In Depth Look At Jump Rope Vs Speed Rope

In Depth Look At Jump Rope Vs Speed Rope

Jump rope vs speed rope: Which one is better? What purpose is each used? Who uses these ropes? How to use a speed rope or jump rope? When to use each rope? These questions, plus the pros and cons of each of the ropes, are addressed thoroughly in the article.

What is A Jump Rope? A jump rope is a cost efficient and space friendly cardiovascular exercise equipment. It’s typically made of PVC cord or nylon and comes in various adjustable sizes. A jump rope can be used by a wide range of people. The two most common uses of it are to increase your athleticism and to lose weight. So, if you're someone looking to work on your balance and agility, jump rope exercises are a great way to train. While, if you’re wanting to lose some weight, a jump rope is often considered a more time efficient cardio workout as it burns more calories in a short period of time.

But, jump rope has other uses as well. One being that it’s great for addressing smaller areas like foot strength, ankle strength, calf muscles, and tendon work, so if you’re someone looking to address these muscular imbalances or build up muscle and strength in joints, muscles, and tendon in the lower half of your legs.

You can perform a jump rope workout in various ways as well. If you’re looking to do an intensive and long workout, it might be best to do it on a day where you’re not lifting weights. However, a jump rope can also be used as a warm up, as it will get the blood flowing and work your entire body, so you can do a light 5 to 10 minute workout prior to lifting weights. It can also be used during active recovery days, where you’re assisting your recovery by moving your body and getting the blood flowing.

Pros • Helps with weight loss • Very space efficient and cheap cardio equipment • Helps work smaller muscle, tendon, joint groups. • Can get a great workout in a short amount of time

Cons • Harder to progress with double unders and other speed rope exercises • Can be tricky to make progress long term.

What is A Speed Rope? An easy way to think about a speed rope is that it’s the next level to a jump rope. A speed rope, like its name, is meant to be used for speed work as the cables are extremely light weight and usually made of thin vinyl cords, which makes it easier to increase the speed of your workout routine.

A speed rope is best used by either athletes or an experienced jump roper. As mentioned above, a speed rope really works best when you do it quickly. That’s the whole purpose of this equipment, so there is a competitive nature to speed ropes that works for athletes. Speed rope is common in sports like crossfit and is used by other athletes to improve their cardio and explosive power.

However, you don’t just have to be an athlete to use a speed rope. If you have a lot of experience with using a jump rope, it can be good progress to move onto a speed rope as it will present you with a new challenge. The reason you want some experience is that a speed rope is naturally quicker, so to get the jump timing right and to get the most out of a speed rope, you should already have tons of practice.

Pros • Great for cardio as it’s more intense and requires more movement • Helps train balance and coordination • More of a competitive nature to the workout • Great for exercise like the double unders

Cons of Speed Ropes More complicated for beginners

In Depth Look At Jump Rope Vs Speed Rope