Missed your gym hour? No worries - full jumping rope workout at home

If you thought that running was the best cardio you could do if measured by calories burned, think again! Jumping rope can do more for you than the same time spent jogging - it builds your cardio, balance, bone density and agility.

According to Science Daily, “This aerobic exercise can achieve a “burn rate” of up to 1300 calories per hour of vigorous activity, with about 0.1 calories consumed per jump. Ten minutes of jumping rope can roughly be considered the equivalent of running an eight-minute mile.”

The 10 minute workout

Do this 10 minute workout anywhere - in your living room, your backyard or the local park. It combines the cardio benefits of skipping with “rest” periods where you do core exercises to tighten and strengthen as you go. Make you sure stretch out properly afterwards. If you are looking to burn as many calories as possible treat it as a circuit and rest for a couple of minutes afterwards and then repeat the workout two or three times if you dare!

1. Warm up by doing 1 minute of jumping rope followed by a 1 minute plank (to tighten your core). (2 minutes)
2. Do double leg jumps for 2 minutes at a steady pace. Jump with both feet. Do not take a break. Keep your shoulders down and use your wrist rather than arms to swing the jumprope.(2 minutes)
3. Do either a plank for one minute or 10 pushups. (1 minute)
4. Do single-leg jumps (jumping continuously) one one leg for 30 seconds then switch to the other leg. (2 minutes)
5. Do a 1 minute plank or 10 pushups (1 minute)
6. Skip (where one foot lands as the other takes off) for 2 minutes continuously. Keep your knees as high as you can. (2 minutes)
7. Stretch out by doing butterfly pose, lunges on both sides and hamstring stretches.