Jump rope vs. Running

**Goju - Joe** · Posted On: 9/18/2007 8:33am

Running is less boring if you run somewhere / go for a jog.

you can't really go for a nice "jump Rope" out by the beach on a beautiful day...

... or can you??

Hmmmm

**Rivington** · Posted On: 9/18/2007 9:39am

I skip rope. It definitely is a skill you need to master, then you can get some cardio benefits out of it. I tend to do intervals: five minutes of skipping, then a minute rest, five minutes of double unders, then a minute rest, then back to skipping.

**nomamao** · Posted On: 9/18/2007 9:41am

I jump rope in the park in the morning, and it's about the same thing on a scale of "boring" or not, because there are always some bystanders at some point during the jumping to keep me "on my toes" so to speak. Even though I'm sweating like I just showered, I try to NEVER let anyone see me looking tired.

I tried rounds with weighted gloves on a couple of times, and couldn't keep up the facade for long.

:(

**nomamao** · Posted On: 9/18/2007 9:48am

Originally Posted by Rivington

I skip rope. It definitely is a skill you need to master, then you can get some cardio benefits out of it. I tend to do intervals: five minutes of skipping, then a minute rest, five minutes of double unders, then a minute rest, then back to skipping.

5 minutes of double-unders sounds like a bitch. My hat is off to you, man.

I like to spice up my rounds with them... maybe 10 skips followed by 5-10 double-unders and repeat for rounds.

**new2bjj** · Posted On: 9/18/2007 11:01am

I heard that 20 minutes of jumping should be enough. There is supposedly a greater chance of joint issues if you go over that. But that could be based on heavier people, so who knows? But you don't want to **** up your joints. I go see my aged mom in her Rehab for her broken arm, and you can see all the gnarled seniors in there. It's depressing. Take care of your joints, run on grass or get on the elliptical. Lifes short, I know, but it's more miserable with arthiritis.

**Rivington** · Posted On: 9/18/2007 11:30am

Originally Posted by nomamao

5 minutes of double-unders sounds like a bitch. My hat is off to you, man.

Yup. Took quite a while to get to that point. I got my rope in February, and I'm still skipping twice for that one burst of doubles.

**kwoww** · Posted On: 9/18/2007 10:09pm

I can't even jump rope without dropping the thing every few go-rounds.

Curse my lack of coordination!

**nomamao** · Posted On: 9/19/2007 9:56am

Well, nobody ever said it was going to be easy, but it will improve a lot of things as you get better with it.

Coordination, timing, speed, in-and-out-timing, endurance, focus... all of these will be improved with constant rope work.

**Ryno** · Posted On: 9/19/2007 11:30am

I've got a speed rope, and would be scared to try that **** barefoot. It stings pretty good when I mistime a jump and it slaps me in the legs. And with how shitty I am, that is quite a bit. But here in Seattle, where the weather is already starting to get shitty, it's a great option. I did 25 minutes last night in my living room while watching some football that I had taped. You really couldn't ask for a more convenient workout.

**Sh0t** · Posted On: 9/19/2007 2:29pm

Newsflash: improving your coordination by getting better at rope jumping helps in our combat sports.

If you always do what is easy for you, you won't be improving.

Your body is "designed" to be mobile, exposing yourself to joint impact alongside a good diet will give your body a reason to adapt and for your bones to get denser along with your connective tissues, etc.

While ellipticals have less impact, the unchanging groove of the machine is actually a big risk factor in some joint conditions.