Jogging vs Jump Rope

[Pork Chop]

Was told to jog recently by my coach to help me lose weight and to help me build up my lower legs (I've got skinny ankles).
I gave it the college try but after 2 relatively short sessions my back is absolutely killing me & my hips are tight & sore.
My feet are really not made for jogging, it's been a pretty big issue since I became an adult; even jogging regularly, i've never really been able to do more than twice a week because of the aches & pains.

I can handle jumping rope without too much problems.
I've read that jumping rope for 10 minutes is better than jogging 1 mile.
I also think jumping rope more directly targets the lower legs that I'm trying to build.

What are the benefits and drawbacks of jumping rope versus jogging?

[Mr Punch]

No contest: jumping rope is the winner.

Of course, if you were a man you'd do tabata sprints and tabata calf raises!

[Scott R. Brown]

Jumping rope is great exercise, but it is still a high impact activity. It might be better to begin by power walking until you lose some weight and accustom your legs, knees and ankles to impact. This will slowly build your muscles and strengthen your bones.

It is not uncommon to have back, calve, hamstring, and hip flexor stiffness when one begins to run again after an extended lay off. Be sure to do a warm up stretch and cool down stretch and perhaps work on your overall flexibility as well.

[sanjuro_ronin]

The better you get at something, the easier it gets, the less "effective" it will be as a form of exercise.
The body is notorious for finding the "path of least resistence" because this is how it was designed.
The better you get at skipping rope, the less benefitial it will get.

[Scott R. Brown]

The better you get at something, the easier it gets, the less "effective" it will be as a form of exercise.
The body is notorious for finding the "path of least resistence" because this is how it was designed.
The better you get at skipping rope, the less benefitial it will get.

Does this mean, "The smarter you get, the dumber you will end up??"

[sanjuro_ronin]

Does this mean, "The smarter you get, the dumber you will end up??"

I know a few people like that.

[David Jamieson]

ok, so who's gonna talk about that "800 pound value of muscle confusion strategy" gorilla on the table?

[Pork Chop]

The better you get at something, the easier it gets, the less "effective" it will be as a form of exercise.
The body is notorious for finding the "path of least resistence" because this is how it was designed.
The better you get at skipping rope, the less benefitial it will get.

Yah, swimming's like that for me; swam for 40 minutes the other day, was lapping everyone at the pool like i usually get lapped at running, wasn't even breathing hard.

On the other hand, do you think maybe those guys advocating running 5 miles a day are already at the point where the jogging is really not much of a workout for them?

Jumping rope is great exercise, but it is still a high impact activity. It might be better to begin by power walking until you lose some weight and accustom your legs, knees and ankles to impact. This will slowly build your muscles and strengthen your bones.

I walk my dog at a fast pace every night for 30 min to get him exercise.
I normally jump rope 10~15 minutes straight, three times a week no problem.
To avoid what sanjuro_ronin said, I'll probably have to intentionally up the intensity to make sure i'm not just coasting - thinking tabatas with jump rope (just to make Mr Punch happy).

It is not uncommon to have back, calve, hamstring, and hip flexor stiffness when one begins to run again after an extended lay off. Be sure to do a warm up stretch and cool down stretch and perhaps work on your overall flexibility as well.

I have some stiffness in my hips that's not so bad. My back right now is absolutely shot - even hurts lying & sitting down. My knees are a bit sore and could maybe handle three times a week if the pain goes away on days off.

I don't like rollercoasters - not because I'm scared, but because my knees tend to bang against the front of the ride - so it hurts. In much the same way, I don't like running - it's not a matter of getting a good workout, breathing hard, or having tired muscles; it really hurts. I'd rather do 10 minutes of burpees than waste any more time jogging.

I'm trying to find alternatives because this level of pain is enough to sap my motivation to train altogether.

Really appreciate the responses.