The humble burpee has been touted by some as ‘the best exercise in the world’. We’d like to add the title of the ‘world’s most hellish exercise’ to that, if we may. Not that we take either moniker lightly. But, as it turns out, the burpee has what it takes to make a decent claim on the first title, at least. A full-body exercise, you’ll rope in your legs, core, chest, back, and arms, as well as firing up your cardio capabilities. All of which makes for a guaranteed, calorie-combusting fat-blaster.

“The burpee is one of the most challenging exercises out there,” says health and wellness coach Kemo Marriott. “It’s a combination of strength and power that requires you to move the whole body. Given its relative complexity, it’s also a great move for stimulating the brain too, as you really have to focus on what you’re doing. In terms of muscle groups, you’ll find that every single one has to be stimulated, which is why this is such a great exercise to perform.”

Like most unpleasant things, the burpee workout was originally conceived as a test. Back in 1930, apparent sadist Royal H. Burpee (a physiologist based in the Bronx borough of New York City by trade) developed the burpee as a test of a patient’s overall fitness. He then used it as part of his thesis at Colombia University. Due to the burpee’s growing popularity, the US army then got in on the act, adopting it as its way of testing a soldier’s fitness during World War II. All of which is some fantastic trivia to run over in your mind as you cry through your next set.

In essence, burpees make for a fantastic HIIT (high-intensity interval training) move. You can do them anywhere, don’t need any kit, and the benefits are widespread from strength improvement to building cardio endurance you’ll notice next time you slip into a pair of running shoes. Not only that, but researchers have estimated that HIIT burns 50 per cent more calories than moderate exercise, such as that steady state jog you make yourself do twice a week. On average, a minute’s worth of burpees will burn anywhere between 10 and 20 calories – which is not to be sniffed at. By comparison, 10 minutes of press-ups is thought to burn just 57 calories.