March Fitness Challenge

Daily fitness challenge for the month of March. Complete 50 reverse burpees or technical get ups.

Daily Challenge

As a functional fitness coach of several years, I run a community-based fitness group outside of my gym. We discuss goals, meet weekly for outdoor workouts, and tackle a new daily challenge each month.

The intent of these daily challenges is to create productive habits and induce both mental and physical adaptations. The at-home exercise is never more than ten minutes - often less. Short, achievable tasks provide an opportunity to still earn the day when your plans get disrupted.

Consistency will always produce better and more lasting results than intermittent intensity.

Anyone can find a few minutes to do something beneficial for themselves.

That’s all you need to begin seeing progress.

The Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands (SAID) Principle is an exercise physiology concept that demonstrates the more you do anything, the better you get at that specific thing.

The body’s ability to physiologically adapt and optimize performance based on what we consistently put it through is amazing. Even more impressive is the mind’s plasticity in response to stress.

Machine learning for humans.

Fitness serves as a vehicle for resilience training, with the physical benefits secondary to the mental skills developed.

Showing up daily isn’t easy but it’s how lasting change is formed.

Enhance resilience by consistently embracing self-created challenges.

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The Skill of Falling

“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”

- Confucius

Getting back up after any kind of fall is inspiring. We all love a good comeback story.

Life is going to knock you down in countless ways. Returning to your feet is imperative.

It's also important to consider how to fall and how not to fall.

Metaphorically, some mistakes are almost impossible to fully come back from.

As an audiologist, I’m keenly aware of the consequences a bad fall can have on life trajectory.

As a martial artist, I’ve seen far too many brutal injuries from people attempting to post on their arms to break a fall leading to compound fractures.

Fall incorrectly or too hard and you may not be able to fully recover.

Objectively or metaphorically, what happens when we fall directly impacts our ability to efficiently and effectively get back up.

How we fall and rise, like anything else, is trainable.

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March Daily Challenge: Complete 50 reverse burpees or technical get ups

Reverse burpees and technical get ups are both excellent exercises that also teach proper falling and rising techniques.

Reverse burpees enhance:

• Neuromuscular strength and conditioning of the quads, glutes, and core.

• Core power generation

• Dynamic balance

• Proprioception/body awareness

• Falling skills

• Physical resilience

Technical get ups offer same benefits with the addition of a technical skill that provides stability while returning to your feet.

Poor reactions can become effective responses with training.

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Technique & Modifications

A reverse burpee is repetitive practice of how to effectively fall backwards. The way in which you get back up can be done in a variety of ways.

* Watch videos for technical demonstration and discussion. The written steps can help add detail to the micro-movements as needed *

Technically Falling

Rather than fall, we want to try and sit.

Deep squat holds aid in the ability to safely fall as they encourage the mobility and range of motion to sit as low as possible. We want to bend our knees and roll onto the ground rather than tip over and smack.

Tips for falling properly on any surface:

• Keep your chin tucked

• Engage core muscles while bending the knees attempting to bring your butt to your heels on the ground

• Keep head over the hips during your descent

• Don’t extend the limbs

• As the butt makes contact with the ground, make your back concave to cause a roll along the spine

• If unable to maintain control throughout the backwards fall at any point, turn to your side and contract your body to fetal position with hands over head. Still attempt to progressively make contact with the ground in the same way from low to high on your body positioning

• Head safety is paramount followed by limb safety during any fall

Getting Back Up

Reverse Burpee:

• Complete technical fall

• Slightly raising arms to help with momentum, complete a powerful sit-up that returns you to the deep squat position

• Focus on sitting your head up and through your legs to transfer weight over your base and onto your feet. Hands can post on the ground and be used to assist in getting to the deep squat position as needed

• From the deep squat, explode back up into a small jump and return to starting position

Technical Get Up:

• Complete technical fall

• Roll to either side knees bent, elbows connected to your ribs, and hands by chin with palms facing in

• Post bottom side forearm on the ground while simultaneously posting topside foot on the ground with knee facing up. This can be completed with a small side sit-up, or your topside hand can cross over your body and push off the ground to help you get to this position. Topside elbow can now transfer back across your body and connect to your same side thigh with hand up establishing a shield between your leg and arm. Bottom side leg should still be flat on the ground with knee bent and facing in direction of your original roll

• Shift your head forward to bring weight onto your bottom side hand so you can elevate from a forearm to a hand post. Slide hand back behind you during this movement as you establish post to provide stability and balance in the position

• From the established seated position, generate force through your back hand post and opposite side foot post to heist your hips off the ground

• Retract your now weightless bottom side knee to replace your backside hand post as you posture up. Turn that knee to face forward and allow your foot to post behind it providing more stability and base. Curl your toes and post on the ball of your foot

• Pushing off your back foot, drive your head forward to distribute weight over your front leg and stand up over that leg to return to the starting position

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Progression Guide

For beginners:

• Start with 10-15 reps and build up gradually

• Focus on proper form rather than speed

• Use soft surface like a yoga mat until you’re comfortable with the technique

• Use a sturdy object to help you down or up from the ground

For intermediate/advanced:

• Complete all 50 reps with minimal rest or unbroken

• Focus on efficiency without compromising form

• Experiment with both variations to challenge different movement patterns

Ten seconds per rep is still less than ten minutes overall for those who decide to go for 50 reps.

As always, compete with yourself yesterday.

Quality of movement is more important than quantity of repetitions. Become comfortable with the technique first, then increase your volume.

If you can’t do it slow, you can’t do it fast.

Show up and do your best.

Battle your internal resistance and get that small win.

Everything feels easier when you occasionally make things a little harder on purpose.

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Stacked Skill Developed

What I love about this challenge is that the modification, technical get up, arguably encourages the best adaptations and muscle memory from a self-defense perspective.

Falling and getting back up properly is essential for injury prevention. It can also be imperative for effective performance in response to a threat.

Productive skill development within fitness makes the pursuit exponentially more beneficial.

Stacking valuable inputs in training adds quality to the limited quantity of time we have throughout the day.

This is self-care.

The primary purpose of all of this - resilience development physically, mentally, and spiritually.

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Get Ready

I’m posting this a day early so everyone, including my international friends, can prepare to start strong on day one at their own skill and comfort level.

Track your times and modifications only to set a goal for the following day. The outcome doesn’t matter as long as you show up and put out.

Consistent effort leads to improved performance over time.

How will you respond when you don’t feel like it?

These are the days that matter most.

These are the days that change you.

These are the moments you see what you’re made of.

This is how resilient mental states are developed.

Embrace the challenge of discipline to optimize the skill of resilience.

Deliberate discomfort daily can cause improved comfort elsewhere forever.

By the end of March, if you consistently complete this challenge regardless of modifications, your skill in falling and muscle memory to effectively get back up will be enhanced.

Use a brief fitness routine to insert control and success into every day.

Self-care through self-challenge.

A few minutes a day can change your life.

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*Special Offer*

Join our community and earn a personalized 4-week fitness program based on your unique goals:

• Complete the challenge for more than half the month.

• Bonus give away for anyone who completes it every day.

In our community chat, we'll hold each other accountable by posting a ✅ after completing each day's challenge. Timing and modifications don't matter—just show up and do your best.

To claim your personalized 4-week fitness program, share your story at the end of March:

Share a reflection on your progress (either in the community chat or privately with me) and then I’ll confirm your ✅ count.

Join our community, and let's improve together.

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Disclaimer:

The content provided is intended for general knowledge and informational purposes only and is not a replacement for medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional prior to making any decisions or changes relating to your health. Kyle Shepard is not responsible for any adverse effects resulting from the use of information in this publication.