One of two images probably comes to mind when you imagine jumping rope: a famous scene from one of the Rocky movies, another boxer doing jump rope drills to train, or childhood memories of jumping rope on the playground.
Boxers are on to something because this childhood favorite outdoor activity is not just child’s play—jumping rope provides plenty of health and fitness benefits for adults.
Runners can also benefit from jump rope workouts, and one of the best things about jumping rope is that it’s an efficient form of exercise. This 30-day jump rope challenge should take less than 10 minutes a day (and only 5 minutes most days), making it an excellent option for busy runners.
Ready to boost your fitness, harness your inner fighter, and bring back nostalgic memories of the joys of childhood? Keep reading to learn about our 30-day jump rope challenge, and get ready for fun.
In this guide, we will cover:
- What is the Marathon Handbook 30-Day Jump Rope Challenge?
- The Benefits of Jumping Rope
- What Length of Jump Rope Do I Need For The 30-Day Jump Rope Challenge?
- How to Jump Rope
- The Marathon Handbook 30-Day Jump Rope Challenge
- Why Does the 30-Day Jump Rope Challenge Have Rest Days?
Let’s jump in!
What is the Marathon Handbook 30-Day Jump Rope Challenge?
Most runners don’t regularly whip out a jump rope and bang out a bunch of jumps, so you might be wondering if you’re even up to this 30-day jump rope challenge. However, we’ve actually designed the Marathon Handbook 30-Day Jump Rope Challenge for beginners. So as long as you’re willing to put in the work, you can conquer this challenge.
The goal of the Marathon Handbook 30-Day Jump Rope Challenge is to get you to a place where you can complete 1,000 jumps non-stop by day 30. Rest assured, it’s okay if you trip or miss a jump—it happens—but you’ll be able to quickly resume your jump rope rhythm and finish your set.
Each day, you’ll work on your jump rope technique, building the muscle memory, footwork, and agility you need to jump rope more accurately and quickly. You’ll also strengthen your legs and work on coordination, which will help you improve your jump rope skills and get you that much closer to getting to 1,000 jumps.
Benefits of Jump Rope for Runners
There are numerous benefits of jump rope workouts for runners, including the following:
Jumping Rope Improves Cardiovascular Fitness
Like running, jumping rope increases your heart rate and respiration, challenging your cardiovascular system.
Completing extended rounds of jump rope, and progressing the duration of your bouts, will improve your aerobic fitness and endurance. This can translate to improvements in running performance as well.
Aim to move as fast as you can with good form, jumping as quickly and evenly as possible to avoid tripping and to maximize your fitness gains. Over the course of this 30-day jump rope challenge, you will gradually be able to endure longer and longer jump rope rounds.
Jumping Rope Builds Leg Strength
Jumping rope works all the major muscles in the lower body, strengthening your glutes, hamstrings, quads, hips, calves, and shins.
Jumping Rope Is a Total-Body Workout
Nearly every major muscle in the body is recruited when you jump rope. You’ll work your legs, arms, shoulders, chest, back, and abs, making jump rope an efficient exercise, simultaneously strengthening and conditioning your body.
As such, jumping rope is a perfect exercise to incorporate into your pre-run warmup routine. It elevates your heart rate, increases circulation to muscles and connective tissues to prepare them for more demanding activity, and activates your muscles as dynamic stretches do.
Jumping Rope Burns Calories
Jumping rope is a metabolically-demanding activity and can burn quite a few calories, depending on your body weight. Regularly incorporating vigorous rounds of jump rope may support fat loss, especially when coupled with a healthy diet and a well-rounded, total-body workout routine.
Jumping Rope Increases Bone Density
Jumping rope is a plyometrics exercise that involves impact landing. Like other high-impact activities like running, jumping rope stimulates the bones to lay down new bone cells and a denser matrix of minerals to withstand the stress. Increasing bone density reduces the risk of fractures, particularly as you age.
Jumping Rope Improves Coordination and Agility
Jumping rope looks simple enough, but it requires a fair amount of coordination and motor skills, making it great for your brain and can help runners improve their foot speed, agility, and reaction time, which is handy for trail runs.
Jumping Rope Can Increase Your Running Cadence
Jumping rope can improve your turnover, foot control, and foot speed, which can help you increase your running cadence or stride rate. A faster cadence can reduce the risk of injuries and improve your pace.
Jumping Rope Can Be Done Anywhere
As long as you have enough room and your jump rope, you can bang out a heart-pumping set of jump rope, so it’s a great exercise for runners when you travel or want to get in a quick HIIT workout.
What Length of Jump Rope Do I Need?
Getting a jump rope that fits you is essential for tangle-free jumping. To determine if a jump rope is the correct length for you, find the center point of the rope. Plant both feet side by side, stepping on the center of the rope.
Pull the jump rope up towards your armpits, ensuring the rope is taut. The ends of the jump rope itself (not including the handles) should come up to your armpits.
Rx Smart Gear recommends the following jump rope lengths based on height:
- 4’11″–5’1″: 8’0″
- 5’1″–5’3″: 8’2″
- 5’3″–5’5″: 8’4″
- 5’5″–5’7″: 8’6″
- 5’7″–5’9″: 8’8″
- 5’9″–5’11”: 8’10”
- 5’11″–6’1″: 9’0″
- 6’1″–6’3″: 9’2″
- 6’3″–6’5″: 9’4″
How to Jump Rope
The key to succeeding in this 30-day jump rope challenge is to use proper jump rope technique.
- Hold the jump rope with your hands at hip level, abs engaged.
- Rotate your wrists only, keeping your arms as stationary as possible, to swing the rope.
- Jump with both feet at the same time, trying to jump just high enough to clear the rope (1/2-3/4″ off the ground).
- Try to maintain a steady, quick rhythm.
The goal with jumping rope is to keep your jumps low and fast. Don’t think of the leisurely jumping rope on elementary school playgrounds; this is an athletic style of jumping rope that trains boxers, soccer players, and other athletes.
Aim for 100-120 jumps per minute. Therefore, the 1,000 jumps should take 10 minutes or less.
The Marathon Handbook 30-Day Jump Rope Challenge
Here is the daily plan for the Marathon Handbook 30-Day Jump Rope Challenge:
(right click the image to save and print this Challenge, or scroll to the end of the article for a text version)
Why Does the 30-Day Jump Rope Challenge Have Rest Days?
Today, many fitness challenges that circulate on social media sites are “balls-to-the-wall” tests of pushing yourself every day. However, they are missing one thing–rest days.
This 30-day jump rope challenge is designed to be a safe, sustainable program that builds confidence and consistency as much as it does fitness, endurance, and strength.
The rest days are an important aspect of your training because they give your body time to rebuild, repair, and recover. Like running, jump rope is a high-impact activity, and diving in with it every day, all of a sudden, can overload your musculoskeletal system.
Even if you feel good, resist the urge to grab the jump rope on the weekly rest day during this 30-day jump rope challenge. If you’re itching to move, try low-impact cross-training exercises like swimming, rowing, elliptical, and cycling. Here are five low-impact cardio activities you can try.
Ready to jump? Let’s do this!
If you are looking for another type of challenge, we’ve got more to choose from:
Running one-mile-a-day challenge
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
| 100 jumps in a row | 100 jumping jacks | 4 sets of 50 jumps + 30 calf raises | 100 jumps 60 seconds plank 100 jumps | Rest | 200 jumps in a row | 3 x 100 jumps with 60 seconds rest in between |
| 300 jumps in a row | 2 x 100 jumping jacks with 60 seconds rest in between | 4 sets of 100 jumps + 30 calf raises | 250 jumps 60 seconds plank 250 jumps | Rest | 400 jumps in a row | 5 x 100 jumps with 60 seconds rest in between |
| 500 jumps in a row | 3 x 100 jumping jacks with 30 seconds rest in between | 3 sets of 200 jumps + 30 calf raises | 600 jumps in a row | Rest | 300 jumps 60 seconds plank 300 jumps | 4 x 200 jumps with 60 seconds rest in between |
| 800 jumps in a row | 2 x 500 jumps with 60 seconds rest in between | 3 sets of 300 jumps + 30 calf raises | 4 x 100 jumping jacks with 30 seconds rest in between | 2 x 500 jumps with 30 seconds rest in between | Rest | 750 jumps in a row 30 seconds rest 250 jumps |
| 2 x 500 jumps with 30-second plank in between | 1000 jumps in a row |
