On March 14, 2021, Cox set a new Guinness World Record for the most chest-to-ground burpees within one hour by a female. She completed 775 burpees. The record was made official by Guinness World Records in early May.
Belinda is a mom of two children and has worked as a teacher with the Upper Grand District School Board for 14 years. She taught at Centre Dufferin District High School in Shelburne for 12 years before beginning her current position in 2019 at Centre Wellington District High School in Fergus.
The previous record-holder was Alison Brown of Listowel, who completed 730 chest-to-ground burpees in December of 2020. Some of Belinda’s friends had tagged her in that article. Her husband, Chris Cox, encouraged her to beat the record. He was sure she could do it. Discussions amongst the couple were still happening when he applied.
With the application approved in January 2021, Belinda received a list of standards required to break the record. Cox took the time to read all the rules and made sure she understood the process. These burpees were different than the kind of burpees she was used to doing. She was also going to need to find witnesses and judges for the event.
Cox states that it took time to work out a strategy that would work for her to reach her goal. She tried a variety of different methods to ensure that she would meet the standards. Cox enjoyed the challenge of problem-solving as she worked towards completing her goal.
In her classroom, Belinda Cox consistently works to connect with students and help them reach their goals. As many have been struggling with the advent of COVID, Belinda has inspired her students to set clear goals and strive to meet them. She asks them to think about their physical activity and how that can affect their mental health.
Cox reached out to her current students and shared some of her experiences with the record-breaking process before being officially made public. She wanted to “connect on a personal level and get them to realize the possibilities.”
Belinda always tells her students she would never ask them to do anything that she would not do herself. “When a workout looks hard, and students grumble about it, I always go first. I know that after I go and they see it, they always do better than me. I set the bar, and they crush it.” Cox leads by example in her classroom, when wrestling, rugby, practising and competing in Crossfit, and even her ‘Polar Plunge’ to fundraise for the Special Olympics. Her newest example is a world record holder.
Her consistent teaching goal to have kids understand that taking risks can lead to rewards are an inspiration to all. “Trust the process, think the impossible, and do it by trying.” Congratulations, Belinda, on all of your accomplishments!
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