Jump Rope - SO AWESOME!

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zarozinia
zarozinia Posts: 67 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi all,

A few weeks ago when I was out for a walk, I saw a woman jumping rope and I was like, "Hey, I forgot about that exercise!" I used to skip rope CONSTANTLY as a kid, but for some reason, my adult brain never even thought of it as a possibility for adult exercise until I saw that woman doing it. So, I went to Target and bought myself one of those ropes with the removable 2.5# weights in each handle and I've been doing 30 minutes of skipping while listening to podcasts, every other day. It was murder the first three days... My calves were SO SORE, but now my legs have recovered and my stamina is getting better. It's really been the best revelation I've had in years when it comes to exercise. I *hate* the gym with a passion, and my condo is too small to fit a treadmill, and I live in a fairly industrialized part of my city where there's not a lot of places for pedestrians to safely walk or ride bikes, so I was feeling like I had almost no options for safe and enjoyable exercise. But with the jump rope, I can workout indoors on my hardwood living room floor and not worry about being run over by a car or harassed by some shady person on the street. And the BEST thing of all is the amount of calories burned for the time spent jumping rope is WAY WAY WAY better than any other form of exercise I've tried.

I know others here jump rope, but I thought it needed saying again. :)

Replies

  • ambermichon
    ambermichon Posts: 404 Member
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    Yep my trainer told me that is the BEST cardio of anything!! It still kicks my butt
  • MadBabysMama
    MadBabysMama Posts: 373 Member
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    So maybe that's why I was such a skinny kid - I jumped rope all the time :) Thanks, you've inspired me. May get out and try it myself sometime soon.
  • wickedcricket
    wickedcricket Posts: 1,246 Member
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    30 minutes!? you skip rope for 30 minutes w/o stopping!? geez, I'm in bad shape LOL
    wtg - you're awesome
  • Amandanoralynn
    Amandanoralynn Posts: 231 Member
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    I love Jump Roping. I am not good at it and I am sad because of my muscle pain in my shoulders I can not do much of it at all. My ceilings are real low so jumping in the house doesn't work. I use to have a nice piece of plywood in the yard that made it good for jumping. I am glad you found something that workes for you and you love. Keep at it!
  • PuddinBelly
    PuddinBelly Posts: 3
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    30 minutes!!!! Good lord, you go girl!
  • sister_bear
    sister_bear Posts: 529 Member
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    Good idea!
  • SusM321
    SusM321 Posts: 141 Member
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    Thank you for the reminder! :laugh: How do we forget such a fun exercise!? I'm going out to grab one as soon as payday rolls around!!! :happy:
  • CindyWarner
    CindyWarner Posts: 138
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    I just might try that for myself. It does not cost that much and if boxers do it get in shape why not me?
  • bmw4deb
    bmw4deb Posts: 1,325 Member
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    great job!! I jump at work in the office or break room (when no one is around)
    I use 2lbs hand weights and just pretend it is a rope lol HEY it help burn some calories
    every hr or so :)
  • bmw4deb
    bmw4deb Posts: 1,325 Member
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    One more thing remember the lemon twist you wore on your
    ankle and jumped? round and round lol
    I found one at 5 below for $3.00 great calorie burn
  • melibea
    melibea Posts: 228
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    I love jumping rope! I rediscovered this exercise recently too after forgetting all about how I used to love it as a kid. I was a really fat kid though... I guess I just ate a lot lol.

    I got one made of like, fabric, and then it has a plastic weight at the center. I don't really like it that much and I want to get one that is completely plastic, but the one's I've seen have weights in the handles and I don't want those. Are those removable?
  • zarozinia
    zarozinia Posts: 67 Member
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    Haha! No, I don't jump for 30 minutes straight! I wish! ;)

    I jump until I can't and then I take a quick breather (usually no more than 30 seconds - enough to take a drink of water and catch my breath) and then I start up again. I do this for 30 minutes. For all intents and purposes, though, it doesn't affect your metabolism that drastically if you are starting and stopping a lot - just that you're keeping your heart rate in the target zone for 30 minutes. And if the fact that I'm sweating buckets by the time I'm done is any indication, it DEFINITELY counts as a work out! :)
  • zarozinia
    zarozinia Posts: 67 Member
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    I don't really like it that much and I want to get one that is completely plastic, but the one's I've seen have weights in the handles and I don't want those. Are those removable?

    Yes, the weights in the rope I have are removable. It's the Embark brand. I bought them thinking I'd start out without them and then add them later once I got used to skipping, but they turned out to be barely noticeable so I've kept them in. 2.5# sounds like a lot, but it really isn't much when you're not actively lifting it. :)
  • zarozinia
    zarozinia Posts: 67 Member
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    One more thing remember the lemon twist you wore on your
    ankle and jumped? round and round lol
    I found one at 5 below for $3.00 great calorie burn

    LOL! I loved that thing as a kid! Another great toy I bet would make a good workout is Pogo Balls. Remember those? They looked like Saturn; you stood on the plastic "ring" and pressed the ball between your feet and used it to jump. They'd probably be outlawed by today's safety standards, but man, I loved those things as a kid!
  • alli_baba
    alli_baba Posts: 232 Member
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    Wow! I was just thinking about buying a jump rope today. I have a friend who is in wicked shape and the only cardio she does is jumping rope (she's a former runner and she said she burns so many more calories jumping rope).

    She does all these crazy moves that really make her workout challenging (high knees, double-unders, etc.) and said she would teach me. I just need to buy a jump rope. She cautioned against buying a super-cheap jump rope because they don't "flow" as well and it will make the experience super-frustrating -- she said to expect to pay about $10 - $15 for a good one and to look for a "speed" rope, whatever that is.

    Anyway, I thought it was funny that you posted this at about the same time I was scouring the internet for reviews on a decent rope. Way to go on your progress -- I can't wait to get back into it.
  • knitnurse72
    knitnurse72 Posts: 8
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    I bought a jump rope a few weeks ago, and I do it in 1-minute segments throughout the day (in addition to a daily walk), and I love it! My goal is to get at least 5 minutes of jumping rope a day - I know it doesn't sound like much, but once I get there consistently, I'm going to increase the amount I do. I also used to love the lemon thing!! I found a similar one at 5Below - same thing but a funky ball on the end instead of a lemon - I bought it for my daughter but maybe I'll start using it :-)
  • bmw4deb
    bmw4deb Posts: 1,325 Member
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    The pogp ball lol I would kill myself with that thing now !

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