Skipping ropes to up your fitness game
A cardio workout is child’s play with these playground favourites.
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You might not have skipped since you were a child, you might not have ever skipped before in your life. But it’s easy to pick up, and after just a minute you’ll soon work out why it’s such a well-loved exercise. So jump to it!
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Skipping is a great cardio workout, but there’s more to it than that. It works all of the body—from your core to keep you upright and your calves every time you bounce, to your forearms and shoulder when you’re turning the rope. Research has found that it burns anywhere between 11 and 15 calories a minute, meaning it’s roughly equivalent to running but you have less chance of injury, as you’re jumping on the spot, rather than running over uneven ground where you are more likely to trip. Want to up your calorie burn? Buy a weighted rope.
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While it’s easy enough to get skipping in your own back yard, a number of gyms have developed their own classes if you’re looking to get a bit of instruction before you start going it alone. You might even find that there are clubs or meet-ups near you with fellow rope enthusiasts.
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While skipping is about as low tech as you can get, there are some seriously hi-tech ropes out there that can do everything from counting how many times you rotate the rope, and even flagging it up in LED lights, to logging your workout and synching it to your phone.