Tired of your Routine? Skipping Rope Might be your Solution

Think back to your elementary school days. Remember recess? If your memory serves you well, you’ll remember that skipping was a fun activity to do. Although it has been around for a long time, skipping has unfortunately become an overlooked form of training.

The reality is that the majority of people have, at some point in their training careers, given the jump rope a try. But after a few skipping rope exercises, these same people quickly came to the realization that skipping was no walk through the park. A few painful wips to the shin later and the rope was back in the closet.

One of the big reasons jumping rope is difficult when you first start off is the lack in timing and coordination. Skipping requires patience and a great deal of mental focus. More so, it requires concentration and dedication.

The purpose of this article is to share with you a great little technique that I’ve been using to help people develop that necessary timing and rhythm at a much faster rate. It will also minimize the painful whipping that occurs when you make mistakes during regular skipping.

What you want to do is place both handles of the skipping rope in one hand and start spinning the rope to the side of your body (right beside you). As you spin the rope, make sure that it hits the ground. Now as you listen to the rope-ground contact, I want you to jump each time you hear it. It’s OK to start slowly but progressively build up your pace. Continue practicing until your timing is dead on.

It is OK to interchange your pace as you go. Try different things. Go fast. Go slow. Whatever you do, continue to challenge yourself and your routine. That’s how you will improve. What I love about this technique is that the rope is always by your side so it’s next to impossible to mess up as you’re progressing. This is great because it eliminates the majority of the frustration from learning how to skip and you’ll be doing skipping rope exercises in no time.

Most importantly, never quit on yourself. Skipping is a frustrating activity at first because it requires such precise timing and patience. If you really want to improve, you have to stick with it. You have to keep stepping outside of your comfort zone to get results.

If you can use this technique to get your timing and rhythm down, you can then move onto these skipping rope exercises that can effectively improve your cardiovascular fitness.