I tried skipping every day for a month—here are the surprising benefits no-one talks about

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.