If you want a quick and easy way to raise your heart rate, buy a jump rope.
It's cheap and portable, so you can take it anywhere.
Plus, it offers plenty of benefits, improving your cardio, stamina and coordination.
I love a fitness challenge and I wanted to experience all these benefits for myself, so I decided to skip a minute a day for 30 days.
Scroll down to see how I got on.
What skipping every day taught me
I learned to let go
Despite being fairly fit, the first week of the challenge was difficult and a little painful.
I kept whipping my ankles with the rope and felt frustrated (I blame my poor coordination).
But focusing on things going wrong seemed to make them happen.
When I allowed myself to let go and shrug off any notions of possible failure, I had fewer ankle whips and enjoyed myself more.
I felt less anxious
I find exercise is a great mood booster, calming my anxious mind.
Surprisingly, doing just 60 seconds of jump rope boosted my mood to the same degree as my usual 30-minute strength session or HIIT workout.
Skipping forced me to focus, which cleared my mind and allowed me to be in the moment.
It’s a great tool for developing endurance
Jump rope is an excellent endurance workout, and over time, I noticed my stamina had improved when I was doing other workouts.
I recently did a four-hour hike in Wales. It was a challenging route with lots of steep inclines and descents, but I found it easier than usual.
A couple of days later, I did another long hilly walk, this time wearing my weighted vest, and it felt great.
It was only right at the end, after two hours of non-stop walking and talking, that I needed a breather.
It improved my cardio fitness
After a month of skipping every day, I noticed that my heart rate was lower during the skipping than it had been at the start.
This is a clear sign that my cardio capability has improved, which is good news for my general health and fitness.
While I don't intend to continue skipping every day, I'll definitely use it in my regular workouts and pack my rope with me for my next vacation.
