Jump Rope Exercises

I've used the jump rope in the past for sport cross training and just general fitness.  High quality jump ropes are cheap and the exercises aren't complicated at all.

Quick and Easy to Remember

Dedicating a few minutes a day to using a jump or speed rope is a great way to get a quick cardio workout.  While I'm no expert on fitness training, I can recommend my favorite exercise that only takes a minute and can provide you with a high intensity exercise that you'll feel in your arms, legs, and gut.

The best product for a workout is going to be the speed rope.  The Valeo speed rope is a high quality and inexpensive option that I'd recommend.

These ropes will allow you to jump more quickly, which translates to a better workout overall.  It's also going to tire you out a lot faster, but that's the reason why these exercises are so efficient.  Jumping rope is a high intensity activity.

You can always just "jump rope" but there are a few problems with this.  First of all, not having a goal and just jumping will lead to boredom and pretty soon you won't want to continue.  There's just no immediate motivation to push yourself.

Set goals.  Count the number of jumps you can get in 15 seconds.  Do a set of 5 15 second intervals, taking breaks in between.  As you build up strength and conditioning you can move on to 30 seconds, and then a minute.  Build up slowly and deliberately, push yourself but don't get carried away.  Take rests in between each interval.  These exercises are similar to high intensity sprints.

So remember 

• Set a goal
• Jump in intervals 15-60 seconds
• Record number of jumps mentally
• Work to improve your number each time
• Don't worry about misses, if you're missing a lot it will be reflected in a low number of jumps count.

If you do a set of 2-3 intervals every day you will definitely start to see improvement in the number of jumps that you can get.  This will translate to better cardio and also give you a solid workout for your legs and arms.

The video above shows some different variations you can use if you want to get fancy, but the important thing is to be consistent.  Try to get in a few sets each day and you'll start to see results quickly.

The best way to stay motivated and be consistent is to set goals and follow through on them.  Make sure your goals are reasonable though, so that you can achieve them!  Reaching some number should just be a secondary benefit because it helps you stay motivated and doing the jump rope exercises on a daily basis.