How many burpee pull-ups should you do when you are new to the exercise?

Five rounds of 5 reps with a minute of rest is a realistic start for someone who already has 8 to 10 strict pull-ups. A rep every minute on the minute for 10 minutes is another useful format, because it forces you to rest. Add reps per round before you add rounds, and end the set when your chest stops reaching the floor.

How do I make the burpee pull-up easier or harder?

Easier: use a lower bar so the pull becomes a jumping pull-up, put a band on the bar, step the feet back instead of hopping them, or take the floor half down to a push-up from the knees. Harder: make the pull strict from a dead hang with no help from the jump, go chest to bar, wear a weight vest, or set the bar higher so the jump has to be bigger to reach it.

What is the burpee pull-up for?

It is conditioning that includes the back, which most burpee variations leave out, so it suits circuit and metcon training and anyone who wants breathless work without neglecting pulling. It is a poor way to build pulling strength, since the reps degrade as you tire, and a poor choice if you cannot yet do several strict pull-ups or if your shoulders dislike high-rep hanging.

Intermediate

Burpee Pull-Up

The burpee pull-up stacks a vertical pull onto the classic burpee, so a single rep drives the legs, the pushing muscles of the chest, and the pulling chain of the lats and arms. Stand under a bar set just above your reach, hit the burpee, and let the jump carry your hands to the bar for the pull. It is a staple metcon movement for building conditioning that does not skip the back, and it teaches you to keep breathing while the whole body is loaded.

Equipment: Pull-Up Bar
Body part: Lats, Quads
Type: Cardio, Strength
Browse by muscle: Rectus Femoris, Vastus Lateralis, Latissimus Dorsi, Pectoralis Major Sternocostal
Browse by movement: Horizontal Press, Squat, Vertical Pull

How to do it

1
Stand under a pull-up bar that sits a few inches above your fingertips when you reach up while standing.
2
Squat down, plant your hands, and kick your feet back into a plank.
3
Lower your chest to touch the floor, then press back up to the plank.
4
Hop your feet back under your hips and drive up into a jump.
5
Catch the bar at the top of the jump and pull your chin over it.
6
Lower under control, drop back down, and begin the next rep.

Tips

Time the jump so your hands meet the bar as your feet leave the floor, letting momentum start the pull.
Keep the plank rigid on the descent so your hips do not sag when the chest hits the floor.
If the bar is too high to reach, use a step or lower it rather than lunging and losing the rhythm.

Variations

Common mistakes

The chest touches the floor and then the body peels up one segment at a time, the worm, which is slower than pressing back to the plank in one piece and harder on the low back.
Landing from the bar with straight legs on every rep is what leaves shins and knees sore the next day; meet the floor with the knees and hips bending.
The first ten reps are done at a sprint and the eleventh is a full stop under the bar; pick a pace you could hold for the whole set and keep moving.
Feet land behind the hips coming out of the plank, so the jump goes forward rather than up and the hands reach the bar late; hop them all the way underneath first.
Breathing stops during the pull, which is the moment you need air most; exhale on the way up to the bar and again on the way down to the floor.

Frequently asked

How many burpee pull-ups should you do when you are new to the exercise?: Five rounds of 5 reps with a minute of rest is a realistic start for someone who already has 8 to 10 strict pull-ups. A rep every minute on the minute for 10 minutes is another useful format, because it forces you to rest. Add reps per round before you add rounds, and end the set when your chest stops reaching the floor.
How do I make the burpee pull-up easier or harder?: Easier: use a lower bar so the pull becomes a jumping pull-up, put a band on the bar, step the feet back instead of hopping them, or take the floor half down to a push-up from the knees. Harder: make the pull strict from a dead hang with no help from the jump, go chest to bar, wear a weight vest, or set the bar higher so the jump has to be bigger to reach it.
What is the burpee pull-up for?: It is conditioning that includes the back, which most burpee variations leave out, so it suits circuit and metcon training and anyone who wants breathless work without neglecting pulling. It is a poor way to build pulling strength, since the reps degrade as you tire, and a poor choice if you cannot yet do several strict pull-ups or if your shoulders dislike high-rep hanging.

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