Double Under pour les débutants | Charlie Tango Fitness

Double Under for Beginners

7 Steps to Mastering Double Unders

Whether you're brand new to CrossFit or you've been training for a while, we can all agree on one thing: double unders are not an easy skill to learn, and they're REALLY frustrating.

Let's take a look at some important keys to mastering double unders:

  • Correct jump height.
  • Rotate the rope in a controlled manner.
  • Keep your arms alongside your body.

But the key is to be able to do all three at once, correctly. A common mistake I see athletes make is trying to do more than they can handle when it comes to the learning process.

They walk into the gym, pick up a jump rope and start swinging it, hoping that somehow they'll magically start doing double downs.

This is exactly what you should not do. Not only will you frustrate yourself, but you may also develop bad habits (donkey kicks, single-double "hell", wide arms, etc.)

Learning the double under doesn't have to be a rocket science, but there does need to be a strategy and intention behind how you learn it. Let's break down the progression of a double under and explain how to learn it step by step.

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Double Unders Progression: Breaking Goals Down into Small Steps

Step 1: Simple abs.

As a prerequisite, you must first know how to do single jumps. Practice until you feel comfortable and are able to do about 50 undulations without interruption. This lets you know that you have the stamina to then move on to learning double unders.

Quick note: Single unders consist of passing the rope under your feet once, while performing a normal height jump.
In other words, it's just like the regular jump rope you may have learned to do in gym class. It's very important that you don't pause between spins and don't let your heel touch the ground.
You need to bounce immediately to practice the same jumping patterns you will use for the double down.

Step 2: Power jump.

One of the keys to mastering double under timing is learning the right type of jump. While this may seem obvious, it’s important. So step 2 is to do just that: jump. No rope, just your body.

Practice what I like to call the "power jump," which is a jump higher than a normal underhand jump. Power jumping also involves learning the ability to absorb the landing properly, so that you can then bounce back easily into the next jump.

Practice power jumps to become familiar and comfortable with the movement of not pausing between each jump. Just like a pogo stick, you should get up immediately after landing, without any hesitation.

Step 3: A double under.

Start with just one. This step is too often overlooked. Athletes pick up their jump rope and immediately want to start chaining double unders... which is easier said than done. So, keep it simple and focus on getting that FIRST double under, and nothing more.

Make sure you are using a rope that you are familiar with. Do a few warm-up jumps using big singles first.

"Big singles":
This involves jumping with a higher double under, but doing big, slow single unders - rotating the rope only once under your feet.
After a few big singles, try your first double under attempt. Jump as high as you can, while spinning your rope quickly.
Once you are comfortable with that first double under, work on being able to do the first few reps consistently. This is NOT about chaining reps together (yet), but about training your body in what it needs to do to successfully do the first rep of a double under.

Step 4: A double under, with more rotations.

Okay, you are able to do a double under at this point. Now it is time to work on the momentum of the jump. Do a simple double under, then try to rotate the rope. The goal here is to allow the rope to continue rotating so that you can also keep your momentum and continue jumping.

This will help you move from an uncontrolled jump to being able to land and control your bounce jump, while still rotating the rope. Eventually, you will be able to do five singles, one double, five singles, one double, etc.


Step 5: single under - double under.

At this point, you should be able to understand what it feels like to have the rope continue to rotate between your double under reps. With that in mind, let's take one step closer to the double under without interruption.
Work on minimizing the number of singles between each double under - so instead of 5+ singles between each double under as in step 4, your goal in this step is to find the rhythm of "single-double, single-double, single-double, etc".

If you can comfortably move in this cadence, it means you have the jumping endurance, rope control, and jump height to start chaining double-overs. Woohoo!

Note : Many people get stuck here. It's easy to think that this is "enough". Don't get stuck here!
The goal is to chain double unders without interruption, so you need to make sure you continue the double under progression all the way to the grand finale!

Step 6: Double down without interruption.

It's time to try double unders without interruption. I often refer to this when teaching double unders to beginners: "You have to walk before you can run."

In other words, working on double unders without interruption does NOT mean you should immediately try to do 10 in a row. Keep it simple, and instead start with a goal of two without interruption. Just two!
You'll quickly realize that there's a big difference between landing and bouncing on your second rep without a break, compared to what you were doing on the double single drill.

The biggest difference between the two is your landing position between jumps. If you don't land normally (flat-footed, off-balance, jumping forward or backward, etc.), you're going to have a hard time getting back up to the right height for the second double exercise right away (and you'll probably end up tripping over your rope).

Common causes of a weird landing are donkey kicks or pike jumps. We have a full article on how to fix your jumps here.
Focus on jumping with control and composure. Control your landing, keep your toes pointed down and your calves engaged the entire time.... and repeat.
Keep in mind that this is a huge transition and it may take some time to click. Once you can string two double unders together, you have made the BIGGEST leap forward.
You are freed from the "single-double hell" that tends to trap people in. From there, keep working upwards, rep by rep. Aim for three, four, then five - and keep piling on the reps.

double unders

Step 7: 50 DU without interruption, each time.

This is the final step in learning double unders, which can take a lot of practice and patience to achieve. The final step is simply to continue working on increasingly larger sets of double unders without interruption. In my opinion, you have "made it" when you can consistently hit 50 reps without interruption, no matter what.

It may be harder than you think to maintain your form and control your breathing for longer sets... but keep practicing. Continue to progress by following the process outlined above, without skipping any steps. Before long, your double unders technique will be flawless and 50 reps will feel like a rest!

In other words, follow the path to mastery and you will soon see major improvements in your double under game.

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Other tips for beginners on the double under

In addition to following the step-by-step process to learn the double down, here are some other tips to help you out:

Buy your own jump rope! There are plenty to choose from – and for another great read, we even have a full article on how to choose the right one.
If you use random jump ropes from your gym, the process will be much more difficult, because you won't always be using the same length of rope, handles, etc. To train your body properly, use the same rope, every time.

Since we're talking about jump ropes, I also recommend trying a heavier cable rope.
These are best for beginners. Smaller cables will spin faster, making it difficult to control the rope and the entire movement.

Listen to the "click click" of your rope. This may sound weird, but when working on double under exercises, try to listen to the click of the rope on the floor with each rotation. This will help you find the right rhythm.

Movies don’t lie . If you don’t have a coach to help you, or you have no idea what you’re doing wrong… set up your phone and take a quick video. Chances are it’ll reveal things you’re doing that weren’t even on your radar!
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