According to the Harvard Heart Letter, one can burn 300 to 400 calories in 30 minutes of rope jumping. This fast-paced, coordination-intense form of cardiovascular exercise also tones arms, legs and core muscles. Jump ropes are inexpensive and portable. While rope jumping might look intimidating at first, you can master it if you take the time to start with basics and work your way up to more demanding variations.
Basic Jump
Hold the jump rope’s handles in each hand. Stand just in front of the rope with your feet between hip- and shoulder-width apart, elbows bent and tucked against your sides, forearms extended out to your sides.
Rotate the rope over your head and down in front of you, using your wrists and forearms to provide the power. Balance on the balls of your feet and jump off the ground with both feet at once, aiming to just barely clear the rope with each rotation. One to 2 inches of clearance is enough.
High Knees
A simple variation on the basic jump, this targets your hip flexors and core, plus challenging your cardiovascular system.
Begin as described above for the basic jump. Once you’ve got the rope swinging in rhythm, lift one knee up to hip height with each jump; the other leg clears the rope as usual. Alternate knees. Challenge your coordination and lung power by picking up as much speed as possible for 30-second intervals.
Butt Kicks
This variation on the basic jump targets your hamstrings.
Begin with the basic jump, then bring one heel at a time up as if you were kicking yourself in the buttock on the same side (left heel kicks left buttock). Alternate heels. Your other foot will just clear the rope as usual with each hop. As with high knees, practice until you’ve got the rhythm down, then challenge yourself to pick up speed.
Double Unders
This variation on any of the exercises listed above will work your wrists and forearms, challenge your abs to hold the rest of your body still and test your coordination.
Begin any of the basic jumping patterns described above. Once you have a good rhythm going, swing the rope quickly so it passes under your body twice for each jump. Try this jumping with both feet together, at first, then add it in to any of the other variations described above.
Figure Eight
This exercise tones your shoulders and arms and also breaks up the potential boredom of a long rope-jumping session. Grab the rope handles and hold them together in front of your body, then move the handles in a figure eight motion.
Starting in front of your right shoulder, move both hands down toward your left hip, then up to in front of your left shoulder and across and down to your right hip. This is an arm and rhythm exercise. Don’t jump the rope, although you can shift your weight from side to side or even jump from one foot to the other, just not over the rope.
Do this exercise on its own as part of your jump rope workout or mix it in for several beats between other jumps.
About this Author
Marie Mulrooney has written professionally since 2001. Her diverse background includes numerous outdoor pursuits, personal training and linguistics. She studied mathematics at the University of Alaska Anchorage and contributes regularly to various online publications. Print publication credits include national magazines, poetry awards and long-lived columns about local outdoor adventures.
