Last summer I blogged about the problem of peeing during workouts, Peeing during workouts, not just an older woman’s issue, and frankly, since it isn’t a problem I have (yet?) I haven’t thought about it much since.
But I’ve been working towards mastering one of the CrossFit staples–the double under–and it bugs the heck out of me that I can’t do it. I can skip really fast and I can tuck jump but I seem to lack the coordination to get it just right. I’m either landing on the rope, or whipping myself in the shins with the rope, and it’s super super annoying. Reading up on difficulties with double unders I was struck again by all that’s written about women and exercise induced incontinence.
(By the way, would you wear that t-shirt? Who would? It’s a prank gift for mean people to buy for their partners, don’t you think?)
What’s a double under? “A double under is a popular exercise done on a jump rope in which the rope makes two passes per jump instead of just one. It is significantly more effective than a single rope pass in that it allows for higher work capacity.The Double Under takes a bit of coordination and determination to master. Those with less coordination will find it a little more difficult. The Double Under must be executed with more intensity in order to complete a high number of repetitions without mistake.” More here.
I wondered for awhile about why the frustration. After all, there are a lot of things at CrossFit I can’t do unmodified (see Leveling up at CrossFit: Rx versus modified workouts for more details): box jumps, pull ups, even push ups if I need to do more than 10.
Then it hit me. It bugs me because I’m used to thinking of myself as being good at jumping rope. I love jumping rope. It makes me feel like a kid again. See The joy of jumping rope .There’s lots of gender role socialization I missed out on. I don’t know very much at all about make up. I can’t knit or sew and I cook only because someone has to but I did get elementary school skipping! I attended elementary school in Newfoundland, Catholic elementary school, wearing school uniforms and being taught by nuns. I know ideologically there’s a lot to dislike about Catholic school but these nuns were terrific. They were post-Vatican II nuns, hippie folk granola nuns with acoustic guitars and a fervour for educating young women. There and then it was likely a choice for them as girls to either marry and have a dozen children or become a nun and get a university education. They taught me to read, to write, to knit, and on the school yard I learned to jump rope.
I also recall lessons in penmanship which clearly didn’t take.
Recently I had the occasion to go back and wonder about these nuns. I found my old first day of school diploma! Who on earth gets a first day of school diploma? It reads “we’re sure that the years between now and your graduation from university will be rich and rewarding”? I had taken it out and was marveling about the bravery and optimism of nuns in rural Newfoundland sending these beautiful certificates, complete with photos, home to families who might have been giving not so much thought to their daughters’ educations beyond high school.
They were members of the Presentation Sisters, http://www.presentationsisters.ca/begin.html, an order which had come from Ireland to Newfoundland charged with the task of educating girls.
Four pioneering Sisters among Nano’s followers, Sisters Bernard Kirwin, Magdalen O’Shaughnessy, Xavier Maloney and Xaverius Lynch, carried her vision and spirit to the shores of Newfoundland in 1833. They came at the invitation of Bishop Michael Fleming to establish a school that would offer improved educational opportunity for girls and young women in St. John’s. Nano’s vision had birthed a response that was both broad and penetrating. For the next 175 years our sisters continued to respond to this call. Academic learning, spiritual development/religious education and a deep appreciation for the arts and music were central to our education ministry among students, teachers and parents.
So I think I’ve always thought of myself as good at skipping rope. I’ve got lots of fond school yard memories. That’s why I get so grumpy now that I can’t do double unders. Searching for advice about mastering the double under I found lots of advice geared at older women. Great, I thought. But sadly it’s all about strengthening the pelvic floor so you don’t pee during double unders. (See Curing a Case of the Workout Pees and “CrossFit Gynecologist,” I’m Appalled. There’s Help For ‘Peeing‘…)
That isn’t my problem though. I’m back at it next week, learning to whip the rope faster and hold a tuck jump longer. I’m following CrossFit coach Dave Henry’s instructions and I’ll let you know how I go.
It took awhile to find a video double under with a woman! But here’s one:
And here’s someone doing a wild number of double unders very quickly!
C’est intéressant j’aime votre blog ,Bonne Continuation
I started teaching yoga in 2004, not by choice. At that point I was a young 23 year old with no worries in the world. However, as I taught more I realized how inflexible I really was. Having been an athlete my whole life, I thought I was invincible and able to tackle any fitness challenge thrown at me! By 2008 I had set a goal of doing a full on split by the time I turned 30. I was getting very close to accomplishing that goal (had to be done by September 2010) when I went and got pregnant. I have had two children now and have yet to do the full split. It’s not been written off of my bucket list yet, just set new goals in front of it. Sometimes it’s the things we think we should be able that hold us back.
In yoga we tell participants to accept who they are and what their body can and cannot do. It doesn’t mean that we don’t try to push beyond that point. Enjoy your successes and this will come in time.
Thanks. A lovely story and it helped. 🙂
I’m just happy that I can actually skip rope in middle age. It’s tough work though!
In my opinion, Sam, you’ll get the hang of it just suddenly one day and then you’ll be surprised that it was ever difficult for you in the first place. Double unders are all a matter of technique and then just being able to maintain your balance and tempo. It’ll come together for you.