Jump rope exercise is a full-body aerobic activity that can help promote weight loss and improve cardiovascular health.
Jump rope workout routines differ in intensity to suit a range of ability levels, from beginner to advanced.
As part of a healthy diet and lifestyle, jump rope exercises can help with weight loss.
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A 2017 review found that long-term high intensity exercise programs had links to the following significant improvements in people with overweight and obesity:
body weight
waist circumference
other cardiometabolic risk factors
The American Heart Association (AHA) defines jump rope as a vigorous-intensity aerobic activity. These activities significantly increase heart rate, respiration rate, and body temperature.
The AHA recommends that, for optimal health, people follow one of the following exercise plans:
75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic exercise per week
150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week
a combination of both
The AHA explains that this level of physical activity can help someone maintain a moderate weight and reduce their risk of diseases, such as:
The American Council on Exercise (ACE) provides a physical activity calorie counter (PACC) that estimates the number of calories a person is likely to burn during a particular exercise.
The calculator considers the person’s body weight and the time they spend performing the exercise.
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According to the PACC estimates, jump rope exercises may burn the following calories:
The weight examples incorporate data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) outlining the average weight of adult males and females in the United States. These are as follows:
approximately 171 pounds (lb) for an adult female ages 20 years or older
approximately 200 lb for an adult male ages 20 years or older
The ACE provides the following three jump rope exercise plan levels:
beginner level
intermediate level
advanced level
The ACE recommends people who are not used to high intensity, high impact exercise start with a beginner-level workout. From here, a person can progress to the intermediate level and finally to the advanced level.
For each level, the entire circuit should take between 15 and 25 minutes to complete, including rest periods.
People also need to allow additional time to warm up before exercising as well as some time to cool down after the exercise. Warm-up and cool-down periods are important for preventing injury.
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Beginner jump rope workout
The following exercises are appropriate for the beginner-level jump rope workout:
Forward jogging: This involves jogging on the spot while rotating the jump rope in a forward motion.
Backward jogging: This involves jogging on the spot while rotating the jump rope in a backward motion.
Hopscotch jumps: This refers to jumping from a hop to a jump with each revolution of the jump rope.
At this level, people should aim to jump rope for 15 seconds at a time, followed by a 15-second rest period.
The aim is to complete 18 sets in total.
Intermediate jump rope workout
The following exercises are appropriate for the intermediate-level jump rope workout:
Side hopping: This involves hopping from one side to the other.
Double jump: This involves jumping with enough height to allow for two revolutions of the jump rope.
Single-leg: A person hops on a single leg for one, two, three, or four hops in a row.
At this level, people should aim to jump rope for 30 seconds at a time, followed by a 30-second rest period.
The aim is to complete 18 sets in total.
Advanced jump rope workout
The following exercises activate more muscle groups and are appropriate for the advanced-level jump rope workout:
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High knees: A person lifts the knees high toward the chest.
Criss-cross jumps: Individuals bring one arm over another to form a loop in the jump rope.
Butt kickers: A person brings the heels of the feet up to meet the butt.
Double jump: People jump with enough height to allow for two revolutions of the jump rope.
At this level, people should aim to jump rope for 60 seconds at a time, followed by a 60-second rest period.
The aim is to complete 18 sets in total.
Below are some answers to frequently asked questions about jump rope exercises
How long should I jump rope to lose weight?
The AHA recommends that people perform 75 minutes of jump rope exercise or other vigorous-intensity aerobic exercise per week or 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week.
Alternatively, people can incorporate both high- and moderate-intensity exercises into their weekly exercise routine.
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The AHA notes that this level of weekly physical activity can help people maintain a moderate weight and reduce their risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Is jump rope good for losing belly fat?
A 2018 study investigated the effects of a 12-week jump rope exercise program on risk factors for cardiovascular disease in adolescent females with prehypertension and central adiposity.
Prehypertension is blood pressure that is slightly higher than typical, while central adiposity describes an accumulation of fat around the abdominal area.
Participants who completed the exercise program showed significant reductions in waist circumference and central adiposity compared to participants who did not complete the regimen.
Likewise, a 2021 study found that an 8-week health intervention combining jump rope exercise with a calorie-restricted diet improved various health measures, including reductions in body fat mass and body fat percentage.
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The study authors concluded that a combination of jump rope exercise and calorie restriction may boost weight loss and cardiovascular health to a greater extent than either of these interventions alone.
Jump rope exercise is a full-body aerobic exercise that increases heart rate, respiration rate, and body temperature.
Research suggests this activity can help reduce abdominal fat and waist circumference and promote overall weight loss. Like other forms of vigorous-intensity exercise, jump rope can also help improve cardiovascular health.
Although jump rope exercise is technically a vigorous-intensity exercise, people can adjust the intensity level to match their ability level and preferences.
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People who are trying jump rope exercise for the first time can start at a beginner level and work their way through to the intermediate and advanced levels.
Some research suggests that combining a jump-rope exercise program with a calorie-restricted diet may help boost weight loss and cardiovascular health.
As such, people looking to lose weight may also want to consider changing their diet or introducing other healthy lifestyle habits.
Compound moves work multiple muscle groups at the same time, making them an efficient way to build full-body strength.
Liz Hilliard is a 71-year-old fitness instructor and founder of the Hilliard Studio Method. She believes she’s stronger now than she was at 40.
Given her extensive experience in training the over-50s, I asked Liz to share her top compound moves for building full-body strength.
She suggested the five exercises below. All you need to do them is a long resistance band and a little space.
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The workout
There are five moves in this routine:
Squat and biceps curl
Lunge and deltoid raise
Triceps squat
Reach to plank
Glute bridge
Scroll down to see recommended sets and repetitions.
1. Squat and biceps curl
Sets: 2-3 Reps: 10-15
Start your week with achievable workout ideas, health tips and wellbeing advice in your inbox.
Stand with your feet hip-width apart, positioned on the middle of a resistance band, holding the ends of the band in your hands at your sides.
Push your hips back and bend your knees to squat, while also bending your elbows and pulling the band up to your shoulders to perform a biceps curl.
Stand back up and return your arms to your sides.
2. Lunge and deltoid raise
Sets: 2-3 Reps: 5-10 per leg
Stand and place the resistance band under your left foot, holding the ends in your hands.
Step back with your right foot and lower your right knee as you raise your arms out to the side, with palms facing the floor. Aim to bring your hands in line with your shoulders so they form a T shape.
Push through your front foot to stand back up while lowering your arms.
Repeat 5-10 times, then switch sides.
3. Triceps squat
Sets: 2-3 Reps: 8-10
Stand with your feet hip-width apart, positioned on the middle of a resistance band, holding the ends of the band in your hands at your sides.
Push your hips back and bend your knees to squat, lowering your chest toward the floor and pinning your elbows to your sides.
In the squat position, straighten your arms behind you, keeping your palms facing in toward your body.
Bend your elbows again and stand, then repeat.
4. Reach to plank
Sets: 2 Reps: 10
Stand and reach your hands overhead.
Push your hips back and bend your knees to squat.
Place your hands on the floor in line with your shoulders.
Step one leg back at a time into a plank position, so your body is in a straight line from your shoulders to your heels.
Step your feet back into the low squat position, then stand and reach overhead again.
5. Glute bridge
Sets: 3 Reps: 10
Lie down with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor.
Tuck your tailbone and engage your core.
Press your feet into the floor and slowly raise your hips, keeping the middle of your back on the mat.
Lower back down onto the mat, one vertebrae at a time.
DeTar Health & Fitness Center Announces New Member Special to Kick Off a Healthy 2026
Published 11:45 am Monday, December 22, 2025
By Emily Weatherly, Marketing Director, DeTar Healthcare System
As the New Year approaches, DeTar Health & Fitness Center is inviting the community to start 2026 on a healthy note with a limited-time New Member Special designed to make fitness more accessible than ever. Now through January 31, 2026, new members can join DeTar Health & Fitness Center for $75 for three months with no joining fee. DeTar Health & Fitness Center is located at 4204 N. Laurent St. in Victoria.
“We pride ourselves on creating a welcoming environment where members of all fitness levels feel comfortable and supported,” said Stephanie Schuckenbrock, Director of DeTar Health & Fitness Center. “From our diverse group exercise schedule—including popular Les Mills classes—to our wide range of cardio and weight training equipment, our knowledgeable staff is here to help every member reach their personal health goals.”
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DeTar Health & Fitness Center offers a full suite of amenities, including:
Indoor pool
Full schedule of group exercise classes
Locker rooms with showers
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Cardio and weight lifting equipment
Certified personal trainers and registered massage therapists
Since 1986, DeTar Healthcare System’s Health & Fitness Center has served the Victoria area as a trusted fitness and wellness facility, supervised by a professional team of fitness instructors, personal trainers and massage therapists. The center emphasizes the importance of exercise as a cornerstone of living a healthier life.
Programs and services offered include:
Adult fitness programs
Group fitness classes
One-on-one sessions with certified personal trainers
Sessions with registered massage therapists
Corporate wellness programs
The facility is well-equipped with a wide range of fitness equipment, including arc trainers, treadmills, stationary and recumbent bikes, rowing machines, spin bikes, Jacob’s Ladder, stair steppers, circuit weights, free weights and kettlebells.
Community members interested in taking advantage of the New Member Special are encouraged to sign up soon, as the offer ends January 31, 2026. For more information or to join, call 361-578-5884 or visit https://www.detar.com/fitness.
In March 2025, in a preprint uploaded to biorxiv.org, Mansuy and colleagues reported that EVs in mice can transport certain RNAs, metabolites and lipids linked to early-life stress from circulating blood to sperm, with consequences for offspring. The offspring produced by these sperm cells had stress-related metabolic dysfunction as adults and bore the stress signatures in their own sperm RNA. “These changes imply a mechanistic link between sperm RNA modifications and phenotypic features in the offspring,” Mansuy’s team concluded in their paper, which has not yet been peer-reviewed.
Phenotypic Translation
Perhaps the trickiest step to understand is how sperm-borne molecules could influence an adult’s observable traits. In one form of experiment, researchers extract all the sperm RNA from mice that have been raised under stressful or health-altering conditions. Those isolated RNAs are then injected into a zygote. Pups that emerge usually “get the dad’s phenotypes,” Conine said, suggesting that the RNAs alone confer traits from dad to offspring.
But how? During early development, epigenetic processes reign. As one fertilized cell divides into two, and those cells divide again, and so on, one set of DNA instructions is dynamically and repeatedly reprogrammed. The growing body specializes into different cell types and is sculpted into a sequence of increasingly complex forms. It’s possible, then, that early epigenetic alterations to the genome could have significant downstream effects on an adult.
Research out of Conine’s lab, published in 2024, showed that sperm microRNAs alter gene expression in mouse embryos. Experiments like these, he said, support the idea that offspring can inherit paternal traits via the transfer of non-DNA molecular stowaways in sperm.
The recent Cell Metabolism paper took this idea a step further by tracing a mechanism by which this can happen. A team of more than two dozen Chinese researchers focused on the epigenetic transmission of exercise benefits, homing in on a set of microRNAs that reprogram gene expression in the early embryo. These changes ultimately result in skeletal muscle adaptations in adult offspring that enhance exercise endurance. The researchers found that well-exercised mice had more of these microRNAs in their sperm than sedentary mice did. When these microRNAs were transferred into zygotes, the adults they grew into were more physically fit, with more mitochondria in skeletal muscle and higher endurance.
But how did the molecules generate the exercise-positive phenotype? In experiments, the researchers found that the microRNAs suppressed a particular protein, which had the effect of boosting genes related to mitochondrial activity and metabolism.
Intriguingly, the sperm of physically trained male humans also hosted higher levels of many of the same microRNAs than those of untrained cohorts. “This cross-species conservation suggests a potential role for these sperm mi[cro]RNAs in intergenerational exercise adaptations in humans,” the researchers wrote.
The First Draft
The notion that a father’s lived experience can become recorded by his body, transmitted to his gametes and relayed to his offspring is no longer as outlandish as it once seemed. Many researchers in the field are willing to float speculative visions of what could be going on, even as they acknowledge that gaps remain.
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“Our hypothesis is that the epididymis ‘sees’ the world and alters the small RNAs it produces in response,” Rando said. “These RNAs are then delivered to the zygote upon fertilization and control early gene regulation and development to shape offspring health and disease.”
Conine speculates that once certain RNAs make their way into the egg, they trigger “a cascade of changes in developmental gene expression that then leads to these phenotypes” of the father showing up in the next generation. Remarkably, this unfolds even though the sheer volume of the sperm’s contents is so much less than an egg’s contents, including the relative amounts of RNA.
The full picture of how paternal experience and behavior might epigenetically influence offspring is not nearly in hand. Researchers are currently piecing the story together, one experiment at a time, rather than proving out every step sequentially in the same set of organisms. One of the gaps is in the characterization of what RNA and perhaps other epigenetic factors do in the zygote to modify genomic activity as it unfolds during development, Mansuy said.
“We are still blind men describing for the first time different parts of the same elephant,” Chen said. “The underlying mechanism is almost certainly an orchestra of a sperm RNA code and factors beyond that.”
Confirming the findings in humans would take enormous effort, but it would be key to turning these findings in mice into “informed medical advice,” Chen said. This would require well-controlled experiments following multiple generations, tracking diet, exercise, aging and environmental exposures, while also using advanced tools to decode sperm-packaged molecules — and then looking for strong correlations between the molecular and phenotypic data.
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Even amid the uncertainties, researchers are cautiously moving forward as they learn to believe the results of their own experiments. If they’re right, they will have discovered a new fact of life, Rando said. When he thinks about his two boys, he wonders what he might have done differently when he was younger, before they were born, that might have tweaked his RNA profile in ways that would affect them today.
“We don’t know enough yet to develop guidance like that,” Rando said. “Maybe we will get there.”
