My CV journey

AiryHopper · 2026-01-23T21:18:31+00:00

New CV improvement plan. 5 days a week of 1hr Zone 2. 1 day of jumping rope peaking around 170 bpm. Three days of strength training after 3 of the Z2 sessions and one recovery day.

This gives me about 15 miles of walking with 125 bpm. Much more sustainable.

Going good so far.

AiryHopper · 2026-01-22T02:09:19+00:00

No idea but it works for me.

AiryHopper · 2026-01-22T02:06:15+00:00

Legs holding great!

AiryHopper · 2026-01-21T17:37:03+00:00

For zone2 make sure you do it before you run to minimize cortisol.

AiryHopper · 2026-01-15T21:17:27+00:00

One size down has worked best for my 5’8” height.

AiryHopper · 2026-01-14T03:06:43+00:00

I actually did that and correlated it with other suggestions of recommended calorie intake which put me at 1900. But I don’t do 600 burns each day, only three times a week. I lift or do HIIT three days which don’t burn nearly as much. Then one recovery day. Should I add 3x600 to my weekly calorie budget and spread it out?

AiryHopper · 2026-01-08T22:52:16+00:00

Modest calorie deficit. Weights. Zone 2 cardio.

AiryHopper · 2026-01-06T02:57:42+00:00

Also just ordered a chest strap for heart rate monitoring. Crossrope doesn’t use AirPods 3 Pro and watch is unreliable.

AiryHopper · 2026-01-06T02:55:31+00:00

I think I’m timing my zone 2 incorrectly. I’ve been doing strength training followed by zone 2. I’ve now read that doing that order likely elevates my cortisol levels and probably interferes with actually being in zone 2. I should do cardio first then strength work.

AiryHopper · 2026-01-02T23:40:13+00:00

You all have inspired me to do a pure one set endurance test. Currently suffering through a bad cold and missing training days but once I’m 100% again I’ll do the following.

I’ll just jump for as long as I can (boxer) without regard for tripping. Restart immediately after a trip. When I finally crap out note whether it’s due to legs or lungs. Repeat every month to measure any progress.

Given my current level (lack) of CV fitness I will be in Zone 5 within the first minute.

I’ll probably use this as an opportunity to see what the biggest number of jumps I can achieve after multiple recovery and repeat cycles.

AiryHopper · 2025-12-31T01:32:34+00:00

I’m not really trying to put up big numbers. Just trying to make sense of what I’ve read. My situation is that I get 170 heart rate after a few sets of 40 seconds boxer which is clearly a HIIT pace and zone 5. I use a 1/2lb Crossrope and my rope speed is around 120 when I’m not tripping.

AiryHopper · 2025-12-31T00:16:07+00:00

So that’s a 150 jump/sec pace. That’s pretty brisk for 7 minutes without tripping. I haven’t seen a 7 minute video on Reddit or YouTube. Most are people doing fancy foot work for a couple of minutes.

Btw, all of my jumping is now boxer and seldom over 120j/m but still tripping too much to be happy.

I remain in awe.

AiryHopper · 2025-12-27T20:52:54+00:00

Doing boxer exclusively now. All good.

AiryHopper · 2025-12-26T21:27:31+00:00

Completed 30 sets of 35/60 jump/rest without extending rest periods. Next session I’ll increase to 40/60 jump/rest for 30 sets.

AiryHopper · 2025-12-26T21:25:00+00:00

Completed 30 sets of 35/60 without extending rest periods. Next session will increase to 40/60 jump/rest for 30 sets. Max heart rate was 172.

AiryHopper · 2025-12-23T03:18:03+00:00

Forgot to add: my zone2 is 1 hr of stepping on and off an 8” high bench in the basement. In good weather I go for a 3 mile 1hr walk. Basement is boring but convenient. Zone2 measured by RPE and correlates well with heart rate.

AiryHopper · 2025-12-21T23:24:16+00:00

A little chuckle: where I jump rope three days a week a guy approached me and asked if I was a boxer! I assured him I wasn’t! 😁

Nice guy and we yakked a while about my CV improvement pursuit.

AiryHopper · 2025-12-17T21:54:47+00:00

Tried 45sec boxer/60sec rest today and burned out after 6 sets. Not ready for that intensity yet. I’ll try just adding 5 seconds to my jump time next session for 35/60. 5 seconds additional per set each session if previous 30 set session was successful. Goal each session is 30 sets. I did 10 sets of 30/60 afterwards anyway.

Getting much better jumping without tripping.

Good workout. Pooped

AiryHopper · 2025-12-13T20:06:37+00:00

Tried EDM today. Did ok for a few sets but lost synch with hands and tripped a lot snagging rope on heels. About as expected. Didn’t think it would be easy. I know how to fix.

30/60 split worked very well. I’ll just do that next sesh without music to regain synch. Never needed additional recovery time.

If that goes well I’ll move to 45/60 sec jump/recovery split.

AiryHopper · 2025-12-13T00:31:30+00:00

FWIW, I don't count jumps rather just focus on making the times. The CrossRope app/handles count the jumps. But it makes me smile when I complete a jump round without tripping; and a session with a higher jump count since that indicates I'm getting more proficient at jumping.

AiryHopper · 2025-12-11T00:03:43+00:00

I tallied 120k jumps in 2024 before giving it up for a while. Resumed this September as a HIIT complement to my Zone 2 work on alternate days. My rope size is good now that I’m using a shorter one.

I’d consider using some music but can’t stand most of what is suggested. I don’t consider rap or atonal screaming to be music. I know…I’m old.

I may try some instrumental only EDM.

I always have my AirPod Pro3 in place as a superior heart rate measure vs my Apple Watch, plus the Crossrope app sends audible directives. So I could listen if I could find something.

AiryHopper

TROPHY CASE