10 Benefits of Ropeflow. 10 reasons why it is a practise worth following.
I could write a whole blog on this topic as my day job is working in the NHS as a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist. But to simplify it for this list, ropeflow helps you to:
The thousands of repetitions you get from doing the moves in a short amount of time increases blood flow and synovial fluid around the joints involved (Shoulders, wrists etc). It is a very low risk way to explore movement and make some mobility gains.
People that are into ropeflow are usually quite likeminded. This has meant that there are thriving communities both online and in person. The ropeflow community is present on instagram and facebook mostly from what I’ve found.
Places like the philippines show that with the right conditions local ropeflow communities can thrive and be an accepting place for people to grow and better themselves together.
It can be quite humbling (see no 5). But it really teaches you to be more well coordinated. It integrates your left side and right side to work in unison. The element of practising both sides is something you don’t get with many other sports. You would throw with your dominant hand in cricket, hit a forehand with your dominant hand in tennis. This can lead to imbalances in how efficiently we can use one side of our body. Ropeflow irons this out to a certain extent. I’m not saying it will make you ambidextrous or anything. But it will improve the way you move and the way both sides of your body communicate.
This is no surprise as it was created by David Weck, the creator of the BOSU ball, BOSU standing for BOth Sides Utilised.
As adults we often go incredibly long amounts of time without feeling like a true beginner at something. That feeling when you feel awkward, clumsy, just bad at the task at hand. You might be thinking this is a feeling you want to avoid. I feel that too. BUT – there is beauty in that process and it is all the more satisfying once you unlock certain moves and start connecting the dots.
It can be frustrating at times. Like a neverending puzzle of how to move as fluidly as possible. Due to being able to get thousands of repetitions in a short space of time the learning you can get in ropeflow can be exponential.
See the video which is a part of a series I posted on Youtube and Instagram with knowledge and tutorials then take you from not knowing how to even hold your rope to being able to flow between the fundamental patterns.
There aren’t many tools or practises that are so portable. A flow rope takes up barely any space. I find that with certain ropes they fit into the pockets of my trousers/shorts.
This is amazing as it means you can always take a rope with you, even to remote places. Whenever I don’t have a rope on me I inevitably regret it. To have access to flow state and calm within minutes is invaluable.
The coiling core movements that are involved with ropeflow means that the spine is bending and rotating in wonderful ways for being supple and getting good bloodflow to the area. Talk about the spinal engine book perhaps?
Rope flow builds agility through rhythm and coordination. You can flow fast or flow slow (See ropeflow benefit 9) and changing between these helps to train the elasticity of your movements and muscle control.
At the beginning of everyone’s ropeflow journey there is a tendency to overuse the arms and focus less on full body integration and footwork. Once you include footwork you can incorporate pivots, switches, pirouettes and quick direction changes that also improve agility and balance.
The video shows me and Andrew doing a collab challenge. He is a ropeflow practitioner who is very agile in the way he expresses his flow.
Ropeflow can be anything you want it to be. What I mean by this is that you can alter the way that you flow based on what you want to get out of it.
For example, If I want to get my heart rate going and have a real workout I can flow fast, incorporating explosive footwork like foot switches or lunges. If I want to just move a little bit to gently wake my body up, I can flow slowly and focus on intentionality, I don’t even need to move my feet. If I want to express myself, I can put on some music and let my body do whatever it wants to. If I want to warm up a specific part of my body I can craft a flow that does that (e.g. focusing on wrists before handstands).
The Ouroboros is my favourite all rounder rope. It is light enough that I can go quickly if the mood takes me but also heavy enough to slow down and feel a slower flow.
Saved one of the best till last. Because it is at its core, a low impact practice with a relatively light tool that is accessible for almost everyone. From old to young, I have seen very young children flowing and people that are approaching 90 years old flowing. The low risk of injury also makes it a great rehabilitative practice.
All you need is a rope. When I started I bought a cheap rope off amazon and made one myself. It wasn’t very good but it did get me started! I had to try a few different ropes till I found a good one to flow with. If you want to save yourself the time and effort you can get a rope off me, but if you want to try and save a bit of money then you can research it and make your own! The more people flowing the better.
I hope this has been helpful and perhaps convinced someone to give it a go!!
If that’s you and you want help getting started click the link below and get in touch:)
