IT'S TIME TO DOUBLE DOWN ON DOUBLE UNDERS!

by Brad Chesley

This is the short tale of how I (finally) learned double unders.

​And why I'm challenging you to take them on this month!

Believe it or not, double unders were once my nemesis.  

Just a handful of years ago, I couldn’t string 2 double unders in a row to save my life. 

Yeah, I've been there, y'all.. It was frustrating!  

How could something so "simple" get the best of me?  I certainly wasn’t going to give up, so I set out to leap the rope mountain laid at my feet.

My Plan: I started practicing in small doses.
So I wouldn’t get too fed up to keep trying, I committed just a few minutes at a time, every day, to what I desperately wanted to learn.

After a week of daily practice, I could string close to 10 in row.  No small feat - and just enough to keep me going! But I wanted more. The thought of NOT fearing double unders in a WOD was serious motivation.

I spent the rest of the month spending just 5 minutes a day practicing.  I would get home, hit the driveway, and start jumping. 

At the end of that month - February 2010- I could easily string 20 + in a row, fresh. And no longer moaned when double unders showed up on the white board!

The moral of the story is that there is no shortcut to mastering double unders. Just diligence. But you CAN do it. In just 5 minutes a day, for 30 days.

Make December 2015 the month
YOU double down on double unders!

Got questions? We're always here to help.

Got pointers? We WANT them! Help out your fellow CrossFitters by sharing your double under story here in the comments.

While you're working ... here are a few of our favorite resources for Double Unders. 

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Tell me again why double-unders are important, please?

From Larry Pastor at Tabata Times:

So why do double unders, anyway?
If I can spin the rope twice under my feet, how does this make me fitter?

If you remember the 10 physical skills which CrossFit develops, they include accuracy, coordination, and balance — double unders develop all three of these essential skills. In fact, Carl Paoli explains how they are a gymnastic skill, given that one must maintain a tight, neutral hollow position while performing them.In a CrossFit Journal article with Kelly Starrett, he refers to the hollow body position as being “the position” and double unders as a good starting point for developing the midline stability required of it. 

​As any CrossFitter knows, midline stability is central to nearly every single movement performed in a WOD. In other words, developing a strong midline leads to better overall fitness. Double-unders are also practice in opening up the hips explosively, needed for cleans, push press, and Olympic lifting in general.

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5-Minute Double Under Practice:

Double Unders: Tips & Tricks

One thing is certain: not practicing double unders will not lead to improvement — so face your goat head-on and become a better athlete in the process!

December is Double Under Awareness Month at CrossFit Tyler! #doubleunders #crossfit #instacrossfit #Repost @cspealler with @repostapp ・・・ #weeklygeek Ah the double under. It's largely a timing issue for most people when learning, but how can we make them more efficient? What is often neglected is keeping your belly tight and rotating the rope from your wrists. Tight belly means you will spring off the floor more easily. Loose in the midline and you are like a wet noodle shaking around. Piking and tucking will expend much more energy and often make for slower reps. What's the fix? Rope speed is your friend and spring off your toes while keeping your belly tight. If you rotate the rope from your shoulders its actually shortening the rope and will often result in piking or tucking. If you rotate the rope from your wrists it will allow for more rope speed and an efficient jump. How do you get better? Once you dial in position on the singles start trying. Gotta do it to learn it. #teamspeal

A video posted by CrossFit Tyler (@crossfittyler) on Dec 1, 2015 at 12:47pm PST

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​In Pursuit of the Elusive Double Unders

by Hannah Caldas, award-winning swimmer
​on Breaking Muscle

​A Ridiculously Awesome, yet brief, Guide to Double Unders

by Jerred Moon