24 Hours Of Burpees

Yes, I decided to do 24hrs of burpees for charity in memory of my dad and his battle with a Brain tumour. Why the burpee? It's one of the worst exercises to do! Cancer is one of the most life sapping diseases-it takes everything of your loved one and tries to beat them. My thought was to battle the awful burpee for a 24hr period, to show my support for sufferers. It represented more than just an exercise, but the loved ones daily struggles-they can't give up so no way was I going to. So below I've written how those hours unfolded....

Preparation

    The prep for this event came in the form of Barrys Bootcamp. It is honestly one of my favourite workouts- no they didn't pay me to say this 😂it was a workout that hurt like hell but made me the fittest I've possibly ever been for. At that time I was going to class 3/4 times a week, accompanied with my own S&C session focussing on back and core strength.

How

    So it was D-Day! I'd stupidly forgotten to book the day off work 😂so I woke worked a 9-4 shift at work and went to The Gym in Angel. By 6:30pm the countdown was on and before I knew it the 24hr timer had begun. People ask me how did I even begin to approach it...firstly for the first 4hours I did sets of 50 Burpees as quickly but consistently as possible: 500 in 53minutes, 1000 in 2hrs 10minutes. As fatigue hit I broke down each hour in to six 10 minute segments. Aiming for 300 Burpees an hour, 50 every 10 minutes!  

   What was it like?

For the first 8 hours honestly actually okay! I had a strategy and in my head, knew it was one Burpee at a time. The worst time? Between 3am and 4am. These hours were so painful (this hour I only did 200 burpees)- fatigue was real and I was fading. At 5:20am I had to give into sleep and had the deepest 20minute nap in the history of the world! I was ready to kick start the final 12 hour stint! 

Fuel

My fuel was jam sandwiches and ready salted crisps 😂I have a reason! Before the challenge I had done a lot of research and actually contacted the WR holder (10,000 burpees he did 😱). He suggested I keep my salt levels as high as possible (his eye stopped functioning during his record as his salt levels dropped) and have quick edible source of carbs. So a cheeky picnic it was! Drinks wise, I had isotonic solution and water.

   The final hour arrived and my friend Lauren joined in with me. By this time I was extremely aware, amongst all the other DOMS in my body, that my foot was KILLING me. But power through I did. It was done. I did it. I completed 7015 burpees in 24hrs. I was the youngest ever to be crazy enough to attempt it. I had raised just over £1000 for the memory of my Dad. I was ridiculously emotional, shattered and overwhelmed. 

  The support I had was unbelievable. From people coming to visit me; the staff at the gym massaging my hip flexors at points of agony; and me even leading the end of a gym class for 15minutes of burpees! 

     I can't believe what I achieved in doing this challenge. It was something monumental for me. Not only physically but mentally. I learnt that the only limit is the one you create your mind. ANYTHING is possible if you believe in your mind, you are strong enough to battle it. I had muscle soreness for 7 days after, blistered knuckles and a stress fracture as a little gift too, but it was all worth it. 30,000 calories, 4kgs lost in weight, 12litres drunk and a mammoth 7015 burpees completed.

Do it again? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. No.