Trouble with Doubles?
Skipping is a great way to improve our cardiovascular endurance and learning double unders improves our coordination as well. If you are reading this and don’t do CrossFit, a double under is when you jump once but the rope passes under your feet twice. Sounds easy enough, right?
We all have room to improve our double under technique and now is an awesome time to work on it. I wanted to give you some tips and then a little routine that helped me achieve them :)
Phase 1:
Improve your Single Skip
- Buy a rope. There are lots on Amazon and a simple speed rope is best.
- Stay upright in the torso and keep the gaze forward (not on the ground). .
- Slow down the rope but jump a bit higher. You should feel like you are rebounding off a trampoline.
- Keep your arms down and in front of you. You should be able to see your hands.
- Stay relaxed through the shoulders and remember to breathe.
- Once you can do 200 single skips with good form it is time to move to Phase 2.
Phase 2:
Learning the Double Under:
- Do 30 seconds of the tap tap drill, go here for an example.
- Perform a few singles and then attempt a double without changing the jump.
- Keep the jump speed consistent and avoid speeding up as you anticipate the double.
- Speed up the rope by whipping the wrists.
- Don’t over practice. Only allow yourself the following:
- 60 seconds of double unders or attempts followed by 60 seconds of rest for 3 sets
- Count your attempts and this can be done daily but only once per day.
- Over practicing your double unders can lead to shin splints and tight, pulled or torn calf muscles so don’t be tempted to do it.
If you want a good video to watch on developing your technique here is a good one. Have fun with this and I would love to hear how it goes!
Coach Tracey
“There may be people who have more talent than you, but there’s no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do – and I believe that.” Derek Jeter
