A skipping rope is a simple piece of cardio equipment, and it is often promoted as a complete workout. This article summarises the abstracts of three studies: a 2022 systematic review with meta-analysis of jump rope training, a 2023 meta-analysis in children aged 10 to 12, and a 2025 randomised trial in young adults. Most of the controlled evidence comes from children and adolescents, so the results cannot be assumed to apply to older adults. This site’s guide to HIIT and steady-state cardio at home covers other cardio options.
Study one: a 2022 meta-analysis
Singh and colleagues, in the Journal of Sports Sciences in 2022, pooled 21 studies of moderate to high quality with 1,021 healthy participants, each comparing a jump rope programme with an active or traditional control group. Eighteen studies were in participants whose mean age was under 18, and the programmes lasted from 6 to 40 weeks. Compared with active or passive controls, jump rope training improved resting heart rate, body mass index, fat mass, cardiorespiratory endurance, lower- and upper-body maximal strength, jumping, range of motion and sprinting, with effect sizes from 0.23 to 1.19. No significant effects were found for blood pressure, waist-hip circumference, bone or lean mass, or muscle endurance. The authors described the benefits as small to moderate. Heterogeneity between studies was wide in some outcomes (the abstract gives an I-squared range of 0 to 76.9%).
Study two: a 2023 meta-analysis in 10 to 12 year olds
Zhao and colleagues, in the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine in 2023, searched five databases and analysed 15 randomised controlled trials with 1,048 children aged 10 to 12, comparing jumping rope with regular physical education lessons. Jumping rope did not show a significant advantage in body morphology. In physical function, boys improved more in vital capacity and girls in resting heart rate. In physical performance, boys improved more in speed, upper-body and lower-body strength, muscular endurance and agility, and girls improved more in coordination and balance. Boys saw a minimal improvement in flexibility, while girls showed no significant difference. Subgroup analyses suggested an association between sessions of more than 40 minutes, twice a week for 8 to 12 weeks, and larger effects in this age group; the authors recommended at least 40 minutes once or twice a week for 8 to 12 weeks.
Study three: an eight-week trial in young adults
Phongchin and colleagues, in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2025, randomly assigned 59 healthy adults (29 women, average age 21.7 years) to high-intensity interval rope skipping (nine 2-minute bouts at 80% of maximum heart rate with 1-minute active recovery, three times a week), moderate continuous rope skipping (30 minutes at 70% of maximum heart rate, five times a week) or a non-exercise control group for eight weeks. Both exercise groups improved maximal oxygen uptake, a measure of cardiorespiratory fitness (about 48 and 47 mL/kg/min after training against 44 and 42 before), compared with a control group at about 40. Body composition did not differ between or within groups, and enjoyment, measured with the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale after the first and final sessions, did not differ between the two exercise groups. The authors concluded that interval skipping could be a time-efficient alternative for people with limited time.
What the studies can and cannot tell you
- Skipping showed small to moderate gains in fitness measures in the pooled youth data, and a clear gain in cardiorespiratory fitness in a trial of young adults.
- Effects on body composition were inconsistent: the 2022 review found small improvements in fat mass and body mass index, the 2023 review found no advantage in body morphology, and the 2025 trial found no difference.
- The comparisons were with other activities or no exercise, not with other equipment such as an exercise bike or rowing machine, so none of them shows skipping is better or worse than another cardio machine.
- Almost all of the pooled participants were young. The 2025 trial lasted eight weeks, so long-term results are unknown.
For buying, the studies say nothing about rope type, length or weight, so a rope that suits the user’s height and training surface is a matter of preference.
FAQs
Does jump rope training build muscle?
The 2022 meta-analysis found improvements in maximal strength but no significant effect on lean mass, and the studies were mostly in young people.
Is interval skipping better than steady skipping?
In the 2025 trial the two approaches improved cardiorespiratory fitness by similar amounts and gave comparable enjoyment, so the interval version was described as time-efficient, not superior.
The bottom line
Two meta-analyses, mostly in children, and one eight-week trial in young adults found that skipping improved measures such as cardiorespiratory fitness, strength and jumping, with small to moderate effects, but no consistent change in body composition. Interval and steady-paced skipping produced similar fitness gains in the trial. The evidence is limited to young people and short programmes, and it does not compare a rope with other cardio equipment.
Sources
- Jump rope training effects on health- and sport-related physical fitness in young participants: A systematic review with meta-analysis, Journal of Sports Sciences, 2022 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
- Jumping Rope Improves the Physical Fitness of Preadolescents Aged 10-12 Years: A Meta-Analysis, Journal of Sports Science and Medicine, 2023 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
- Effects of high-intensity interval rope-skipping on cardiorespiratory fitness, body composition, and enjoyment in young adults, European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2025 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)