Jump Rope For Heart was one of the most loathsome charitable activities in which I ever had the displeasure of participating.  This was back in elementary school, but I nonetheless established a lifelong association between jumping rope and white crew socks, brightly colored backpacks, and girls (ew!).

Not my favorite human organ mascot

Nowadays, my left knee hurts, and I see no sensible reason to run through the pain. In search of a suitable, motivating alternative, I turned to my old arch-nemesis: The 3 dollar jumprope.

Yes, if you’re world grandmaster at jumping rope like our friend in the video, a 30 dollar rope might be for you.  However, my 3 dollar Target special, consisting of cheap plastic handles and plastic rope, has done it’s job.

While I can currently only jump for a minute or two before screwing up and spewing expletives into the brisk Autumn air, I nonetheless get a good workout and a half hour passes with relative ease.  If you need to keep your lungs in good shape, keep weight down, or are just looking for a good conditioning alternative to running, jump rope might be for you.

A short list of Jump Rope Benefits:

• Good quality cardio
• Develop toned, chiseled calf muscles
• Not too boring (though debatable I’m sure)
• Develops greater foot speed
• No need to go sponsor-hunting (a definite plus!)