Crossrope review: jump rope exercise is totally underrated
When was the last time you jumped rope? I’ll admit, before I got into jumping rope several years ago, I thought it was something you did pretty much exclusively in elementary school during recess. Boy was I wrong. Some of the best athletes on earth jump rope because it’s an incredible way to exercise. There are numerous benefits including improved coordination, bone density, cardiovascular health, breathing efficiency, it burns a ton of calories (more than jogging), and it’s a ton of fun.
If you’re thinking, “how hard could jumping rope be?” right now after watching that video, that’s likely because you haven’t tried doing it lately and because as with most things that take skill, if you’re good at it, you make it look easy.
Now I’m not nearly as good at jumping rope as Floyd Mayweather but I’m not terrible either, which is why when Crossrope reached out to me to give their product a try I jumped (pun definitely intended) at the opportunity.
Crossrope has reinvented the jump rope
Each of Crossrope’s ropes features braided steel construction with proprietary coating that’s designed to eliminate tangling which is phenomenal, because if you’ve ever had to untangle a jump rope before getting started, you know it can be annoying. The company also designed an interchangeable “fast clip system” which lets you quickly change between light and heavy ropes for a more versatile workout. Plus, their high-performance handles fit with pro-grade ball bearings and cased in ergonomic handle grips provide a level of comfort when jumping rope that I haven’t experienced with any other jump rope.
For this review, Crossrope sent me their “Get Lean” product set, which includes their slim jump rope handles and two different ropes: a 1/4 lb rope and a 1/2 lb rope. Additionally, in order to make your experience even better, you select your height prior to placing your order to ensure that you get the right length ropes — which is super important to having a good workout.
As soon as I took the handles and ropes out of the box, the quality and attention to detail taken by the folks over at Crossrope was apparent. Everything felt super high quality unlike other jump ropes I’ve owned over the years which definitely didn’t have the same level of polish.
Jumping with Crossrope
The 1/4 lb rope is a great weight to start with, it’s easy to whip around and get some speed from but also provides a tiny bit of heft, at least, more than you would find in a traditional speed rope (which is what I normally use and after a little looking on Crossrope’s site, it seems they also offer speed ropes as well). Crossrope also offers an app that you can download for iOS and Android–completely free of charge. In the app, you can find workouts and ways to track progress.
I really liked using the app in my workout–it added structure to my jump rope session which I found helpful. Plus, there’s various different kinds of workouts available. You can do a 15 to 20 minute workout and be dripping afterwards. One thing I found was that while I was able to follow the in-app workout and listen to music in a separate app, I found myself wishing there was an easier way to listen to music and also the in-app voice telling me how much longer I had to go as well as which rope to use (1/4 lb or 1/2 lb). Perhaps in a future update that can be addressed.
Overall, I’d say I got a great workout with the Crossrope. I was literally drenched each time I completed a workout. Plus, one of the great things about a jump rope workout is that you can pretty much do it anywhere, provided you have a flat surface to jump on and enough room to whip the rope around.
The verdict
The Crossrope jump rope is my new favorite jump rope. No doubt. I love the ability to swap ropes and handles with ease and the fact you get to use the app and its built-in workouts for free–that’s awesome! And eventually I see myself getting one of their speed ropes.
I know you’re at the very least interested in jumping rope now (it’s so fun and so cool–especially when you do some tricks), so I’d definitely recommend starting with one of their jump rope sets depending on what you’re looking to accomplish. The “Get Lean” set starts at $88 (great for burning fat, building lean muscle) and the “Get Strong” set starts at $128 (great for building strength and more muscle). If you’re feeling super into it, you can buy both in the “Get Fit” bundle for $216.