Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Whether you call it Skipping, Rope Skipping, Jump Roping or Rope Jumping… it is the best activity to help fight Heart Disease, Obesity, Type II Diabetes, and Osteoporosis while improving strength and fitness it’s a tried and true method for improving conditioning and coordination. If you have never jumped rope before, expect a challenge. The benefits of this simple but yet complex training technique ranks as an ideal full body workout, bone builder, and as one of the most efficient ways of improving cardiovascular fitness in as little as ten minutes.

Jump rope training will enhance:

* Agility
* Fat Loss
* Footwork
* Endurance
* Vertical Leap
* Coordination

First, you need to purchase a jump rope. I personally prefer a light weight plastic speed rope. In my opinion, these ropes are more effective than heavier leather ropes and weighted ropes. The speed rope allows you to maintain a much faster spinning pace. You can find a good quality rope at most sporting good stores or through any boxing equipment supplier.

After you find a good rope, you need to find a place to use it. I recommend jumping rope on a shock absorbent surface such as a sprung wooden floor, gym mat, outdoor track, or tennis court. If you train at a boxing gym, you’ll probably the best place to jump rope will be inside the ring. The ring is very forgiving to the ankles and feet.

Treat jumping rope like any other cardio exercise by starting to jump slowly, as well as slowly cooling down at the end of your workout. Jumping rope takes skill and coordination, don’t get frustrated. With practice, your abilities will improve quickly, along with your condition.

Jumping rope is as challenging as you make it. There are endless jumping patterns and styles.

Basic jump:
This is where both feet are slightly apart and jump at the same time over the rope. Beginners should master this technique first before moving onto more advanced techniques.

Alternate foot jump (speed step):
This style consists of using alternate feet to jump off the ground. This technique can be used to effectively double the number of skips per minute as compared to the above technique.

Criss-cross:
This method is similar to the basic jump with the only difference being that while jumping, the left hand goes to the right part of the body and vice versa for the right hand.

Double under:
To perform a double under, the participant needs to jump up a bit higher than usual while swinging the rope twice under his feet. It is possible to have the rope swing three times under the feet (triple under). In fact, in competitive jump rope, triples, quadruples (“quads”), and quintuples (“quins”) are not uncommon.

Jump Rope Sizes:
7ft (2.13m) suitable for someone 4’ 10″ (1.47m) and under in height
8ft (2.44m) suitable for someone between 4’ 11″ to 5’ 4″ (1.48m to 1.63m) in height
9ft (2.74m) suitable for suitable for someone between 5’ 5″ to 5’ 11″ (1.64m to 1.80m) in height
10ft (3.05m) suitable for suitable for someone 6’ 0″ (1.81m) and over in height

Check out Floyd Mayweather Junior dancing with the jump rope.

Tagged as: jump rope, rope jumping, rope skipping, skipping, workout equipment

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