Burn Maximum Calories with this Beginner Jump Rope Workout

Have you ever wondered why boxers are so well trained and fit? It’s not all down to their punches and jabs in the ring. In boxing training, jumping rope is one of the main players. Even though it looks easy, jumping rope is a highly strenuous exercise for both body and mind. It encourages stamina, footwork, responsiveness, and coordination like few other training methods will. And there’s an added bonus: plyometric training (jump training), will visibly improve your performance in other sports, such as running – as confirmed by a study published in the International Journal of Sports, Physiology and Performance.

Find out more: Read more about the benefits of jumping rope and proper jumping technique here.

If you’re looking for an effective strength-endurance workout that will push you to your limit, try our jump rope workout. It’s specifically designed for beginners, so you don’t need to have any special skills or know any tricks. The only requirement is that you can do a simple jump with the rope. If you have a knee injury or suffer from back problems, check out our Low Impact Training instead – jump training puts quite a lot of stress on the joints.

The Warm-Up:

Take five to ten minutes to warm up, to prepare your body for the session. Good exercises before your jump rope workout include:

• Jumping jacks
• Bodyweight squats
• Jogging on the spot
• Lunges

The Workout:

Grab your jump rope. To make sure it’s the ideal length for your height, hold each end of the rope in one hand and stand on the middle. Pull the rope up along your body and the ends should reach up to just below your chest.

This HIIT workout consists of four exercises. Complete them consecutively for 30 seconds each, with 10 seconds rest in between. After one set, rest for 60 to 90 seconds, then repeat – you should complete a total of three to five sets.

Tip: If you easily manage the 30 seconds per exercise, then increase to 45 seconds the next time through, and then to 50 seconds. But take it slow to start.

Exercise	Workout	Rest
Jumping the Rope	30 seconds	10 seconds
Easy Jumping	30 seconds	10 seconds
Air Squats with the Rope	30 seconds	10 seconds
Jumping Double Taps	30 seconds	10 seconds

The Exercises

#1 Jumping the Rope

Fold the jump rope twice and place it parallel to you on the floor so that you are facing towards its front end. Once the timer starts, bend your knees slightly, push off the ground with your heels and jump to the other side of the rope. Land softly with knees slightly bent. Continue, jumping from right to left and back again.

Muscles: core, glutes, quads, hamstrings, and calves.

Remember: Tighten your abs and glutes. Use your arms to build momentum.

#2 Easy Jumping

The next exercise is the classic jumping rope on the spot. Keep your arms close to your body and your shoulders and forearms still. Jump off the balls of your feet and land softly without fully setting your heels down. Always keep your legs slightly bent. The movement of the rope comes from rotating your wrists, not your arms.

Muscles: core, glutes, thighs and calves.

Remember: You don’t have to jump high – a few centimeters are enough.

#3 Air Squats with the Rope

Grasp the rope with your hands shoulder-width apart and extend your arms above your head. From this position, do air squats – in other words, classic squats – holding the rope above your head the whole time.

Muscles: core, glutes, quads, hamstrings, shoulders, upper back.

Remember: Tense your abs and keep your upper body upright; make sure your neck is relaxed. If you’re having a hard time doing a deep squat, rest your heels on two weight plates or thin books.

#4 Jumping Double Taps

Set the jump rope aside for the final exercise. Stand with your feet hip-width apart, keep your torso upright, and jump upward. While you’re in the air, tap your stomach twice with your fingers. Land and then immediately jump up again.

Muscles: glutes, quads, hamstrings, and calves.

Remember: Explosive power is the key to this exercise. Jump as high as you can every time. Tighten your abs.

The Cool Down

You did it! You should be proud of yourself – we certainly are. Now make sure that your heart rate drops slowly and your body temperature returns to normal. You’ll find plenty of stretching exercises here. 

After a sweaty workout like this, you can also reach for our Recovery Aminos. BCAAs and fast-acting carbohydrates give your muscles back what they expended during the session.

More workouts from foodspring:

• The Ultimate Workout for Rounded and Healthy Shoulders
• Get Your Muscles Burning With Our Medicine Ball Workout
• This Outdoor Workout Is a Real Fat Burner and You Won’t Need Any Equipment

Sources for this article

We at foodspring use only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial policy to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.