With just a rope and a small area of about two square metres, you can begin a comprehensive home cardio workout routine that can help you easily attain your fitness goals.
Three young individuals from diverse backgrounds are taking the lead: one skip at a time.
Linda Weru wants you to pick up your jump rope and skip. The 25-year-old lawyer has been doing it for the last five years, and she’s experienced tremendous changes in her physical and mental health. What started as a casual scrolling on social media inspired her to pick a hobby—now a lifestyle by watching others who were doing it.
“Covid came along with a lot of screentime. One day, I watched a video of a man doing tricks with a jump rope. This interested me a lot. I bought a rope and got into that rabbit hole, and I have never looked back ever since,” she shares.
On her socials—where she has built a community of jump rope enthusiasts, she goes by the name Linda Skips. Her passion inspired the formation of OneSkip—a community that meets at least once every two months and a business that imports different kinds of ropes for clients.
“I started OneSkip in 2022. However, I started skipping in July 2021. I was already one year in when I formalised the community. The bodily changes and the mental health shift I experienced led me to ask, why don’t I share this with other people? Then, there was the small matter of forming a community and not having the right ropes. I found out during my one year of skipping adventures, that it was difficult to find good jump ropes in the country. After some research I did, I settled on importing the ropes. That was the birth of the business arm of OneSkip registered in early 2024.
“Rope skipping is an effective cardio workout," she says. “It goes beyond merely losing weight—something many people seek. It can reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, strengthen your muscles, and improve your balance, coordination, and overall athleticism.”
Linda Weru wants you to pick up your jump rope and skip.
Photo credit: Francis Nderitu | Nation Media Group
Her outfit, OneSkip, organises rope-skipping community meet-ups once every two months.
“I wanted to share the coolness of skipping with others, but I kept postponing. Then, one day, I made a poster and posted it on my socials. Six people responded, and the community was born.”
People approach her for advice, especially on weight loss to which she answers with a one-liner, “Consistency and discipline is all it takes.” While she admits she is not qualified to advise on matters of fitness, she draws from her life the benefits she’s reaped ever since she started.
“I was not looking to lose weight when I started, but I lost about three kilos. In terms of mental wellness, I can concentrate and focus well on tasks and responsibilities. When I am skipping, I gather my thoughts and attain clarity even on days when things are a bit fuzzy.”
The OneSkip community is currently on a 30-day challenge. “For anyone participating in the challenge, we ask them to set aside fifteen minutes a day to skip. At the end of the thirty days, they can account for any change they will witness in their lives.”
Caroline Mariga, 27
Her rope skipping videos are a carefully curated piece of work. You’d be mistaken to think she is prepping for a competition. The 27-year-old software designer picked rope skipping almost at the same time she learning baking in 2021.
“Baking came along with an appetite. I added some weight as a consequence. I picked up the rope top and shed off the extra weight I had put on. I feared getting to 80kg. I set up a personal challenge of about five hundred skips a day and failed by day three,” she says.
They say when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. Her social media algorithm soon took a ducks-in-row formation. All she saw were videos of people doing what she wanted to do. Like Linda, she was motivated by an online personality.
Caroline Mariga owns a beaded jump rope, which is hardy enough for her kind of skipping.
Photo credit: Pool
In 2022, she met Linda on Instagram. “I can’t remember who found who, but I remember us discovering that we shared the same love for jump rope,” she shares.
Her consistency with the rope has seen her attain her weight loss target. “I have maintained an average of 75kg, which was my before baking persistent weight.”
Caroline’s work demands all the attention she can afford. This leaves her hammered at the end of each working day. “Jump rope is where I go to release. Mental exhaustion leads to physical lethargy, and working out is a perfect reset for me. After every session, I feel lighter mentally; I feel revived and reenergised.”
She owns a beaded jump rope, which is hardy enough for her kind of skipping. Caroline is faithful to her rope. This is evidenced by the videos she shares on her Instagram. You will see her skipping on a beach, a mall courtyard, at home.
“I skip every day. After four years in the game, it becomes part of your life. Besides, I am constantly learning new tricks, which calls for practice and consistency.”
For those looking to incorporate jump rope into their workout routine, Caroline offers this advice: “Find your own way. Working out is an exploration; you continuously seek until you discover what works for you. As you search for motivation, remember that for someone else, day one might not look like a hundred days of experience. Be patient with the process.”
Wilson Ngure, 28
Wilson is a professional skateboard coach, and recently, he was certified as a rope skipping coach by the Kenya Jump Rope Federation.
The 28-year-old electrical engineer picked jump rope in 2023 to improve his footwork and agility. “I started my leg workouts in a gym where, unfortunately, I did not achieve what I was looking for. This presented rope skipping as the next trial in my search for a workout that could strengthen my legs and boost my agility on the skateboard.”
With every skip he did, he kept getting better—not just at skipping but also at getting closer to his goal.
Wilson Ngure carries his rope everywhere. He can rope skip under the sun, on all terrains, and under what would be considered difficult conditions, he says.
Photo credit: Lucy Wanjiru | Nation Media Group
“I included rope skipping as a pre-training warmup in my coaching practice. What I was learning, I was now sharing with my trainees. A good coach does not hoard. If rope skipping helped me, maybe there was one more person it could help out there.”
He has built his endurance and speed through consistency. “When I started, I’d do, let’s say, two thousand reps in about ten minutes. With every skip thereafter, I have made significant progress in my speed and endurance. It kept growing.”
Wilson carries his rope—as he does his skateboard, everywhere. “I can rope skip under the sun, on all terrains, and under what would be considered difficult conditions.”
He is quick to add that the men are reluctant to pick this as a workout routine. “I think it is seen traditionally as a sport for women and girls. Through this movement, I hope we will change that and encourage more men to pick up this easy but very effective workout,” he adds.
To young men who would want to take up rope skipping, he advises: “Rope skipping is not gendered. Like any other fitness path, this can be embraced by anyone to achieve their goals.”
