Do you need help choosing which battle rope is right for you? We’re here to help!

Selecting the right battle rope for you may seem a bit overwhelming with all of the different brands, lengths, diameter’s and materials out there, but after reading this guide you should be able to shop with confidence.

When someone first calls us about buying a new battle rope the first thing we want to know is where will you be using it? The specifics of where aren’t too important, we just need to know if you’re going to be using it indoors or outdoors. The reason this is important to know is because some battle ropes shed and some battle ropes don’t shed. For example ourAftershock rope is made of manila which is a natural fiber that comes from a plant, and when these battling ropes strike the floor tiny little “hairs” will fall off of the rope and make a bit of a mess.  This is fine if you’re going to be outside, in a park, or a driveway, but not something you want to deal with in your living room.

The rest of the battle ropes we sell are made of synthetic fibers like polypropylene, Dacron, and nylon and won’t shed at all. These are perfect use indoors, and we should mention that all of these ropes can also be used outdoors as well. The takeaway here is that indoor ropes can go outdoors, but outdoor ropes shouldn’t be used indoors.

The next thing we want to know is what sort of workout you’re after? Are you trying to get a heart pumping, high intensity, speedy workout, or are you looking to add some muscle and bulk with a grueling strength workout? Now there will be some overlap here, and a lot of this will depend on your body type and some other factors, but this gives us a good idea of which battle rope is going to be the best fit for you.

If you’re into the HIIT training, cardio blasting workout we described above you’re going to want a 1.5″ diameter battle rope. These ropes will allow you to go hard, maintain a solid grip, and will fit perfectly into a circuit training workout.

If it’s muscles your after and you’re prepared to perform a workout that feels more like a bench press than wind sprints the2.0″ battle rope is for you. These ropes are 35% larger than the 1.5″ ropes and require a larger hand and stronger grip to maintain control of the battle rope.

The next thing we need to know before we make up your battle rope is the length. There are 5 options here but we can narrow that down pretty quickly. The most common length is 50 feet followed by 40′ and 30′ respectively. A 50′ battle rope leaves you with 25′ in each arm which for anyone between 5’6″ and 6’6″ is the perfect length to create big momentum-filled waves for a smooth, low-impact workout. If you’re a bit on the smaller side you might prefer a 40′ rope, and if you’re really looking to challenge yourself, and you have the room a 75′ rope might be for you.

We should mention that of the thousands of battle ropes we sell each year over half of them are 1.5″ by 50 feet!

Our last question is what material are we going to make your battle rope out of? This is the wildcard which tends to confuse a lot of people and can make it difficult to compare ropes when shopping around. A lot of this will come down to preference so we’ll do our best to keep this short and sweet:

Aftershock (Manila) – Outdoor battle rope, sheds, heavy weight per foot, rough material, best value, great for sports teams. Available in 1.5″ and 2.0″.

Cyclone (PolyDac) – Indoor/Outdoor battle rope, synthetic material won’t shed, medium weight per foot, soft rope, great all around rope. Available in 1.5″ and 2.0″.

Lightning (Polypropelyne) – Indoor/Outdoor battle rope, synthetic material won’t shed, lightest weight per foot, stiffer material, preferred by women desiring better muscle tone, great for bootcamps. Available in 1.5″ only.

Thunder (100% Nylon) – Indoor/Outdoor, premium nylon construction won’t shed, heaviest weight per foot, very soft rope, extremely durable, used by high-end trainers and athletic clubs. Available in 1.5″ only.

Hopefully your head isn’t spinning and we didn’t confuse you too much on how to choose a battle rope. If you have any questions please email us or give us a call and we would be more than happy to help you out: contact@muscleropes.com  888-783-7202.

***A few final tips***

– You only need 1 rope not 2. Battle rope workouts are performed by wrapping a single rope around a fixed point.

– Ropes can be shortened by tying a knot in the middle of the rope.

– If you’re unsure about 1.5″ or 2.0″ go with the 1.5″

Original Article by Josh at MuscleRopes