Skipping

[Douglas Hall]

whats good about skipping and what does it do 4 u.

Good for conditioning / fitness / cardio work.

Plus coordination, timing / rhythm and footwork. More demanding than it may look, even for people who are good and make it look easy.

Plus it's very portable, and something you can do at most places / homes.

[Howlin Mad Missy]

I have a couple. I prefer the plastic swivel type as I like to work on foot speed. Also have a leather one & weighted leather. Different ropes for different targets.

[Chris Nagel]

I bought the leather jump ropes at a local sporting goods store. All of my leather ropes have a nice swivel bearing that which does a decent job, although I have to oil it after long while. The last leather rope I got cost $5 because the plastic packaging was dented, and the store gave a 10% AAA member discount on top of that. The leather tends to break in, get more flexible after you've used the rope for a long time.

[beds]

i just have a nortech speedrope i think its called

light, cheap and effortless to move, plus my skippings coming on well now and im starting to look the part!

[Chris Nagel]

i just have a nortech speedrope i think its called

light, cheap and effortless to move, plus my skippings coming on well now and im starting to look the part!

Glad to hear it. Did the video help?

[wesrman]

I just have a cheap Everlast speed rope from Walmart.

[beds]

the video helped a bit, but as my pc screen is not outside it was just trial and error.

just keep practising until i could do different moves etc, cant do it properly yet but im not far off

[Douglas Hall]

the video helped a bit, but as my pc screen is not outside it was just trial and error.

just keep practising until i could do different moves etc, cant do it properly yet but im not far off

It's all practice and familiarity with skipping.

Don't make the mistakes I did for years, though, labour with poor arm and hand position, and using ropes that weren't short enough.

Get those key things right - elbows close, hands fairly low - but still so as it feels natural, and the rope not too long, and jumping only a small amount, and the rest will come with perserverence.

If you feel you need to be bending your arm more, or moving your arms out from your sides, it's a good indication that the rope needs shortening.

Good luck, and I'd be interested to hear how it goes for you as you improve.

[Douglas Hall]

Just another tip, something I've been doing recently - videoing yourself skipping - very good for spotting problems with technique, or things holding you back.

[Chris Nagel]

It's also a good idea to skip rope in front of a mirror.

[wesrman]

The Buddy Lee video is very good. Thanks again for mentioning it Chris.

[Douglas Hall]

It's also a good idea to skip rope in front of a mirror.

I'd agree with that, it's better for getting form right, than videoing, because with a mirror you can spot and make corrections there and then.

It's the downside to videoing for me - because I skip almost exclusively outside, there's no mirror, so I have to use the videocam, the problem, though, being that when you spot things you're doing wrong, it's afterwards, when you're watching.

Even so, it's been very useful to me, in seeing some of the things I'm doing with hand position, that I'm endeavouring to correct.

But it's a good point well made, if you can skip in front of a mirror, and see both your feet and your hands, it's got to be the best way of getting your technique down.