Skip To My Loo My Darlin'

The other day I was dragging. Energy was low. Earlier in the day I decided I'd 'skip' my workout. I had a great kicking workout the day before and I could always do a heavy workout the next day. (How many times have we said that to ourselves?). But there I was feeling 50 lbs. heavier than usual and shuffling along. I could have grabbed an afternoon coffee or red bull. Except I quit the red bull in 2001 and coffee only holds you up for so long. I thought back to what I'd eaten that day and as it turned out the diet up to that point was balanced. Ah ha! maybe I needed water. I'd read a study years ago that said sometimes fatigue is the body's way of telling us that we're down a quart. But, no I was hydrated. And then it hit me: the workout I was planning to blow off called me out. "Its time to move buddy," the workout shouted.

What to do? Skipping, that's it. I elected to skip for a quick 20 minutes. (No breaks) A quick cardio workout gets the heart rate up and then a guy could move on. Skipping is awesome, plain and simple. I grabbed the 9 ft. rope and took it outside. By the third minute I was wide-awake. I must admit by minute 5 a little sweat gathered at the temples and by minute 10 we (the rope and I) were officially working out. The beauty of skipping is that by minute 15 you're knee deep in the middle of it. The legs, particularly calves get worked and the heart rate is up. Skipping also gets the shoulders to some degree plus the core must be held tight. Add to this skipping requires an aspect of coordination as well.

Boxers do a huge amount of skipping and not just to warm up. Footwork is a huge component of what a boxer needs in his/her toolbox and skipping is a great way to get it. It helps with rhythm and timing. We all know that Mohammed Ali could sting like a bee but how do you think he was able to float like a butterfly?

After my quick 20 I hit the showers and was energized for the rest of the day. Fatigue had been cancelled--mission accomplished. I encourage all of you to work skipping into your workouts but not necessarily all workouts. It's far less ballistic than jogging making it easier on the knee and ankle joints. If you're just starting out you'll probably jump too high and tire quickly. That's ok just keep working at it and before long that rope will barely slide under those sneaks of yours. If you find it monotonous pop in your fave playlist and skip to my loo my darlin'.

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