Chicago area firefighter trying to set world record for burpee mile
CHICAGO (CBS)-- A firefighter from the northern suburbs will take a great physical challenge in the hopes of a world record.
A burpee is an exercise most of us love to hate. CBS 2's Jackie Kostek went up to the Ultimate Ninja Gym in Libertyville to join Ryan Seiffert on his last week of training for his burpee mile.
He's hoping the third time is a charm. This is the first time he's going for the record, but third year he's trained for the challenge. It's not just taking on this physical challenge that is inspiring but his reason why.
"The motivation from it all started from this guy named Jimmy Choi. He works out at our gym here at the Naperville location. Essentially, in his early adult life, he developed Parkinson's and instead of being defeated by it, he just devoted himself to fitness," Seiffert said.
Seiffert was already a fitness devotee himself when he met and heard the story of Jimmy Choi, who's a fan favorite on the show American Ninja Warrior. But he hadn't heard of a particular Choi challenge.
"One of the things he did was a burpee mile. And so when I heard this, I was like here's this guy in his 40's now doing a burpee mile. What's my excuse?" Seiffert said.
He said it's a burpee with a broad jump. You go down for a burpee, pop up and he said you "do that about 600 plus times."
By Seiffert's estimate, it will take him more than 600 burpees at a one burpee per 7-second pace to break the Guinness World Record for burpee mile broad jumps.
"It's a burpee mile in an hour and 15 minutes. That is the time to beat," Seiffert said.
By now, Seiffert knows the challenge well, having done it twice before.
"The first time I did it two years ago, it took over two hours to do it. It was the hardest thing ever. I was like, never again," He said.
Well, never say never.
"I did it again last year and I got it under two hours and then this year I was like, I wonder if there's a Guinness World Record on it," Seiffert said.
Saturday, surrounded by friends, family and fellow firefighters, Seiffert will chase that record, with Choi as his inspiration and the intention of raising money for the The Michael J. Fox Foundation.
