How Long Should a Jump Rope Be + Beginner Workout Guide

How Long Should a Jump Rope Be – Introduction

Cardio is arguably the most important fitness component.

After all, it doesn’t matter how big your biceps are or how much you can deadlift if your heart and lungs are weak or inefficient. 

There are lots of different cardio workouts to choose from, and each one will help you get fit, burn fat, and improve your cardiorespiratory health.

The key to cardio is actually finding the time to do it, so convenience and efficiency matter. 

Whether you work out at home or in a gym, one of the best cardio workouts is jumping rope.

The humble jump rope might seem very low-tech (it is!), but despite being a very old-school training method, it’s still one of the best ways to get fit and burn calories. 

In this guide, we take a closer look at jumping rope, tell you how to size your skip rope correctly, and serve up a couple of great workouts to try. 

Jump Rope Benefits  

Jumping rope is a very effective way to work out, get fit, and burn calories.

Here is a list of the top jump rope benefits: 

#1. Convenience

You can skip rope almost anywhere and anytime.

All you need is a few yards of space and your rope.

Because they are light and compact, you can take your rope wherever you go, so you have no excuse for missing your workout.

You can also skip rope indoors or out as preferred. 

#2. Cost-effective

While there are expensive jump ropes available, you can get PVC speed ropes for just a few dollars.

Compared to buying a treadmill or spin bike or joining a commercial gym, jumping rope is very budget-friendly. 

#3. Use to build aerobic or anaerobic fitness

You can use a skip rope to build both types of cardiorespiratory fitness; aerobic and anaerobic.

Go slow for 20-30 minutes to improve your aerobic fitness, or pick up the pace and do short, high-intensity intervals to develop your anaerobic fitness. 

#4. Good for agility and coordination

One of the most challenging aspects of jumping rope is not tripping.

This takes practice, timing, agility, and coordination.

Making sure your rope is the correct length is important, too.

If you play sports or just want to be better coordinated and agile, jumping rope will help. 

#5. Combines well with other workouts

While there is nothing wrong with just jumping rope, this exercise combines well with many different types of training.

Try jumping rope between sets of squats or push-ups, or build a circuit workout around rope jumping.

Not sure where to start?

Don’t worry; we’ve got a few workouts to try later in this article. 

#6. Fun!

While this is a personal observation, jumping rope is a very enjoyable workout.

Put on some music and jump rope in time.

Plus, once you’ve mastered basic skip rope, you can spice up your workout with tricks like crossovers, double unders, traveling, and lateral jumps. 

#7. Burn calories, lose weight

Skipping rope burns about ten calories per minute or 100 calories per ten minutes.

That compares favorably to other types of cardio, such as running and cycling.

Bear in mind that this is an estimation.

The actual number of calories burned during jump rope workouts depends on how fast you go, your weight and fitness, and if you do any tricks, such as double unders. 

How to Size a Jump Rope 

How long should a jump rope be?

What is the ideal skip rope length?

The answer is that to enjoy all the benefits of skipping rope, your rope must be the right length.

If it’s too long, it’ll drag on the floor and slow you down.

On the other hand, if it’s too short, it’ll keep catching on your feet, and you’ll need to keep stopping and restarting, which soon becomes frustrating. 

There are two easy ways to make sure your rope is the right size: 

Use a sizing chart

The taller you are, the longer your rope needs to be.

If you are buying a fixed-length rope, make sure it’s the right size by using this chart.

This is a useful method if you are purchasing a rope online or it’s in a package that you cannot open.

If you are between sizes, buy the longer rope as they’re usually easy to shorten.

A rope that’s not long enough could end up being unusable. 

Your Height	Recommended rope length
4’ up to 4′ 9″	7ft
4′ 10″ – 5′ 3″	8ft
5′ 4″ – 5′ 11″	9ft
6′ 0″ – 6′ 4″	10ft
6′ 4″ +	11ft

The step on the middle method 

This method is useful for fine-tuning your rope so that it’s customized to your needs. 

1. Stand on the middle of your rope with your feet together and a handle in each hand. 
2. Pull the handles up toward your armpits. 
3. If the handles don’t reach your armpits, it’s too short. 
4. If the handles are much higher than your armpits, it’s too long. 
5. If the handles just reach your armpits, it should be about right. 

While both of these methods will help you get the right size rope, you may still need to make adjustments based on your jump rope style.

For example, if you hold your arms out from your sides, you effectively shorten the rope, so you may need a longer one. 

Adjusting the length of your rope depends on the type you have purchased.

With fixed-length ropes, you can tie knots to shorten them.

With adjustable wire ropes, there are normally screws you can loosen so you can pull more wire through the handle. 

It may take a few workouts to get the rope length precisely right, but you’ll start enjoying smoother, more enjoyable workouts with fewer trips once you get it. 

Jump Rope Workouts for Beginners 

While you could just jump rope until you start to feel tired, you’ll probably get better results if you follow a more structured approach.

Here are three simple workouts designed to get you started with jump rope training. 

#1. Boxing rounds 

For this workout, set a timer for three minutes of work and one minute of rest.

Jump rope at a comfortable speed for three minutes, stop and recover for a minute, and then repeat 3-5 times to total 12-20 minutes. 

Three minutes is quite a long time, so feel free to cut this down to two minutes or even one minute, increasing as you get fitter.

Also, don’t worry if you trip and have to start again.

Even if your rope is the perfect length, trips still happen. 

2. Jump rope, push-ups, and squats 

This workout works almost all of your major muscles and also delivers an excellent cardiorespiratory training effect.

Just keep repeating this sequence for 10, 12, 15, or 20 minutes according to your fitness and how much time you have available:

1. Skip rope – 50 rope revolutions 
2. Push-ups – 10 
3. Squats – 15 

3. Jump rope pyramid 

This simple workout gets harder as you work your way through it, but you will have accumulated an impressive number of jump rope revolutions aka turns by the end.

Make sure you keep count! 

1. 10 skip rope turns – take one breath to recover 
2. 20 skip rope turns – take two breaths to recover 
3. 30 skip rope turns – take three breaths to recover 
4. 40 skip rope turns – take four breaths to recover 
5. 50 skip rope turns – take five breaths to recover 
6. 60 skip rope turns – take six breaths to recover 
7. 70 skip rope turns – take seven breaths to recover 
8. 80 skip rope turns – take eight breaths to recover 
9. 90 skip rope turns – take nine breaths to recover 
10. 100 skip rope turns – finished!  

Best Jump Ropes for Beginners – Recommended Gear

Needless to say, to do any kind of jump rope training, you’re going to need a jump rope.

Here are a few of our favorites!

#1. Honor Athletics Speed Rope

Jump ropes don’t come much more straightforward than this simple speed rope from Honor Athletics.

They’re available in a range of colors and are made from hardwearing PVC.

Despite the very reasonable price, this rope should provide many years of reliable use.

On the downside, it’s only available in 10ft, so it’s best for taller users. 

#2. Multifun Jump Rope with Digital Counter

If you keep losing count of how many rope rounds you’ve done or want to know how many calories you’ve burned, this rope is for you.

The Multifun Jump Rope is adjustable, and the handles have non-slip inserts.

Available in six attractive colors, this is a fast rope that spins very smoothly. 

#3. WOD Nation Wire Speed Jump Rope

This is the perfect rope for speed demons!

Instead of the more usual PVC cord, this model has a fast-spinning plastic-covered wire, so it’s ideal for high-intensity workouts.

The WOD Nation Speed Jump Rope is fully adjustable, supplied with two wires, available in nine colors, and comes with a handy storage bag.  

#4. Proud Panda Weighted Jump Rope 

This adjustable speed rope features weighted handles to increase the upper body demand of your skip rope workouts.

The weights are removable in case you want a less intense workout.

Weighted ropes are popular with boxers and MMA fighters looking to strengthen their shoulders. 

#5. CrossRope Get Lean Weighted Jump Rope Set

 

CrossRope is not just a workout tool; it’s a fitness community of thousands of jumpers to keep you motivated!

The rope is made from high-quality materials and built to last.

This is not the cheapest jump rope around, but it could be one of the best.

The weights are removable, and the rope is adjustable.

The handles feature super-smooth ball-bearing mechanisms.

This CrossRope Weighted Jump Rope Set is backed by a downloadable app. 

How Long Should a Jump Rope Be – Final Thoughts 

It’s hard to overstate just how effective skipping rope is for fitness and fat burning.

Whatever your goals are, jumping rope will help you get there.

Once you’ve got a properly sized skip rope, you can work out almost anywhere and anytime, and there are lots of different ways to use a rope.

Try interval training, Tabatas, or include skipping rope in a circuit workout.

Why not start your day with ten minutes of jump rope? 

Learning to skip rope is a process and requires practice, but most people should be able to master it pretty quickly.

The key is to start, so get yourself a rope, size it, and get to work.

There is a reason that jumping rope is such a highly regarded workout; it works! 

What’s Next

Jumping rope is a great addition to any workout, especially bodyweight workouts.

For example, add 25 – 50 skip rope turns to the start or end of this Great Beginner Bodyweight Workout Circuit.

However, as great as skipping rope is, it is not the only way to burn calories and change your body composition.

You might be surprised to learn How Many Calories You Can Burn Deadlifting and 27 Sensational Ways Deadlifts Change Your Body.

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• What Is Body Composition & Why It’s Vital for Health & Fitness
• How Many Calories Burned Jumping Jacks 5 Minutes a Day
• Neutral Grip Pull-Ups – Most Important Muscles Worked and Benefits
• What Muscles Do Push-Ups Work?
• Top 8 Exercises for Body Composition Transformation

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