Boxer jump rope workout

A boxer jump rope workout borrows the clock of the ring: rounds as long as a boxing round, with the same minute of rest between them. Three rounds of 3 minutes with 1 minute of rest take 11 minutes. It suits anyone who can already jump for a few minutes without stopping, and it teaches you to pace a long round.

How the rounds work

• 3 rounds of 3:00 of work.
• 1:00 of rest between rounds.
• 9:00 of work and 2:00 of rest: 11:00 on the clock.

The numbers come from the ring. A boxing round usually lasts 3 minutes, and fighters get a minute between rounds. There’s no rest after the last round, so the clock stops at 11:00.

How to jump rope like a boxer

Three minutes is a long time on a rope. The whole workout comes down to a pace you can hold from the first bell to the last.

1. Warm up first. The warm-up takes under 4 minutes.
2. Start each round near your steady pace: around 90–100 jumps per minute if you’re new, 120–140 if you’re trained.
3. Move your feet like you’re in the ring. Mix bounce, alternate foot and the boxer step, a shuffle from one foot to the other with two touches each. Changing footwork every 30 s or so spreads the work.
4. Stay light on the balls of your feet with small jumps. Turn the rope with your wrists, elbows close to your ribs, shoulders relaxed.
5. Breathe at a steady rhythm. If you can’t, slow down a little.
6. Pick up the pace for the last 30 s of each round.
7. In the minute of rest, walk, shake out your arms, breathe and take a sip of water. Be back on the rope before the minute ends.

If you trip, start again right away. The clock keeps running, as it would in a fight.

Make it easier or harder

• Easier: cut the rounds to 2 minutes, or take 1:30 of rest. Do two rounds. Stay on bounce and alternate foot.
• Harder: add rounds, one at a time. Speed up for the last minute of each round instead of the last 30 s. Add short bursts of high knees or double unders.
• Rope: a speed rope suits quick footwork. A heavier rope slows each turn and puts more work into your shoulders and forearms, which makes 3 minutes feel much longer.

For short, sharp rounds instead, try a Tabata.

In the app

Boxing rounds is a workout preset in Jump Rope Protocol, an iPhone app with an Apple Watch app. The presets open from the Today tab. On the start screen, you can adjust the rounds, work and rest for that session before you begin.

A countdown leads into round 1. Then the clock runs on its own, and a voice calls each round, the rest and the time left. The app counts every jump with your AirPods, Powerbeats or Apple Watch, with the phone on the floor, and tracks your cadence, your longest unbroken streak and your trips. A Bluetooth heart-rate strap adds live heart rate. Calories are estimated, and the session is saved to your history and to Apple Health. Progress shows your trends and records, and badges mark the milestones.

The timer on this page runs in your browser. It beeps, but it can’t count your jumps.

The workout presets are part of Pro: one purchase, no subscription.