The Man's Guide To Jumping Rope

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If you think that jump ropes are just kids' stuff, you're missing one of the smartest – and most portable – work-outs around. It's not only great for burning calories, it's also tailor-made to strengthen your heart.

Form the perspective of your wallet, there was never any contest. You can buy a treadmill of an annual gym membership for north of a thousand dollars, or you can get yourself a top-of-the-line jump rope for less than 20 bucks.

One other thing is for sure: if you approach jumping rope from the perspective that it's a little girl's game, you will be humiliated. Jumping rope requires more than a little bit of coordination. If the last time you jumped rope was in a schoolyard while waiting for the recess bell to ring, we suggest you take it in steps: practice the foot and hand motions separately before trying to do both in sequence.

In a nutshell:

  • Get the best surface for jumping. Carpet, asphalt, grass and concrete are all less than ideal. A wood floor is best.
  • Measure a proper length of rope by holding the handles and stepping on the rope. Shorten the rope until the handles reach your armpits.
  • Hold both rope handles in one hand and swing the rope to develop a feel for the rhythm. (Pro Tip: a beaded rope holds its shape better, and is easier to bend to your will, than cloth or vinyl rope.)
  • Next, without using the rope, practice jumping.
  • Finally, put the two together. If you can jump continuously for one minute your first time out of the gate, you're doing fantastically!

Remember: you're jumping rope, not hurdling. Most jump-rope n00bs mess up by trying to jump too high. Do it properly, and your feet won't ever get more than an inch off the ground.

But the payoff is very much worth the ignominy of realizing you are less coordinated than a seven year-old. You would have to run an eight-minute mile to burn off the same amount of calories in the same time as jumping rope.

For best results, incorporate jumping rope into your high-intensity interval training. At one jump per one revolution of the rope, jumping rope will be at the upper end of your intensity. Alternate ten minutes of jumping rope with running in place or jumping jacks for an effective cardio-boosting and carb-shredding routine.

Sources: Men's Fitness