Hi and welcome to the latest edition of our guide
to helping you with ideas to get fit and healthy
There are many ways to keep fit this summer, your local leisure centre will have lots of different activities for you to try out from I-gym (a unique way to get fit using computer games) to racket sports! But if you don’t like going to your leisure centre then skipping is a great way for you to stay healthy, and all it requires is a pair of trainers and a skipping rope.
SKIPPING: A cheap and fun way to keep fit
Skipping is a sport that many of you will associate with the school playground, where you would jump over the rope shouting about a teddy bear falling to sleep. But many people don’t realise that skipping is a strong and fast-paced cardiovascular work out. Skipping targets your calves, thighs, bottom and shoulders as you are using many muscles when you skip.
So what does skipping involve? Well all you need to skip is a rope. Unlike running, skipping is a much gentler sport, but just doing a twenty minute work out will make you lose about 250 calories, the equivalent of a brisk jog. And if you are ever bored these summer months then pick up a rope anywhere and everywhere as skipping can be done from your local park to your back garden. And if you become great at skipping, then why not join a skipping club in your local area, where you can learn many new extreme moves and even take part in national and local competitions.
Skipping
Get fit, lose some pounds or maintain a healthy weight
The science of skipping shows that it strengthens your cardiovascular system, improves your agility, tones the muscles in your legs as well as toning your abdominals, back, chest and shoulders. It’s inexpensive, can be done almost anywhere and it’s really good fun.
To help prevent injury, you should aim to skip in trainers, ideally on a sprung studio floor and skipping to music, combining different foot combinations and also adding circuit exercises will prevent you becoming bored.
Medium impact activity, like skipping, places less stress on the joints than high impact activity, like football. Skipping as a moderate activity can really take you a long way towards reaching the recommended goal of including 30 minutes of activity in your lifestyle 3 times a week.
Warning: you should stop exercising if you feel pain or discomfort.
Step one
When skipping aim to keep your elbows tucked into your sides, with the rope turning around smoothly in your wrists. A common mistake is to lean forward, or skip too slowly. Both of these result in the rope being caught by your feet.
Step two
Keep your back straight, and for beginners jump two footed only a few inches from the floor.
Step three
Alternating feet, when jumping, is easy to learn. Aim to jump a few times on one foot, then try the other foot. Soon you will be able to go from one to the other without catching the rope.
Step four
Whilst skipping, the rope should ideally be tight, and if jumping at speed, aim to have small jumps, with the rope close to your head.
.
Loading ...
