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Get Punked Jump rope isn't just for little kids anymore 
Two and a half years ago, forty-three-year-old computer programmer, Joe Katz of Brooklyn, New York, was like a lot of guys who struggled with fitness. "I would tend to join a gym, work out regularly for a few months, then sort of get bored and gradually drift away from fitness," Katz says. Then Katz says he discovered Punk Rope at a local YMCA. The hour-long workout is comprised of 15 different sections, ten of which feature calisthenics, relay races and games like tag or dodge ball. The other five sections are 3-minute jump rope intervals, all done to music ranging from punk to heavy metal. "It's not really like any other exercise class," Katz says. "The first class was really hard! I had never jumped rope before and I was out of shape. But I stuck with it. Next week was easier. I got the hang of jumping. And within a couple of months I had stopped being fat and was on my way to being way more fit." Tim Haft, who created Punk Rope (www.punkrope.com) in 2004, says punk rope is not rigidly structured, instead allowing instructors to create their own mix of music and fitness. "Music is a very, very big part of what we do," Haft says. "Most classes have a theme - it may be St. Patrick's Day, the Super Bowl, superheroes or Jamaica, where we play a lot of ska and reggae." Each three-minute jump rope interval focuses on different areas of conditioning and movement. One song may focus on endurance, getting people to jump with no break. Another song may focus on coordination, having people do the criss cross or some other challenging step. Another song may focus on power, where the rope passes under your feet twice for each jump. Another song focuses on agility, perhaps mimicking the motion of a skier. The last jump rope exercise is the group finale, a follow the leader format. The workout has become tremendously popular, with more than 600 certified instructors spread across the country, including Arizona, Michigan, California, Ohio and Manhattan, where Punk Rope is headquartered. In addition to the benefits of social interaction, fun and exercise, experts say elements of Punk Rope also provide hope for those who are rehabilitating from physical ailments or injury. "I have used elements taken from Punk Rope classes to treat patients of all ages," says Dr. Cheryl Naylor, doctor of physical therapy, Cranston, R.I., who also teaches Punk Rope classes. "Punk Rope combines rope jumping intervals with interactive dynamic strength and agility drills. I find that these drills can be easily adapted to promote functional mobility in my patients." There are a number of ways that jumping rope can contribute to healing injuries, Naylor says. "First of all, high impact activities like jumping stimulate blood flow to the joints which accelerates healing," Naylor says. "It also builds strength and promotes fat loss. Studies show that moderate impact exercise builds bone mineral density, a fact that women over the age of 15 especially can benefit from." The fitness benefits of jumping rope are also praised by Marian Fletcher, executive director of USA Jump Rope, Huntsville, Texas, a non-profit organization that offers sanctioned jump rope workshops, classes and tournaments across the nation (www.usajumprope.org) "It is a great cardiovascular exercise and a full body work out," Fletcher says. "The turning of the rope works the arms and upper body, and the actual jumping works the lower body. This is one of the only forms of exercise that works all of the muscles in the body. It can also be seen as a weight bearing exercise that improves bone density. Jump rope is often used as training for other sports to increase endurance." For Katz, one of the best feelings about jumping rope is knowing that he can. "Six months after I started Punk Rope," Katz says, "I was the proud winner of the 'Used To Suck But Now is OK' award for my jumping. Though I hasten to add that now, after two years, I think my jumping is a bit better than just OK. Ahem." |
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