The Burpee - A not so easy Cardio Circuit

I went to my regular fitness training session today. But I did not feel my best therefore found today's exercises difficult and could not complete the circuit my trainer designed for me. I was so mad at myself!  But sometimes, you just can't control your own body.

Joyce, my personal trainer, had me started off with the Burpee exercise, which was a combination of jumping jack and push up. I did that 12x and three rounds of it, with 30-45 seconds of rest in between each round. That was not easy as this was not an exercise that I liked. After that, I was supposed to do 50 skips, but my feet felt so heavy that I could not even do 3 skips without being caught in the skipping rope.

Lunging with weight

Beside the regular workout which I did, Joyce plans a few different circuits for me to make workout interesting and move me along to a higher level. She planned this circuit for me today:

Running on treadmill machine - 0.2 mile
Lunging with wt above head - 10x\
Burpee - 10x

Repeat the circuit - 4x consecutively

It was tough for me to do the Burpee exercise this morning. Some exercises look easy but when I go to try them, they are not easy at all. The Burpee was of those today for me as it was a combination of a few motions. I hang my head low and feeling defeated as I could not complete this circuit 4 x as Joyce planned.

The Burpee Exercise - An Excellent Cardio Exercise

Sometimes I go into the gym feeling great, being in fine shape and could perform all the exercises that Joyce plans for me. At times, I feel weak and wobbly on my feet unable to lift the weight or sustain the exercises to the end. Today was one of those days.

But I will persist as I have seen how weak and helpless some people can become as people age. I have read and heard it numerous times - Exercise is not an option, but should be a part of our life. I will keep going to the gym and work as hard as I can.  

R.T. Goodlife Fitness Gym
Toronto