Skipping for MA/Boxing

[ashy51]

Can anyone tell me what the benefits of skipping are? And why is it so popular in martial arts/boxing?

I just want to know because its the only form of cardio where I can put my headphones on and go for as long as I like without getting bored. 15 minutes of skipping for me feels like 45 minutes of running and I actually enjoy doing it.

Also, is it suitable for people wanting to burn fat? Because thats one of my aims!

Any help appreciated, I just need as much info as possible!:rolleyes:

[DanCrase]

Skipping, aside from the cardio aspect, builds coordination between your hands and feet, helps you "flow" more when you fight and move around with greater agility and speed

[Hands Of Stone]

Skipping, like running, weights etc can be done in so many ways that you want to sort out why you're skipping before you even start.
You could do 20-minutes straight plodding at an even pace, 20 sets of 30secs sprint-30 recovery. You could mix a variety of steps, foot-patterns etc, mix it up like fight pace so theres no pattern, just make sure you're always pushing your lungs, never fully recovering. Also mix ropes up, alternating between a thai tube-rope and a speed rope.
The jury (well, my jury) is still out on the overlap between skipping and good footwork in sparring etc, mainly because the skipping stance is so vastly different from your typical fight stance, although it does increase endurance for the feet/calves etc .
Theres no better fix for poor footwork than some old cunt leaning over the ring shouting 'Back on your toes, tosser' when you drop flat footed.

The Hands

[Nak-Muay]

I think 3 x 3 minutes for kickboxing and 3 x 5 minutes for MMA is the only thing that makes sense... Try doing 30 seconds fast, 30 seconds faster during the rounds, no point skipping slowly.

You skip for co-ordination and calve strength, if you calves are strong enough to continually bounce up and down for the duration of your fight then surely that is enough?

Obviously if trying to lose weight then do more or if you are using cardio as extra conditioning, do more... I would say tailored circuits are better conditioning though.

[Maccavelli]

Its poplular cause you can get 30 guys in a room doing it. If your aim is to lose fat your skipping modality should be in the form of high intensity intervals with recovery.

Also you would need to be on top of your nutrition as you cant really outwork a crappy diet.

If your looking for something progressive try theses sorts of intervals and tempo "skips" i pulled this from an old thread i wrote but it should be coolio for what you want to do. Might be hard to judge the time without a minion but it helps you get the idea.

Try this out

Week 1-3
Sprint 30 secs rest 1min 30 secs
4 sets week 1
5 sets week 2
6 sets week 3

Week 4-6
Sprint 30 secs rest 60 secs
5 sets week 4
6 sets week 5
7 sets week 6

Week 7-9
Sprint 30 secs rest 30 secs
6 sets week 7
7 sets week 8
8 sets week 9

Week 10-12
Sprint 20 secs rest 20 secs
6 sets week 10
8 sets week 11
10 sets week 12

weeks 13-15
Sprint 20 sec recover 10 sec
6 sets week 13
8 sets week 14
10 sets week 15

Could also use the tracks or some tempo running (this is comfortably hard running) With these i use a Heart rate monitor to gauge recovery when the number after finishing a run drops by 30 bpm or so or when you feel good to go do so.

Week 1 2min run 3 sets
Week 2 2min run 4 sets
week 3 2min run 5 sets
week 4 3 min run 4 sets
week 5 3 min run 5 sets
week 6 3 min run 6 sets
week 7 4 min run 4 sets
week 8 4 min run 5 sets
week 9 5 min run 3 sets
week 10 5 min run 4 sets

Like Leigh R mentioned in another post anything you do thats hard will work well. This program has the added advantage of letting you see improvemnet in the amount or work done.

Id get to the track 3-4 times per week and do 2 of the fast pace runs a week and 1 to 2 tempo runs.

If you try it let me know how you get on.

[Nak-Muay]

Skipping is not the best thing to do in intervals in my opinion though because when you say 'go' half the people in the room take a few seconds to start and then when they get going inevitably hit their toes meaning they have to stop and take an 'extra' few seconds to sort the rope out and go again.

Why not just do sprints for interval based cardio or tabatta type bag work?
*Just noticed you posted sprints underneath ;)

[Maccavelli]

Yeah i agree it was something i originally wrote for a dude running a track/treadmill so the logistics may be a problem. Gives you the idea though.

The same principles apply though if your decent at skipping it shouldnt be an issue what with catching the toes. I do prefer to do interval work on other stuff though.

[pauljono1120]

Good point aplin lol, i went skipping earlier for fun, i had to sort the rope out like every 10 seconds lmao

[NeilD]

Theres no better fix for poor footwork than some old cunt leaning over the ring shouting 'Back on your toes, tosser' when you drop flat footed.

The Hands

what a fuckin quote lmao :D

[badshah]

Skipping is a very convient way to work cardio, If you have a martial arts timer it makes the world of difference.

set the timmer to the the round length you'll be competing in (2min for boxing, 5min for mma etc) with a 1min rest period.

and just have a good cardio workout. To increase intensity, add ankle weights, weighted vest, suana suit etc.

a Good rope is a must, the best I've found is sold by Taosports which is a plastic coated metal cord, and handles with a good swivel joint. The metal cord keeps the arch shape well, and the swivel joints allow you to really get the speed up.

Skipping bare footed with this kind of rope is a big NO, NO.

to jump rope, not much space is required, and if you hate running, why not.

It's a great warm up too, 5-10min niece and easy, gets the heart going, body temp up, and a light sweat.

link to jump rope training by Ross - http://www.rossboxing.com/thegym/thegym26.htm

the rope i mentioned - http://www.taosport.co.uk/shop/equipment/index.htm

video of what can be done with a skipping rope - http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=lVkYjp4mqnc&eurl=http://www.rossboxing.com/thegym/thegym26.htm