Took up 30 day burpee challenge ,had a soar back from day 3 got worse on day 5 , and ur video pinpoints the exact reason for it. Isn't there a safe way to do burpees without straining the back. Also is mountain climbers as effective as burpees. Cause in just 5 days I say great benefits from burpees. (Apart from back pain 😅)
A person with a healthy spine does not need to fear burpees, only has to fear progressing exercise volume too fast, using poor technique and improper recovery. Human body is made to flex and adapt to demands (but slowly!). Some powerlifters even deadlift huge weights with semi-rounded backs as they have trained to it progressively. However, I'd not do burpees with a disc herniation.
You’re correct, BUT the VAST majority of Americans are FLEXION INTOLERANT and when attempting to become healthy are doing programs that include burpees thus ruining their backs further. Power lifters can get away with round back lifting because they have developed enough core strength and mastered intraabdominal pressure to the degree that they can buttress those huge shear forces while the lumbar spine is in Flexion. Otherwise, it’s not a recommended position. Again, the average population with annular damage cannot risk Flexion repeatedly. Thus my recommendations. If you have the requisite 125-130 degrees of hip Flexion, understand lordosis then by all means burpee away. Otherwise it’s a contraindicated movement. There are plenty of alternatives that are just as effective!
Every exercise have a risk of injury, in burbees the most common injury is knees and shoulders not the back,the most wise advice you could give if you knew what you was talking about is to stop doing everyday the same exercise,there is athletes also in yt doc stop spreading nonsense.
Oh come on! that is obviously the wrong way to do a burpee. This is like an infomercial,making the simplest task seem impossible or harder than it really is.
Please remember, the VAST MAJORITY of my patient base and the general US population is Flexion intolerant/has discogenic pain. As such, burpees are going to be nothing but an irritant to their pain/clinical presentation. If you have the requisite 120-130 degrees of hip Flexion/mobility and ample knee stability go ahead and burpee away. Otherwise, recommending burpees to said population is not only injurious but irresponsible.
I've been struggling with super painful sciatica for over 4 months and therapy asked me to do some back fattening exercises (along with other exercises) Of course, I wasn't get better. Only after seeing your videos, I stopped these and my back is finally feeling better. What a HUGE difference. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Hard to say exactly. I would try doing it for time. If it takes you 60 seconds for burpees then do the same for mountain climbers. If your heart rate isn’t similar adjust time and intensity
Thank you so much for these videos!! Just started working out again to loose weight (I'm almost 200 lbs with knee and back pain) with my sister in law (recently had a baby) and mother in law(50+ with joint pains) using a workout program my sister in law purchased. My mother in law was complaining about back pain especially on "Ab days" who's exercises consisted of so many back breakers!!! With all of us oblivious to how bad these back breakers are, I still knew we were all potentially hurting ourselves especially with our form so it prompted me to look up alternatives for us and I found your page!! Gonna go buy your book and show all your videos to both ladies I'm working out with! Thank you for saving our backs!!!
So I’m no doctor but from what I get from this doc is, bending over is what he calls “full flexion”? And so bending your back muscles is bad for you? Yeah not getting that at all...
Then you need to educate yourself. Full Flexion places the spine in an unstable position placing excessive load on the ligaments because the stretched paraspinal muscles have no mechanical advantage to support the spine. Stretching the muscles of the lumbar spine is a completely different situation than stretching other muscles that are non-spinal.
@@paulgarcia1147 not to the millions of people suffering from crippling pain every day. To you it may be a simple move but it’s debilitating to a ton of people who will miss work, spend thousands of dollars to get help and cost the US health care system over 200 billion a year. That’s the reason for the video. Too many exercise influencers and exercise programs still include excessive amounts of Flexion in their programs that create a lot of problems for people that people like me have to fix. I hope you don’t ever have to deal with it.
Burpees are a really good full body exercise. You're arguing they are bad but then emphasizing thry are only bad for a target audience, that being your clients. When you use simple logic, you realize anything can be bad for you. Even if you drink too much water it can kill you lol. If you have a health problem that prevents you from doing one of the best exercises to improve overall fitness, then don't do it. Or, strengthen the muscles at risk to injury. Athletes who suffer from Hamstring tears don't stop running. They strengthen their hip flexors and other muscular imbalances they may have. Doc, sorry, but you are only correct if you're telling old men/ladies past their athletic prime suffering from joint and hip pain to stop doing burpees. Otherwise you're whole argument is bogus and you're using MAuthority, meaning you have a degree so you know more, which is another argument proven to fail.
@@jubbice5040 you should do as many burpees as you like my friend! Burpee away! Oh, and give that same argument to Mike Boyle and Eric Cressey, arguably the two most respected strength coaches in our country that agree with me. If you lived in my clinical world and saw 14 year olds coming in with MRI confirmed disc bulges your argument would change drastically. It’s not just older people my man. But by all means, burpee away!!
Thanks for sharing this alternative. I am 62 years old. I was planning on adding burpees to my calisthenics routine. I was going to exchange it for my jogging training and probably add some jumping rope in a Tabata way. Now, with the Mountain Climbers I have a better option, since I suffered Sciatica a couple of years ago. Do you have any suggestions? Thanks again 🙂 (liked and subscribed)
every exercise is injury prone if not done right. I'm 49 and I love doing 100 burpees nearly every day. never had any back problem. the key is doing them right. and the same thing goes for mountain-climbers.
@@DrRobAndShannonJonesRD I’m long-limbed and because of this I experience that lower back pain when doing certain exercises. What if I were to maintain a RIGID and STRICT core, especially when embarking onto the plank position whilst doing the burpee- would you still believe damage to the lower back is inevitable?
Honestly the only problem with burpees has been my upper back, neck area. Lower back is great, neck training with head harness has eliminated all the pain it is the weak link.
My class is doing burpees chest to the ground, i feel like taller people have more problem to get from standing to the ground because of longer limbs? I also hate Russian twist and leg rises!
Ilarge number of repetitive burpees can cause a hernia eventually. Its the constant bending over thrust in abdomen. I lnew someone this happen to. m really sad i have to stop the burpees. Was doing them for disciplines. Waa up to 50 in sets. Really good for the heart. I reduced it to 35 burpees this week. The fitness group im in the guys do 100 and i really admired it. But i had leave the group cause i dont want to rush threw it like that. But i also seen some injuries. Decided i will do mountain climmers, jumping jacks with kneeups and maybe only seven full burpees daily slowly walking it out not jumping. Or maybe do 1 burpee at end of sets of mountain climmers.
I fundamentally disagree. Burpees are a staple for overall muscular endurance and fatigue resistance, mountain climbers are not an adequate alternative. It's comparing apples to oranges. Just warm up and have good form bro, I've done 1800 1 pumps in a single session without any issues.
You supposed to widen your feet doing the squat with your arms between your knees. That’s how you keep your back straight. Otherwise you indeed going to f up your back.
Hey Dr Rob pleasure to have found your channel 🤝 new subscriber ❤️👍, my question is IS CHAIR BURPEES bad for the back as well? Please let me know cuz I have spinal & cervical stenosis along w/ spondylosis, I've been pumping🏋️♂️ for yr now, 55 yrs young, i feel good & definitely don't look my age but my question is ,is doing chair burpees just as bad on our lower back & should I stay away from doing them all together?
Hi! Thanks for subscribing! They are typically better because there is less spinal motion but remember you always want spine neutral (which means staying in lordosis) and no back movement at all during the move. Only hip movement. Good luck! 👍🏻💪🏻
Happy I found you. I'm in my middle seventies, and am still pretty flexible, but have some of the back problems, plus arthritis in my joints. That has made it difficult to do much of anything other than walking (depending on how I feel that day). I will try the mountain climber, but slower than you show it. Is that okay?
Thank you so much for your videos, they are so helpful and saving my back! I purchased your app too - it is great. I have a question - I have a lot of tightness and discomfort in my lower back, especially when I do plank. I feel it right in my lower back. Is it ok to do plank with my knees down? Or am I just not ready for plank and should I focus on some of your other exercises. Thanks again for everything.
Wow, thank you so much sir! I used to do a lot of burpees but as of late they were hurting my back. I like how your main focus is on injury prevention as opposed to just getting a good burn. I was thinking about doing mountain climbers instead and after seeing this video I'm sure that it is the best alternative. Far too many exercises give you a good burn but at a cost to your long-term health. Thanks again!
Hello Dr Rob I have lower back problem. I'm trying to avoid exercises that may continue to hurt my lower back. Are forward and/or reverse lunges or jump squat okay to do without continue to hurt my back
I haven't done a burpee in years and when I was, my back was killing me. fast forward, no more back issues and i do a combination of pushups, squats and jump rope which yields the same, if not better and safer results.
Hi I have a hip impingement and a labrum tear.. probably for doing too many burpees amongst other exercises with too much impact and flexion of the hip. In your view, are mountain climbers still a good alternative to burpees for me ?
Great explanation and cueing. Was trying to explain to my trainer why burpees - even modified - were hurting my back and I couldn't come up with the right description. And this is a good substitute for my back flexibility.
Awesome! I have a 6 week challenge and it calls for 50 burpees. This will definitely help. I cannot do them, and I will to start trying them just to hurt myself. Great video 💪🏼
Any yoga is generally decent but you have to be careful with excessive spinal movement in flexion or extension. As a general rule I try to use as much neutral spine as possible with the hips joints creating the movement.
Thank you for showing me this! I'm overcoming a strain in my lower back four months ago. Plus, my arms seem too short to do burpees properly. So, I've been looking for a comparable alternative. I like doing mountain climbers instead. I appreciate you showing the correct position for the most effective results. Way to go, Dr. Rob!
Omg! Will try this as it's taken me a while to sift through different exercise vids on yt specific and non detrimental to my needs! I had lumbar L4/5 disc-ectomy surgery about 9 yrs ago and I like to keep fit and mobile but have struggled to find the right exercises to help . ( am sure I've got a problem with L5/S1 lower back and found some exercises give me pain! I like cardio stuff to and jog approx 3kl 4 days a week n mix it up on the other days . I was thinking about adding burpees but knew it would be to much for my back . I hate it when pain and stiffness hits me but I will do my physio and exercises ...religiously as they do help and feel stronger so will be adding the mountain climber move and see how it goes! Question- how many reps and sets should I use? Baring in mind I have tried them before? Anyone???
Hey Dr, Rob, this was brilliant. Thank you so much! I started incorporating burpees for my cardiovascular endurance training, but now I am going to substitute with mountain climbers.
Wish I had seen this before herniating my L4 , I used to do very high intensity circuits 3x week with probably over 300 burpees, I did this for 12 years before it happened, believe me it will eventually happen. I actually substituted to mountain climbers as a replacement
Naw burpees are good to burn calories and people with back problems try burpee and do it wrong if you do any exercises wrong it will hurt you re back or an muscle
ive hurt my knee i was so worried i cant keep that stamina from hiit by quiting burpee, this looks perfect, zero pressure on the knee thankyou so much !
@@DrRobAndShannonJonesRD ok so my knee got better turns out it was ther 400 squats not the burpees but now i do both ! thanks you made me feel even more uncomfortable than i felt possible, lying on my bed feeling like i wanna vomit, you did great ! the closer i get to vomiting the better the workout !!
Thank you so much! I totally effed up my back from just doing burpees for a couple of weeks. I am a fit yoga instructor too. But burpees took me out anf fast! Thanks for the tips for maintain integrity and alignment in the spine! I hope I heal as fast as I injured myself.
I have some back problems and strugle very much to do burpees i've decid to research about not do them and now don't want to do burpees anymore thank God i found your vid
Very helpful, since I'm trying to stay in shape but reallllllly don't feel like emerging from all of this isolation with a back injury. Nope. And YES, a properly done mountain climber is great for the abs.
This explains so clear.Very useful.. Please suggest some alternatives for who has back, wrist and shoulder pain often but I would like to do pull up and push up for strengthening the body. Thank you very much.
Thanks to your advice I replaced burpees with Moutain Climbers and my back was way better in a week. Now I've added Sit throughs which are even harder than burpees. What do you think of sit-throughs ?
ive suffered from lower back pain. do burpees with hand elevated for 2 to 3 weeks. this will reinforece your lower back, not break it. Your weakness will become strong and you will get all the great benefits of burpees. Muscle, fitness, strength, will power, cardio, looking good naked
ps. you dont get strong by avoiding movement. all you get is a limited range of motion and a weakness not corrected. weakness leads to mis allignment of posture which leads to walking sticks to wheel chairs. there is no benefits in protecting weakness
I was doing burpees about 6 weeks ago and on the extension portion of the exercise where you kick your legs back I felt a pull and I have been having lower back problems since . Movement has increased by 80 % but I wake up stiff every morning . Do you think I have sciatica ?
If pain isn’t down your leg it’s not sciatica. Morning stiffness is often related to disc issues. Watch my disc correction videos, if they help it’s mostly likely discogenic.
Dr. Rob, thank you, your advice makes perfect sense. I've been doing burpees with hands on a box because I don't have the flexibility to get my hands on the floor (I'm an overweight 50-year-old male). What would be a simple and safe - at home - full-body workout? Would this work? Without equipment: Squats, Press-ups, Jump Rope, Mountain Climbers, Leg Raises?
I have a safe home core workout app called Protect your back Golf (not just for golfers) you can download from my website heydrrob.com or from the App Store on either Apple or Android. It’s mostly core but you’ll get some upper body and Glute work out of it. I’m coming out soon with a new workout, stay tuned!!
Been going through your videos and I was making a majority of mistakes you point out. Would be cool to see a program to build strength with proper exercises.
In the works! Stay tuned. If you go to Heydrrob.com I have a core workout app you can download to iphone or android. It has basic, intermediate and advanced.
I was just looking at proper burpee vids, cuz I haven’t done them in years. 1 reason. I try to go hard with my exercises here and there . I did so many burpees in one workout after awhile my lower back felt like #%$&. I never did another burpee again. I listen to my body. Lower back pain of mine is due to my weak glutes and abs. It’s been a journey learning and “unlearning” if you know what I mean. I’m 45 now. And love to be active. But have not been consistent in years. Anyway, THANKS for this vid cuz I am post radial head replacement surgery and i desperate to find exercises that help me sustain a certain pressure to my elbow that extends about 93% of the way out. It’s been a year. Point is I’m still working on push ups ya know. Anyway, just really wanted to say thanks. 💯
Hey Doc. Does the fact that my abs dome out when I do ab exercises related to having a weak back? I try to brace my abs but it still sticks out on exertion. Thanks Doc.
Wear something like a weight or even a bath robe belt and when you brace fill the entire 360 degrees from back to front. You’re probably just pressing out too much with your abs.
![Burpee Modification for Bad Backs [STOP DOING BURPEES]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/jyi9giy6I_w/mqdefault.jpg)
Unless your hips are super flexible burpees are going to be detrimental to your lower back. Just do mountain climbers then stand up and do squat jumps. That’ll get your heart rate up and spare your back. 💪🏻
Dr. Rob,
What are your thoughts on modifying the burpee by using an elevated surface, (ie; the flat bench in the video or a pair of parallettes that are high off the ground)?
My line of thinking is that by utilizing the bench, could eliminate the majority of spinal flexion for most, as one's knees would hit into the bench if there was too much flexion.
Also it eliminates being too explosive from a closed packed position of the knees in a repetitive fashion, on the secind flexion cycle.
Depending on one's anthropometry and the height of the bench, it also could put the knees in a more functional angle as well as get an extra bang for your buck if one is focused on keeping a neutral or hollow spine during the extension phase of the legs by bracing at the bench with the UEs, (if the person is cued correctly), by getting some TVA and serratus activation.
Curious on your thoughts with this
@@ggram0551 if you can keep lordosis on the down amd up you should be ok.
I for one will stop happily. Thanks so! From henceforth I live to protect my back.
This makes so much sense! Thank you.
👍🏻
Thanks Dr
I have 2 lower back disc hernia and I have doing burpees for 3 month
Now I feel my right leg and especially right foot is numb
What exercises do you suggest for me? FYI, I am 53 years old
Hi Dr Rob, do you think that stair running is another way to get heart rate up without causing back issues?
You legend! How helpful!!!!!
👍🏻🙏💪🏻
Thanks! Never done a really burpee because of back issues. So you're saying mountain climbers are the better alternative with a stand up then squat? I try not to do too much jumping as well
Yes!
Burpees are best for athletic guys (or girls) without large stomachs....the movement is asking for trouble when you have a lot of fat on your torso....
I knew there was somethings wrong with burpees
No! You just hate doing them. Now you have your excuse
That's not how you do a burpee though
Or it could be just you. 😊
Where’s the data that it will hurt your back? Form is important ☝️
Sad. Very sad that a doctor will tell you this. Listen up, i fell of a two story building 10 years ago, crushed my l5 and l4 was. Legs broken, concussion.
I am doing crossfit now, i healed up with metal plates in my anckle, wrist and knee. I couldn't walk. The only movement that helps now to relief some lower back pain in burpees and a good run.
Its laziness. So called doctor talking shit on youtube. What do you know. They told me i would never walk again. Well guess doctors dont know much afterall
Conrad! So great you recovered from such a devastating injury! Keep training and hitting it hard!
If you add a squat jump super set after your mountain climbers you should be able to attain the heart rate that a full burpeee will give you AND your back will stop hurting! 💪🏻
Denise,
So glad you’re feeling better! Typically when people have low back pain with planking their abdominal bracing isn’t efficient enough to stop the lower back from hyper-extending. Practice a much harder brace (pretend you are wearing a tight belt around your core and you are trying to expand your core muscles OUTWARD to break it from the inside out). Start with a knee plank with this bracing mechanism. Once that is easy progress to a full plank with that harder bracing mechanism. Once you’re efficient with the new bracing mechanism your pain while planking should be gone. Also, watch my UA-cam video on intraabdominal pressure/bracing (the one with the balloon). Thanks for your support! Enjoy a healthy back! 💪🏻👍🏻
I'm now officially retired from Burpees following your advice, thank you
Yup. Absolutely see the wisdom of this.
Great video mate.Took up 30 day burpee challenge ,had a soar back from day 3 got worse on day 5 , and ur video pinpoints the exact reason for it. Isn't there a safe way to do burpees without straining the back. Also is mountain climbers as effective as burpees. Cause in just 5 days I say great benefits from burpees. (Apart from back pain 😅)
A person with a healthy spine does not need to fear burpees, only has to fear progressing exercise volume too fast, using poor technique and improper recovery. Human body is made to flex and adapt to demands (but slowly!). Some powerlifters even deadlift huge weights with semi-rounded backs as they have trained to it progressively.
However, I'd not do burpees with a disc herniation.
You’re correct, BUT the VAST majority of Americans are FLEXION INTOLERANT and when attempting to become healthy are doing programs that include burpees thus ruining their backs further. Power lifters can get away with round back lifting because they have developed enough core strength and mastered intraabdominal pressure to the degree that they can buttress those huge shear forces while the lumbar spine is in Flexion. Otherwise, it’s not a recommended position. Again, the average population with annular damage cannot risk Flexion repeatedly. Thus my recommendations. If you have the requisite 125-130 degrees of hip Flexion, understand lordosis then by all means burpee away. Otherwise it’s a contraindicated movement. There are plenty of alternatives that are just as effective!
Every exercise have a risk of injury, in burbees the most common injury is knees and shoulders not the back,the most wise advice you could give if you knew what you was talking about is to stop doing everyday the same exercise,there is athletes also in yt doc stop spreading nonsense.
You seem to have a great grasp on the body. Good for you! Burpee away friend!
Oh come on! that is obviously the wrong way to do a burpee. This is like an infomercial,making the simplest task seem impossible or harder than it really is.
Please remember, the VAST MAJORITY of my patient base and the general US population is Flexion intolerant/has discogenic pain. As such, burpees are going to be nothing but an irritant to their pain/clinical presentation. If you have the requisite 120-130 degrees of hip Flexion/mobility and ample knee stability go ahead and burpee away. Otherwise, recommending burpees to said population is not only injurious but irresponsible.
I've been struggling with super painful sciatica for over 4 months and therapy asked me to do some back fattening exercises (along with other exercises) Of course, I wasn't get better. Only after seeing your videos, I stopped these and my back is finally feeling better. What a HUGE difference. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
You’re very welcome! Please share my videos with everyone you know!
hi, how many mountain climbers for substitute to 50 Burpees, I mean how many Mountain climbers equivalent of 50 Burpees please?
Hard to say exactly. I would try doing it for time. If it takes you 60 seconds for burpees then do the same for mountain climbers. If your heart rate isn’t similar adjust time and intensity
@@DrRobAndShannonJonesRD Thank you
LoDaKid. Why??
Thank you so much for these videos!! Just started working out again to loose weight (I'm almost 200 lbs with knee and back pain) with my sister in law (recently had a baby) and mother in law(50+ with joint pains) using a workout program my sister in law purchased. My mother in law was complaining about back pain especially on "Ab days" who's exercises consisted of so many back breakers!!! With all of us oblivious to how bad these back breakers are, I still knew we were all potentially hurting ourselves especially with our form so it prompted me to look up alternatives for us and I found your page!! Gonna go buy your book and show all your videos to both ladies I'm working out with! Thank you for saving our backs!!!
So I’m no doctor but from what I get from this doc is, bending over is what he calls “full flexion”? And so bending your back muscles is bad for you? Yeah not getting that at all...
Then you need to educate yourself. Full Flexion places the spine in an unstable position placing excessive load on the ligaments because the stretched paraspinal muscles have no mechanical advantage to support the spine. Stretching the muscles of the lumbar spine is a completely different situation than stretching other muscles that are non-spinal.
@@DrRobAndShannonJonesRD Still a fucking fancy way of saying bending your back. Get over yourself doc
@@paulgarcia1147 not to the millions of people suffering from crippling pain every day. To you it may be a simple move but it’s debilitating to a ton of people who will miss work, spend thousands of dollars to get help and cost the US health care system over 200 billion a year. That’s the reason for the video. Too many exercise influencers and exercise programs still include excessive amounts of Flexion in their programs that create a lot of problems for people that people like me have to fix. I hope you don’t ever have to deal with it.
Burpees are a really good full body exercise. You're arguing they are bad but then emphasizing thry are only bad for a target audience, that being your clients. When you use simple logic, you realize anything can be bad for you. Even if you drink too much water it can kill you lol. If you have a health problem that prevents you from doing one of the best exercises to improve overall fitness, then don't do it. Or, strengthen the muscles at risk to injury. Athletes who suffer from Hamstring tears don't stop running. They strengthen their hip flexors and other muscular imbalances they may have. Doc, sorry, but you are only correct if you're telling old men/ladies past their athletic prime suffering from joint and hip pain to stop doing burpees. Otherwise you're whole argument is bogus and you're using MAuthority, meaning you have a degree so you know more, which is another argument proven to fail.
@@jubbice5040 you should do as many burpees as you like my friend! Burpee away! Oh, and give that same argument to Mike Boyle and Eric Cressey, arguably the two most respected strength coaches in our country that agree with me. If you lived in my clinical world and saw 14 year olds coming in with MRI confirmed disc bulges your argument would change drastically. It’s not just older people my man. But by all means, burpee away!!
Thanks for sharing this alternative. I am 62 years old. I was planning on adding burpees to my calisthenics routine. I was going to exchange it for my jogging training and probably add some jumping rope in a Tabata way. Now, with the Mountain Climbers I have a better option, since I suffered Sciatica a couple of years ago. Do you have any suggestions? Thanks again 🙂 (liked and subscribed)
every exercise is injury prone if not done right. I'm 49 and I love doing 100 burpees nearly every day. never had any back problem. the key is doing them right. and the same thing goes for mountain-climbers.
Not exactly true but I’m glad you don’t have a back issue. Burpee away!
@@DrRobAndShannonJonesRD I’m long-limbed and because of this I experience that lower back pain when doing certain exercises. What if I were to maintain a RIGID and STRICT core, especially when embarking onto the plank position whilst doing the burpee- would you still believe damage to the lower back is inevitable?
Honestly the only problem with burpees has been my upper back, neck area. Lower back is great, neck training with head harness has eliminated all the pain it is the weak link.
My class is doing burpees chest to the ground, i feel like taller people have more problem to get from standing to the ground because of longer limbs? I also hate Russian twist and leg rises!
Use your stance wide for burpes, then jump out wide stance then straight your spin, then stand up,
Ilarge number of repetitive burpees can cause a hernia eventually. Its the constant bending over thrust in abdomen. I lnew someone this happen to. m really sad i have to stop the burpees. Was doing them for disciplines. Waa up to 50 in sets. Really good for the heart. I reduced it to 35 burpees this week. The fitness group im in the guys do 100 and i really admired it. But i had leave the group cause i dont want to rush threw it like that. But i also seen some injuries. Decided i will do mountain climmers, jumping jacks with kneeups and maybe only seven full burpees daily slowly walking it out not jumping. Or maybe do 1 burpee at end of sets of mountain climmers.
I have been doing about 25 burpees every other day for three years and never had a back problem. I also like mountain climbers and jumps. Comments?
Some people can get away with burpees. Most can’t . Glad you don’t have back problems!
@@DrRobAndShannonJonesRD Guess I'm one of the lucky ones!Thanks for the response.
@@Gaurigs 👍🏻
I fundamentally disagree. Burpees are a staple for overall muscular endurance and fatigue resistance, mountain climbers are not an adequate alternative. It's comparing apples to oranges.
Just warm up and have good form bro, I've done 1800 1 pumps in a single session without any issues.
You supposed to widen your feet doing the squat with your arms between your knees. That’s how you keep your back straight. Otherwise you indeed going to f up your back.
Love the suggestion I'll do that instead.
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New sub 😍👏🏻
Spoiler: switch to mountain climbers (it's a very long video just to get to that point)
Thank you Dr. Rob!! I cannot do burpees, mountain climbers are better for me.
Hey Dr Rob pleasure to have found your channel 🤝 new subscriber ❤️👍, my question is IS CHAIR BURPEES bad for the back as well? Please let me know cuz I have spinal & cervical stenosis along w/ spondylosis, I've been pumping🏋️♂️ for yr now, 55 yrs young, i feel good & definitely don't look my age but my question is ,is doing chair burpees just as bad on our lower back & should I stay away from doing them all together?
Hi! Thanks for subscribing! They are typically better because there is less spinal motion but remember you always want spine neutral (which means staying in lordosis) and no back movement at all during the move. Only hip movement. Good luck! 👍🏻💪🏻
@@DrRobAndShannonJonesRD thank you & thank you so much for replying back so quickly 🤝😘means alot!
I'll give it a try. I've been doing 100 burpees a day, I'll switch over to these and report back. I'm 76 and I do have a bad back. We'll see.
Would love to hear how you feel afterward! It will be a great experiment! 👍🏻💪🏻
Happy I found you. I'm in my middle seventies, and am still pretty flexible, but have some of the back problems, plus arthritis in my joints. That has made it difficult to do much of anything other than walking (depending on how I feel that day). I will try the mountain climber, but slower than you show it. Is that okay?
Thank you so much for your videos, they are so helpful and saving my back! I purchased your app too - it is great. I have a question - I have a lot of tightness and discomfort in my lower back, especially when I do plank. I feel it right in my lower back. Is it ok to do plank with my knees down? Or am I just not ready for plank and should I focus on some of your other exercises. Thanks again for everything.
What do you think about kettlebell practises?
Wow, thank you so much sir! I used to do a lot of burpees but as of late they were hurting my back. I like how your main focus is on injury prevention as opposed to just getting a good burn. I was thinking about doing mountain climbers instead and after seeing this video I'm sure that it is the best alternative. Far too many exercises give you a good burn but at a cost to your long-term health.
Thanks again!
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This was a great video. It saved me. I could feel my back acting up from doing burpees. Thank you!!!
Thanks! Please share it! 🙏👍🏻
Very useful, especially how to do mountain climbers correctly. Thank you
Hello Dr Rob I have lower back problem. I'm trying to avoid exercises that may continue to hurt my lower back. Are forward and/or reverse lunges or jump squat okay to do without continue to hurt my back
Generally those are ok for back issues. Watch my videos on how to squat and lunge properly.
I haven't done a burpee in years and when I was, my back was killing me. fast forward, no more back issues and i do a combination of pushups, squats and jump rope which yields the same, if not better and safer results.
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Hi
I have a hip impingement and a labrum tear.. probably for doing too many burpees amongst other exercises with too much impact and flexion of the hip. In your view, are mountain climbers still a good alternative to burpees for me ?
Hard to say for sure without examining you. In general yes it’s a Safer exercise.
My fitness instructors swear by Burpees. I won't do them now, but how do I convince them?
They need to be more educated. Have them watch my channel!
Im here after stupidly doin too many burpees ans planks
45 cant stand up
Strait today.
No more burpees for me!
Go to my vids of fixing your discs! You’ll be better in no time!
Great explanation and cueing. Was trying to explain to my trainer why burpees - even modified - were hurting my back and I couldn't come up with the right description. And this is a good substitute for my back flexibility.
Awesome! I have a 6 week challenge and it calls for 50 burpees. This will definitely help. I cannot do them, and I will to start trying them just to hurt myself. Great video 💪🏼
Thank goodness for this, I always seem to screw up my back with burpees.
Are chair burpees ok?
Coach
What is your opinion on Bikram Hot Yoga - lot of back and spine movement in this practice - thx!
Any yoga is generally decent but you have to be careful with excessive spinal movement in flexion or extension. As a general rule I try to use as much neutral spine as possible with the hips joints creating the movement.
@@DrRobAndShannonJonesRD copy that thank u - Bikram is pretty aggressive with spine stretching - have to find the balance 🙏👍
Trying with my morning workout tomorrow!
Thank you for showing me this! I'm overcoming a strain in my lower back four months ago. Plus, my arms seem too short to do burpees properly. So, I've been looking for a comparable alternative. I like doing mountain climbers instead. I appreciate you showing the correct position for the most effective results. Way to go, Dr. Rob!
Like a tyrannosaurus rex???
Ok so I have degenerated disc and I have arthritis in my feet toes is there a work out that isnt on the tip of my toes?
Could do bodyweight squats
Bunyons won't let me bounce around on my toes like that.
Sea Pea, try wearing shoes with a stiffer toe box and use sliders or a towel and slide your legs/feet in and out instead of the bouncing.
I've been suffering with sciatica, and will be taking your advice. Thanks
Watch my videos on understanding disc issues and how to fix disc bulges. Best of luck!👍🏻👊🏻💪🏻
Good call Mr Bee! 👍🏻💪🏻
Think you
Omg! Will try this as it's taken me a while to sift through different exercise vids on yt specific and non detrimental to my needs! I had lumbar L4/5 disc-ectomy surgery about 9 yrs ago and I like to keep fit and mobile but have struggled to find the right exercises to help . ( am sure I've got a problem with L5/S1 lower back and found some exercises give me pain! I like cardio stuff to and jog approx 3kl 4 days a week n mix it up on the other days . I was thinking about adding burpees but knew it would be to much for my back . I hate it when pain and stiffness hits me but I will do my physio and exercises ...religiously as they do help and feel stronger so will be adding the mountain climber move and see how it goes! Question- how many reps and sets should I use? Baring in mind I have tried them before? Anyone???
Go till your tired and don’t break form. Keep your core pressure so your spine is supported. Rest 30-60 seconds and repeat
@@DrRobAndShannonJonesRD thankyou! Will ad to my routine.
Subbed❤
The workout starts from 2.22
Hey Dr, Rob, this was brilliant. Thank you so much! I started incorporating burpees for my cardiovascular endurance training, but now I am going to substitute with mountain climbers.
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thank god i got excuses to not to do burpees....
Can't stop now almost halfway there =D Burpees will absolutely get you into some back pain and knuckle calluses.
Wish I had seen this before herniating my L4 , I used to do very high intensity circuits 3x week with probably over 300 burpees, I did this for 12 years before it happened, believe me it will eventually happen. I actually substituted to mountain climbers as a replacement
Burpees have messed up my back, wish I had seen this
Naw burpees are good to burn calories and people with back problems try burpee and do it wrong if you do any exercises wrong it will hurt you re back or an muscle
Don't need to tell me twice, doc
🙌🏻 love it!
I've noticed that I get lower back pain from burpees
ive hurt my knee i was so worried i cant keep that stamina from hiit by quiting burpee, this looks perfect, zero pressure on the knee thankyou so much !
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@@DrRobAndShannonJonesRD ok so my knee got better turns out it was ther 400 squats not the burpees but now i do both ! thanks you made me feel even more uncomfortable than i felt possible, lying on my bed feeling like i wanna vomit, you did great ! the closer i get to vomiting the better the workout !!
Thank you so much! I totally effed up my back from just doing burpees for a couple of weeks. I am a fit yoga instructor too. But burpees took me out anf fast! Thanks for the tips for maintain integrity and alignment in the spine! I hope I heal as fast as I injured myself.
You’re welcome! Check out my other vids on how to fix disc issues and Flexion intolerance! 👍🏻💪🏻
hands elevated burpees girl. do for about 3 weeks, than lower surface. theres no benefit in protecting weakness. build strength :-)
Blows my mind why a woman that isnt a boxer or full on sprinter would want to do burpees of all things. This world is really a mess😅
My doctor said mountain climbers are something I should never do
this makes sense, can you recommend a second routine with the mountain climber such as the squat and pushup. how do we incorporate the exercises.
I have some back problems and strugle very much to do burpees i've decid to research about not do them and now don't want to do burpees anymore thank God i found your vid
Very good video mate. Being familiar with Dr. Stuart Mcgills work. I can guarantee this is great advice
Everything you said makes sense
So pretty much...Burpees is a young Mans game
Burpees has nothing to do with age brother..watch Iron wolf channel
@@RavenHeart444 I do watch Wolf thats my guy rt there. I jus said that cuz this guy is saying stop doing Burpees lol
I'm a bit overweight n always hated crunches burpees. Recently started doing pushups dumbells n jump rope.
I do modified burpees and mountain climbers...my hands are on the bench instead..
Thank you so much for this video! I was looking for an alternative to burpees because they were taking so much out of me.
Very helpful, since I'm trying to stay in shape but reallllllly don't feel like emerging from all of this isolation with a back injury. Nope. And YES, a properly done mountain climber is great for the abs.
This explains so clear.Very useful.. Please suggest some alternatives for who has back, wrist and shoulder pain often but I would like to do pull up and push up for strengthening the body.
Thank you very much.
Enjoyed the watch! A lot of people who love burpees wont be happy with this...😄
Yup! But their backs will be happy! 👊🏻
I do 100 burpees in 13 min should I do moutain climber for 13 min ?
Can you please tell me how long the pain last?
Are Hindu burpees or sapate any different?
Thanks to your advice I replaced burpees with Moutain Climbers and my back was way better in a week. Now I've added Sit throughs which are even harder than burpees. What do you think of sit-throughs ?
ive suffered from lower back pain. do burpees with hand elevated for 2 to 3 weeks. this will reinforece your lower back, not break it. Your weakness will become strong and you will get all the great benefits of burpees. Muscle, fitness, strength, will power, cardio, looking good naked
ps. you dont get strong by avoiding movement. all you get is a limited range of motion and a weakness not corrected. weakness leads to mis allignment of posture which leads to walking sticks to wheel chairs. there is no benefits in protecting weakness
Thank you
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I was doing burpees about 6 weeks ago and on the extension portion of the exercise where you kick your legs back I felt a pull and I have been having lower back problems since . Movement has increased by 80 % but I wake up stiff every morning . Do you think I have sciatica ?
If pain isn’t down your leg it’s not sciatica. Morning stiffness is often related to disc issues. Watch my disc correction videos, if they help it’s mostly likely discogenic.
Wish i seen this 30 min ago
Yes! What I was looking for!
Dr. Rob, thank you, your advice makes perfect sense. I've been doing burpees with hands on a box because I don't have the flexibility to get my hands on the floor (I'm an overweight 50-year-old male). What would be a simple and safe - at home - full-body workout? Would this work? Without equipment: Squats, Press-ups, Jump Rope, Mountain Climbers, Leg Raises?
I have a safe home core workout app called Protect your back Golf (not just for golfers) you can download from my website heydrrob.com or from the App Store on either Apple or Android. It’s mostly core but you’ll get some upper body and Glute work out of it. I’m coming out soon with a new workout, stay tuned!!
Hi
Do you have any alternatives to deadlifts?
Why would you need an alternative? Deadlift does not have a strict alternative, depends what muscle you want to train
I have low back issues thats why.
Thank you.
Been going through your videos and I was making a majority of mistakes you point out. Would be cool to see a program to build strength with proper exercises.
In the works! Stay tuned. If you go to Heydrrob.com I have a core workout app you can download to iphone or android. It has basic, intermediate and advanced.
Hey Dr. Rob thanks Doc !!
Thank you for this
Thank you! I been having Lower back problems!!!! Good advice!
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Agree!
I was just looking at proper burpee vids, cuz I haven’t done them in years. 1 reason. I try to go hard with my exercises here and there . I did so many burpees in one workout after awhile my lower back felt like #%$&.
I never did another burpee again. I listen to my body. Lower back pain of mine is due to my weak glutes and abs. It’s been a journey learning and “unlearning” if you know what I mean. I’m 45 now. And love to be active. But have not been consistent in years.
Anyway, THANKS for this vid cuz I am post radial head replacement surgery and i desperate to find exercises that help me sustain a certain pressure to my elbow that extends about 93% of the way out. It’s been a year. Point is I’m still working on push ups ya know.
Anyway, just really wanted to say thanks. 💯
Hey Doc. Does the fact that my abs dome out when I do ab exercises related to having a weak back? I try to brace my abs but it still sticks out on exertion. Thanks Doc.
Wear something like a weight or even a bath robe belt and when you brace fill the entire 360 degrees from back to front. You’re probably just pressing out too much with your abs.
@@DrRobAndShannonJonesRD Thanks Doc.
abehampster 👍🏻