Jump Rope

Ron, this one is for you, buddy.

Disclaimer: I am NOT a jump rope expert, or even close. I am not an expert at anything other than music. I can hold my own in pistol shooting and I am following in the footsteps of kettlebell masters, but otherwise I am just a guy with a little personal experience. In fact, everything I write and publish anywhere, even stuff someone else has said or taught me, comes from personal experience and is my opinion based on that. You probably want to learn jump rope from a real expert, like Buddy Lee.

Here is my personal experience with jumping rope:

From my experience, it has great benefits for kettlebell lifters. Valery recommends running to massage the innards and build wind. I have only been a runner twice in my life, and only when forced to in the police academy and ROTC. I so loathe it. Jump rope is a great alternative to get the above benefits and more.

The consensus is that it is 3 times as effective as running. That means 10 minutes of skipping rope is like 30 minutes of running. A no-brainer for me.

It builds wind

the rotation action of the wrists are very therapeutic for the forearm and is a great warm-up and active recovery exercise for any kettlebell lifting. Swing, clean, and snatch work the grip when holding onto the bell, and the snatch, press, clean, and jerk put pressure on the back of the forearm. Jump rope is great to work out the whole arms and help recover.

The rhythm is variable, and requires coordination. Again, obviously a benefit for kettlebell lifters.

The shoulders and upper body are under resistance, but do not move much. It is almost "static" like the rack position and the overhead lockout. Great practice in building endurance and energy efficiency without weight on your body.

Technique and programming:

Like anything else, here the goal is performing the set with ease and efficiency. Do not do more work than you have to. That means jump an inch off the ground and go a steady pace. Or you could vary it and do intervals, etc. The possibilities are limitless. Experiment with what muscles are doing what share of the work getting the rope to spin and get you off the floor. Be light on your feet.

Buddy Lee recommends a "500" program for beginners. Like anything else, the learning curve will be steady and you will get it if you stick to it. I was so frustrated when I first started. Work on not skipping and being able to do at least 140 skips in a row. Do sets of 140, 140, 140, and 80. That adds up to 500. Rest as needed in between, but as you get better, cut the rest time down until the whole set is around 3- 4 minutes. Do that at that pace without a skip and you can move on from there.

I like to alternate sets of 100-200 with sets of swings. My rest lasts until the second hand gets to the 12 again. This is after my money kettlebell sets.

More on other beneficial exercises I like on another day.

Happy Jumping!