Inverted Burpee Workouts and Technique Tips

June 1, 2021 Hafthor Sigmundsson

If you love to test your fitness in new and challenging ways then these Inverted Burpee Workouts will be perfect for you.

What is an Inverted Burpee?

The Inverted Burpee is a partial backwards roll into a freestanding handstand. A variation of the more traditional burpee, it is a great way to keep your training varied, fun and difficult.

This high-skill gymnastic movement strengthens the core, challenges balance and coordination, and tests any athlete’s bodily control. It can be used as a great way to test and improve your shoulder and core strength under fatigued conditions.

Inverted Burpee Technique

Set-Up:

Stand tall with both feet together and face forward
Make sure there’s nothing behind you to bash into!
Use a gymnastics-style mat for comfort

Execution:

Roll back to a supine position
From the supine position, kip, or sit-up and roll, to the feet
Place hands on the floor and kick up into a freestanding handstand
Squeeze the butt and tighten the abs to find control in the handstand
Return to the standing position to initiate the next repetition

Inverted Burpee Exercise – Extra Tips

To decrease the difficulty, kick up to a wall. This is a great way to get used to the general feel and flow of the Inverted Burpee as a movement. You can use this method to scale any of the following Inverted Burpee Workouts as well.

Points of Performance:

To get a “good rep,” ensure the following:

You must begin in a supine position with the shoulders on the floor and the feet overhead in a partial roll

You must momentarily hold (and show control in) a freestanding handstand where the shoulders, hips, and ankles are in line

Pro-Tip: In the handstand, squeeze the thighs together with a great deal of force. When the legs squeeze together, the whole body will increase its rigidity. The more rigid the body, the more sturdy and controlled the handstand will become.

WORKOUT 1

Buy-In: 50 Burpees

Directly into, 10 Rounds of:

3 Inverted Burpees
12 Shoulder Taps

With a running clock, as fast as possible perform the prescribed work. Athlete must complete the buy-in of 50 Burpees before moving on to 10 rounds of 3 Inverted Burpees and 12 Shoulder Taps, 6 on each shoulder.

Score is the time on the clock when the last round of the Shoulder Taps is completed.

Movement Standards

Shoulder Tap: From a Plank Hold position, tap the left shoulder with the right hand and the right shoulder with the left hand. Each tap counts as one rep.

WORKOUT 2

5 Rounds for Time

5 Shoulder-to-Overheads (185/135 lb)
10 Inverted Burpees

Each shoulder-to-overhead rep may be any type of jerk or press.

WORKOUT 3

AMRAP in 20 minutes

40 Air Squats
20 Push-Ups
10 Reverse Inverted Burpees

Every 2 minutes on the minute starting 0:00, perform:

40 Double-Unders

On a 20-minute clock, as many rounds and repetitions as possible (AMRAP) perform the prescribed work in the order written. Every 2 minutes on the minute starting at 0:00, perform 40 Double-Unders.

Score is the total number of rounds and repetitions completed before the 20-minute clock stops.

Scaling

AMRAP in 20 minutes

40 Air Squats
20 Knee Push-Ups
10 Inverted Burpees

Every 2 minutes on the minute starting 0:00, perform:

60 Single-Unders

WORKOUT 4

EMOM for 20 minutes

100 foot Sled Push (90/50 lb)
Max Rep Inverted Burpees with remaining time in each minute.

Each minute on the minute (EMOM) perform a 100-ft sled push, then as many Inverted Burpees as possible before starting the sled push again at the top of the next minute. Score is total number of Inverted Burpees completed in 20 minutes.

WORKOUT 5

4 Rounds for Time

20 Jerks (47/34 kg)
20 Air Squats
20 Hang Cleans (47/34 kg)
20 Inverted Burpees
20 Ring Dips
20 Overhead Barbell Lunges (47/34 kg)

Rest 4 minutes

Then, establish in 4 minutes:

1 rep max Overhead Press

With a running clock, as fast as possible perform the part one of the workout in the order written for 4 rounds. Rest 4 minutes. Then proceed to part two of the workout: Establish a 1 rep max Snatch in 4 minutes.

This workout will have 2 scores. Score A is the time on the clock when the 4 rounds of part one are completed. Score B is the maximum load successfully lifted for the Snatch within the 4-minute time cap.

INVERTED BURPEE WORKOUT 6

AMRAP in 15 minutes

3 Strict Pull-Ups
3 Inverted Burpees
3 Hollow Rocks
6 Strict Pull-Ups
6 Inverted Burpees
6 Hollow Rocks
Etc

Continue with this pattern, adding 3 reps to each movement after every round.

This triplet workout climbs by 3 reps each round until the 15 minutes is up. After completing the round of 6, you’ll progress to 9-12-15-18, etc.

Score is the total number of repetitions completed. However, to keep it simple, you can record the score as the number of the last round completed (eg: if you completed the 15’s plus 5 Strict Pull-Ups, your score would be 15+5).

Tips and Strategy

The Strict Pull-Ups will likely be the most challenging movement of the workout and the one that causes the athlete to slow down. Breaking them up early into small sets or even singles can allow the athlete to keep moving and lead to better consistency across the 15 minutes.

Although the Inverted Burpees and Hollow Rocks gives the upper body a break from pulling, they will definitely challenge the midline and body position in the Strict Pull-Ups. Another reason to break up the Strict Pull-Ups from the beginning.

WORKOUT 7

For Time:

100 Sit-Ups
90 Dumbbell Suitcase Deadlifts (50/35 lb)
80 Russian Twists (each side)
70 Up Downs
60 Alternating Box Step-Ups (24/20 in)
50 Bench Dips
40 Dumbbell Goblet Thrusters (50/35 lb)
30 Alternating Crab Kicks
20 Inverted Burpees
10 Wall Walks

Every 3 minutes, perform:

5 Inverted Burpees
15 Air Squats

Time Cap: 39 minutes

With a running clock, as fast as possible perform the prescribed work in the order written. Every 3 minutes, perform 5 Inverted Burpees and 15 Air Squats before continuing where you left off.

Score is the time on the clock when the workout is completed.

Movement Standards

Dumbbell Suitcase Deadlift: This is a variation of the standard Deadlift wherein the athlete will hold a Dumbbell on one hand and perform a single-arm Deadlift.

Up Down: This is a variation of the standard Burpee. Perform a standard Burpee without the Push-Up and stand up to full extension from the Plank Hold. This counts as one rep.

Alternating Crab Kick: Sit on the ground with heels planted on the floor and both hands behind you with the fingers facing backward. Lift the hips off the ground and kick your left leg up, then the right leg. This counts as one rep.

Scaling Options: Pick a weight on the light to the moderate side to be able to get big sets in this one.

INVERTED BURPEE WORKOUT 8

10 Rounds for Time

30 second Sandbag Hold
2 Inverted Burpees

There is no prescribed weight for the Sandbag Hold. Use whatever is available and as heavy as possible. Continue with the pattern, adding 2 Inverted Burpees every round.

With a running clock, as fast as possible perform the prescribed work in the order written for 10 rounds. For every round, athlete must complete the Sandbag Hold and Inverted Burpees. There is no prescribed weight for the Sandbag Hold. Use whatever is available and as heavy as possible. Continue with the pattern, adding 2 Inverted Burpees every round.

Score is the time on the clock when the last round of Inverted Burpees is completed.

Intended Stimulus

Every 30 second hold should be unbroken but a heavy challenge. Push the pace on the Inverted Burpees and get right back into the holds. Breathe and brace.

WORKOUT 9

21-15-9-9-15-21 Reps, For Time

Deadlifts (225/155 lb)
Inverted Burpees

With a running clock, as fast as possible perform 21 Deadlifts & 21 Inverted Burpees, 15 Deadlifts & 15 Inverted Burpees, 9 Deadlifts & 9 Inverted Burpees, 9 Deadlifts & 9 Inverted Burpees, 15 Deadlifts & 15 Inverted Burpees, 21 Deadlifts & 21 Inverted Burpees.

Score is the time on the clock when the final Burpee is completed.

Tips and Strategy

The athlete should establish a rep scheme that’s manageable for their current fitness level—and fight hard to stick with it. Rest breaks should be brief. Move smoothly and steadily. Here’s a rep scheme to try:

21 Deadlifts: 12-9
21 Inverted Burpees: Unbroken/Steady pace
15 Deadlifts: 10-5
15 Inverted Burpees: Unbroken/Steady pace
9 Deadlifts: 9 (Unbroken)
9 Inverted Burpees: Unbroken/Steady pace
9 Deadlifts: 5-4
9 Inverted Burpees: Unbroken/Steady pace
15 Deadlifts: 5-5-5
15 Inverted Burpees: Unbroken/Steady pace
21 Deadlifts: 7-7-7
21 Inverted Burpees: Unbroken/Steady pace

In the example above, the athlete does bigger sets at the beginning, and smaller sets towards the end. The goal, regardless of the partitioning, is to keep rest to a minimum.

Intended Stimulus

The workout should feel both mentally (ascending ladders are a mental hurdle) and physically (90 Inverted Burpees and 90 Deadlifts!) exhausting. The load for the Deadlifts should feel moderate, not too heavy, not too light. The pace should be strong, and rest should be minimal. A great goal for this workout is sub 20 minutes.

Scaling Options

Scale the load and/or the volume of “Donny” to prioritize a strong pace and minimal rest. If the athlete has to break the deadlifts up into more than 4 sets, they should reduce the weight. If the athlete thinks that the WOD will take longer than 30 minutes, they should scale the volume (fewer repetitions).

Beginner

12-9-6-6-9-12 Reps, For Time

Deadlifts (135/95 lb)
Inverted Burpees

INVERTED BURPEE WORKOUT 10

21-15-9 Reps for Time

Kettlebell Swings (70/53 lb)
Inverted Burpees

WORKOUT 11

For Time

30 Pull-Ups
30 Inverted Burpees
20 Pull-Ups
20 Inverted Burpees
10 Pull-Ups
10 Inverted Burpees

WORKOUT 12

For Time

100 Kettlebell Swings (32/24 kg)
2 Inverted Burpees at the top of each minute

Perform the Inverted Burpees at the beginning each minute, starting at 0:00, until all kettlebell swings are completed.

WORKOUT 13

EMOM For As Long As Possible

First minute:

1 Thruster (135/95 lb)
1 Burpee

Second minute:

2 Thrusters (135/95 lb)
2 Inverted Burpees

etc…

This is a “Death By…” style workout, which means with a running clock you start the workout by doing 1 thruster and 1 burpee. Rest until 2:00, then do 2 thrusters and 2 Inverted Burpees. Rest until 3:00, and continue, adding one repetition to each movement each minute, until you can no longer complete the required repetitions in the allotted minute.

Score is total number of rounds/minutes completed.

WORKOUT 14

5 Rounds for Time

15/10 calorie Assault Bike
10 Inverted Burpees

Assault Bike monitor must be reset each round. Someone else may reset your monitor for you.

INVERTED BURPEE WORKOUT 15

For Time

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of:

Thrusters (95/65 lb)

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10 reps of:

Inverted Burpees

With a running clock, perform one round of the thrusters before moving on to one round of Inverted Burpees. Alternate the two movements until you finish all the repetitions required.

Score is the time on the clock when the last round of Inverted Burpees is completed.

WORKOUT 16

For Time

20 Push Presses (65% of 1 RM)
20 Inverted Burpees
15 Push Presses (70% of 1 RM)
15 Inverted Burpees
10 Push Presses (75% of 1 RM)
10 Inverted Burpees
5 Push Presses (80% of 1 RM)
5 Inverted Burpees

With a running clock, as fast as possible perform the prescribed work in the order written. The load of the Push Press increases every set while the repetition decreases.

Score is the time on the clock when the last round of push presses is completed.

WORKOUT 17

For Time

15-14-13-12-11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of:

Calorie Row
Inverted Burpees

WORKOUT 18

AMRAP in 10 minutes

2 Russian Kettlebell Swings (24/16 kg)*
4 Inverted Burpees

*Add 2 reps after each round

WORKOUT 19 (TEAM)

AMRAP (in a team of 4) in 20 minutes

8 Inverted Burpees
21 Air Squats
12 Inverted Burpees

Complete as many rounds of the exercises in 20 minutes as possible in a safe manner. This is a four-person-team team “time-specific” workout. The purpose of this workout is to develop cohesion and combat fitness under fatigue conditions through shared hardship, challenges, and competition.

Each team will require a wall or other stable object to conduct the Inverted Burpees against.

All teams will start at the same time. Each exercise must be completed before moving to the next one (all 8 Inverted Burpees must be finished before starting the squats and all squats finished before starting the Inverted Burpees).

The athletes can take a rest at any time during the workout. Each team has to complete as many rounds as possible in the 20 minutes. The total number of complete rounds for each team member will be added together to obtain the total score for the team. Spotting is not permitted at any time.

What Muscles do Inverted Burpees Work?

reverse burpee is a calisthenics exercise that primarily targets the shoulders and to a lesser degree also targets the chest, middle back, quads, triceps, glutes and hamstrings.

What can I do Instead of Reverse Burpees?

Regular Burpees

Bar Facing Burpees

Burpees Over Box

Burpee Pull Ups

Wall Walks