Anyone else struggling with a skill that seems impossible to learn?

[lorraineldg3]

@alwaysanxious Penguin taps still won’t work if you don’t have the rhythm and timing right. I can jump and do fast or slow penguin taps, or do the tap slightly earlier or later. Still a good tool to try but they’re definitely not “the” trick.

 

[blessedfaith]

@discolee What worked for me was committing to doing 25 every single night no matter what. I started doing literally 25 singles nightly and slowly worked my way up.

 

[diz123]

@discolee Double-unders for me as well, mostly as a result of not consistently practicing them. Like right now, for example. There is a skipping rope on the table 4' away from me... but I'd rather analyze it for days, spend more time outside of class / on the road during work season doing things like deadlifts, burpees, pull-ups, and thrusters that I actually like, instead of just doing the damn skipping.

 

[chinny702]

@discolee I bought a good rope 4 years ago and haven't strung together more than a few. Granted I almost never practice them...

 

[lutheran]

@discolee Ah me too double unders are my absolute worst and most hated movement

 

[nicinc]

@discolee Have you tried doing double unders on a trampoline? It slows down the movement a lot, obviously, and allows you to feel and practice the rhythm. You can start with a big trampoline then if you have access to one (and can maintain control on the smaller circle) try a rebounder (exercise) trampoline.

 

[jude500]

@discolee I encourage you to just keep trying and experiment with different jump ropes too. I still don't have them mastered but the best que I received when first learning double unders was to do a single, then a double, single, double..... and when you're doing the singles, think "small jump, one flick" and then the doubles think "big jump, two flicks"

 

[marlinkingsley]

@jude500 I’m working on as well. Went from not being able to do one to being able to string together 4-5 after practicing 1-2 a week. Not great, but progress! Practice 1-1-1-2 or 1-1-2 patterns. Also, a heavier rope did wonders for me. RXSG buff 3.4 oz rope was a savior. You’ll get there

 

[lutheranguy123]

@marlinkingsley Single/double isn’t a good way to learn them. It doesn’t build rhythm. You’re better off doing high jump singles and then work on your wrist speed.

After dropping the 1/2 method I went from 1 to 30 dubs consistently then hit 100 unbroken within about a year or two.

 

[joeyvimsantethepoet]

@lutheranguy123 Totally agree. i sticked to 1/2 so long, one day a coach was fed up with my cowardice and just kicked me in the butt (figuratively ). it happened i could totally link du together .

 

[lutheranguy123]

@joeyvimsantethepoet I had the same experience. My coach (a red shirt) got frustrated with my lack of progress with 1/2 and told me to just focus on getting a handful in a row.

 

[joeyvimsantethepoet]

@lutheranguy123 It was def not glorious for a start but i quickly progressed, way more than staying comfy with 1/2 forever

 

[accemberuchiha]

@discolee They’re a mystery to me as well. One day I can do 50-70 unbroken easily, the next I’ll trip up 5 times trying to do 10. Seems to be no in between.

 

[verasoldmine]

@jonathan_gale Kipping pull ups. I can do 5-10 strict pull-ups no issue. My brain just cannot comprehend kipping.

 

[theological1988]

@verasoldmine I think theyre actually quite different, it’s all in the moving the shoulders forwards and back and going from hollow to arch powerfully.

 

[ancap]

@theological1988 Yup. I can’t do strict pull ups worth ass, but I can knock out a bunch of kipping pretty easily.

At some point the rhythm just clicked - for me it was focusing on pushing the bar away at the top to set up for the next kip.

 

[lawforchrist]

@verasoldmine The biggest key to getting a rhythm with kipping is to push yourself away from the bar at the top, don't just fall straight down. Your head/chest should make a C-shaped motion around the bar.

 

[sherrine]

@verasoldmine Not sure how your coaches like to do progressions, but have you tried skipping kipping and gone straight to butterfly?

I can butterfly much easier than kipping - I think it’s the reverse direction on the latter that throws me off.

I feel like butterfly are a lot like normal pull-ups, just with a fast rhythm.

 

[kevin33]

@verasoldmine Same here! It’s so frustrating!!

 

[hebrewcalendar12]

@verasoldmine I have the exact same problem. To be honest I feel heavier doing kipping than doing strict, which makes no sense. I’m practicing hollow and arch positions to see if I improve but when I try to connect everything my brain crashes