They were the bane of my athletic career - double unders!
I’ve always been a fairly athletic person and learning new physical skills has always come fairly easy to me. Until someone introduced me to double unders. I struggled. And struggled. Said a few choice words more than a few times. And struggled. I bought four or five different ropes in an attempt to “change something up” in hopes they would click. In the end, it was nothing but time practising them. A lot of time practising them. I remember my calves being so sore from countless broken sets day after day. They eventually stuck and I was off to the races.
“In Crossfit, 9 times out of 10 we are trying to lift heavier, try harder, apply more force, dig deeper… but some moves require the opposite of that. The double under is about finesse. Economy of motion. Balance. Rhythm.
When learning the double under, it takes a switch in mental approach. You have to get out of the mindset of force, of maximum exertion. Instead, focus on coordination, relaxation, and minimizing the effort. Remember, you are only moving an object that weighs a few ounces at most.
When I see people learning double unders, I usually see them simply:
Trying.
Too.
Hard.
It is counter intuitive!
Then comes the frustration, followed by anger, which ends in exhaustion, and maybe throwing the rope on the ground in disgust. I’ve seen it happen countless times.There’s that mindset again.
Here are the main problems that I have observed:
Tuck jumps.
Lifting the knees too high. You think you need all this time airborn to move the rope under your body. You don’t.
Learn to jump high while only bouncing from the balls of our feet.
Butt kickers.
Pulling the feet up behind you and basically kicking your own ass. Again, overcompensating because you think you need all this air time.
Pikes.
Locking out the knees at the top of the jump and pushing the feet out in front of you. You can successfully string double unders this way but you will be working way harder than needed. Since the knees are locked, you have to jump higher to compensate for that lost distance between your feet and the floor.
Arm spinners.
Rotating the rope with the entire arm all the way up to the shoulder. Not efficient. Starts to burn really quick. Add other shoulder exercises to the WOD and you’re toast! Focus on the wrists.
Rhythm out of sync
This usually happens when people try to start with a few singles and then throw in a double. They speed up the jump, when really they need a higher, slower jump. Think about it, you need to be airborn for 2 rotations, so more time airborn = SLOWER jumps.”
The above article are all tips that I have shared in class and with people who are going after the elusive “double under”. At the end of the day, there is no easy way to learn them. Spend the time, day after day. They are definitely a repetition thing so the more time you put in, the better they will get. Until you are proficient at them, do a few max unbroken sets every day so the nervous system “learns” what it’s supposed to do and it becomes habit. There are all kinds of how-tos out there for you to watch that will help you in the pursuit. Focus on form, breathing and finessing the rope. Don’t try to do too much. When you start breaking set, don’t get frustrated and thus out of rhythm. Stay focused and relaxed.
Of important note, if you are serious about getting your double unders, do yourself a favour and invest in a skipping rope. And a good one. You don’t need to spend a whack of money, but having a quality rope that is “yours” will go a long ways. You need to have the same length of rope every time. While you are learning, even the slightest of differences will put you back at square one. Handle length, cable length, cable weight, kinks in cable, bearing speed....if you are grabbing any old rope around the gym, all of these change every time. While you can get away with it once you have them down pat, these factors will make learning a nightmare. Talk to your coach and they will be happy to point you in the right direction for a good quality rope that will get you on your way.
Sometimes less is more. Less strain and force. More repetition and time.