Todays workout was just a light one before sitting down to dinner. Snow is still thick on the ground so I went into the workshop at work and with my new heavy duty wire jump rope and Gymboss Timer, I jumped rope for 12×2 minute rounds with 30 seconds of ab work inbetween rounds. I followed this up with 10 sets of 25 push ups, alternating sets between hands wide apart, hands at shoulder width and hands together. Merry xmas.

Originally posted 2010-12-25 19:04:42.

For this evenings workout I ran to the football pitch and did bodyweight Tabata Intervals. Tabata Intervals are made up of 20 seconds of maximum intensity exercise, followed by 10 seconds of rest. This cycle is repeated 8 times (for a total of 4-minutes).

* Jump Rope
* Push-ups
* Squats
* Crunchies

I did this workout 4 times, each lasting 4 minutes, the total workout lasting 16 minutes.

On paper, Tabata intervals offer a quick way to get fit in just four minutes of high intensity work. But don’t be misled, Tabata intervals are hard.

This protocol was originally developed for Olympic caliber athletes. Tabata Intervals originated from a study by Dr Izumi Tabata into the effects of moderate-intensity endurance and high-intensity intermittent training on anaerobic capacity and VO2max. This groundbreaking 1996 study, published in the journal Medicine and Science in Sports & Exercise, provided documented evidence concerning the dramatic physiological benefits of high-intensity intermittent training. After just 6 weeks of testing, Dr. Tabata noted a 28% increase in anaerobic capacity in his subjects, along with a 14% increase in their ability to consume oxygen (V02Max). These results were witnessed in already physically fit athletes. The conclusion was that just four minutes of Tabata interval training could do more to boost aerobic and anaerobic capacity than an hour of endurance exercise.

Dr. Tabata reported that the subjects were wiped out by the routine when testing the protocol and remember they were Olympic caliber athletes, the protocol was described as 6-7 sets, most of the subjects were exhausted after the sixth set of sprints and couldn’t complete the seventh. This style of training isn’t for a beginner and should only be considered if you have a solid fitness base.

Originally posted 2009-05-06 18:52:58.

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.

Originally posted 2009-04-29 12:56:31.

Ran to the local football pitch as a warm up and then performed:

* 100 Jump Rope Turns
* 10 Burpees
* 10 Bodyweight Squats
* 10 Pushups

10 times.

Originally posted 2009-04-27 17:40:45.

Variety is an important concept to apply to your fitness program. Aerobic and high intensity anaerobic style conditioning, muscular fitness, stretching, core exercises and balance training should all be part of a balanced workout routine. It can be hard to devise regimes that include all of the above, luckily we don’t have to do it ourselves.

The American military have put together a series of free podcasts that include plenty of high intensity, aerobic and high intensity anaerobic style conditioning, fitness, stretching, core exercises and balance training. I’ve been using them on and off over the past couple of years to help add variety to my workouts.

The work along workouts are led by certified fitness trainers from all branches of the American Military. Most of the workouts are no equipment needed workouts that you can do anywhere, if equipment is called for its either a stability ball, a pair of dumbbells, resistance bands or jump rope.

There are a total of 80 workouts in all, lots of full body workouts or if your looking to strengthen and tone specific body parts there’s a workout for that too. The term podcast can be misleading since neither podcasting nor replaying podcasts requires an iPod or any portable music player in fact no special reader is needed to view the workouts as they’ll open in most browsers or they can be downloaded for use on mp3 players and ipods.

These programs takes viewers through workouts led by service members with expertise in fitness training.

These Fit for Duty episodes focus on high-energy cardiovascular workouts.

These episodes feature the Pilates method used to build strength, flexibility and agility.

These resistance training episodes feature a variety of fitness-building techniques, such as Marine Corps Martial Arts and weight training.

Originally posted 2009-11-22 15:43:51.

While I haven’t posted in an age, I haven’t stopped working out. I work out most days with maybe 2 or 3 days off a month. This evenings workout was a simple one. Using the Gymboss Timer I performed 12 x 2 minute rounds of jump rope then 12 x 2 minute rounds of bag work alternating between straight punches, hooks and combinations which I followed up with 3 x 2 min rounds of gentle rope work to cool down.