Quick jump rope interval workout

A jump rope is the ultimate cardio lovers workout tool. It gets your heart rate up, burns calories and basically works your entire body at one time. 

A jump rope HIIT workout is a cardio workout everyone can do.

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When you’re short on time or just looking for an intense workout, high-intensity interval training (HIIT) is a great way to get a workout in.

Jump rope HIIT routines are effective workouts that you can literally do at home or outside, depending on the weather.

What is high intensity interval training?

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) involves alternating brief periods of maximum effort with short periods of recovery time.

Typically, these cardio workouts are between 4 and 30 minutes due to the levels of exhaustion they bring. 

One of the most popular HIIT formats involves a 2:1 ratio of work to rest for a block of four minutes — an approach called Tabata training after the man who popularized the method, Izumi Tabata.

Some regimens utilizing a 2:1 ratio will maintain a set schedule — for example, 20 seconds of work, followed by 10 seconds of rest for the entire the workout.

This type of training also burns significantly more calories than steady-state cardio, like running and walking on a treadmill.

Why jump rope high intensity interval training?

There are many benefits to adding a jump rope into your HIIT training.

• It’s excellent for improving your cardiorespiratory fitness and
• Jump rope workouts are effective for weight loss
• Jump rope workouts are easy to master
• Complete, full-body workout
• Portable so you can take it anywhere
• Low risk of injury with lower impact on knees and ankles than running
• Short and high intensity skipping rope exercises boosts metabolism
• It is an intense full-body exercise that uses every muscle to burn more fat

Kinds of jump ropes

Basic jump ropes are made for beginners. They’re usually the least expensive

Speed ropes are lightweight and made to let you jump rope fast for maximum calorie burning.

Weighted jump ropes give your arms and shoulders a workout. They have extra weight—generally 1 to 2 pounds—integrated into the handles or the cable.

Jump rope HIIT workout

For this workout, you’ll only need a jump rope and maybe a mat if you’re working out on an uncomfortable surface. The workout includes jumps, bodyweight squats, push ups, alternating lunges, mountain climbers and a plank.

You’ll also need an interval timer. You can use the timer on your phone or download an interval timer app. Tabata Stopwatch Pro is my favorite free interval/Tabata app.

Create a circuit that utilizes the HIIT format but features enough variations in moves to keep the workout interesting.

During the 1 minute jump rope periods feel free to switch it up. You can do one leg jumps, criss-cross or reverse jumps. The goal is to have fun while you work out.

Types of jump rope techniques

Basic jumps: Stand tall with knees slightly bent. Keep your elbows close to your body, arms bent 90 degrees and hands pointing out from your hips while holding the rope handles. Jump with both feet. Stay up on your toes and keep a slight bend in your knees.

Boxer steps: Shift your weight from one foot to the other as the rope passes.

Crossovers: Cross your arms in front of your body on each jump.

Double unders: Speed up the turnover of your wrists to allow the rope to pass under your feet twice for each jump.

High knees: Start to alternate your hops with one foot at a time. Gradually, you begin hiking your knees towards your chest with each jump, forming a right angle with your lifted knee.

Traveling jumps: “Skip” forward, backward, and side to side while maintaining your jumps.

Do you need a weighted jump rope?

However, a weighted jump rope, which either incorporates extra weight into the handles or the rope itself, can add some resistance for your upper body.

Typically they weigh anywhere from 1/4 pound to 2 pounds—which may sound like nothing, but when you’re jumping rope around for a while, that weight adds up.

You can take a jump rope anywhere

Jump ropes are an easy way and excellent option for outdoor workouts at your favorite park. Many city parks have pull-up bars and other outdoor exercise facilities. With a jump rope, you can get an awesome total body workout by combining your favorite exercises on the available equipment with one- to three-minute jump rope intervals.

They are extremely portable, which makes them an excellent option when traveling. Most hotels have a basic workout room that features a few pieces of exercise equipment. If you pack a jump rope in your suitcase, regardless of the hotel gym, you can get a great workout with the added bonus of a sweat-filled jump rope session.

Wrap up

HIIT workouts are great for all fitness levels. A jump rope HIIT workout allows you to adapt them as a beginner workout and increase the intensity of intervals if you are a more advanced jumper.

The ability to customize and easily change intensities on the fly is entirely up to you. The goal is to go as hard as possible and really push yourself through each interval. You should already be jump roping as fast as you can, but you can turn up the difficulty by modifying the rest periods.