[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/exercise\/answers-to-your-hopping-questions\/#Article","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/exercise\/answers-to-your-hopping-questions\/","headline":"Answers to your hopping questions","name":"Answers to your hopping questions","description":"Print PDF eBook Facebook Twitter Gmail LinkedIn Pinterest Become a Patron! One of the reasons this bone health community is so much fun for me is the participation of readers like you!\u00a0 From adding insight on the topics to sharing your experiences to catching typos, I know I can count on you.\u00a0 Hearing from you […]","datePublished":"2015-05-29","dateModified":"2026-04-22","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/author\/brownbetterbonesgmail-com\/#Person","name":"Dr. Susan E. Brown, PhD","url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/author\/brownbetterbonesgmail-com\/","identifier":72,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8e08d87bd45250c6616e1752933a6576aba077f335d97ee337a0cde5e435cbd3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8e08d87bd45250c6616e1752933a6576aba077f335d97ee337a0cde5e435cbd3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Center for Better Bones","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Better-Bones-AMP.png","url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Better-Bones-AMP.png","width":150,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/hopping.jpg","url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/hopping.jpg","height":512,"width":1024},"url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/exercise\/answers-to-your-hopping-questions\/","video":{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"VideoObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ARz_KIwwmJk#VideoObject","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ARz_KIwwmJk","name":"Hopping to Strengthen Bones","description":"Dr. Brown talks about exercises that will help to build the strength of the hips and prevent hip fractures.  The more you use bone the stronger it grows, and impact exercises such as the ones shown in this video will increase bone strength.\n\n\u2192 Want to learn everything you need to manage & reverse your osteoporosis\/osteopenia naturally in one inspiring weekend with Dr. Brown? Join our bone health retreat & workshop! Learn more here: https:\/\/shop.betterbones.com\/pages\/love-your-bones-love-your-life-virtual-retreat\n\n\u2192 If you are interested in working with Dr. Brown to develop a personalized natural bone health program, read more about consultations here: https:\/\/www.betterbones.com\/consultations\/help-osteoporosis-osteopenia-fracture-healing-bone-health-concerns\/\n\n\u2192 Would you like your questions answered by Dr. Brown?  Comment below and she may address them in a future video!\n\nCheck out our website! \u2192 http:\/\/ www.betterbones.com\n\nWant to connect with Better Bones on social media?\nLike on Facebook \u2192 http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/betterbonesbetterbody\n\u200bFollow on Twitter \u2192 http:\/\/www.twitter.com\/drsusanbrown\n\u200bFollow our Instagram \u2192 http:\/\/www.instagram.com\/betterbonesbetterbody\n\u200bCheck out our Pinterest \u2192 http:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/betterbonesbetterbody\n\n#osteoporosis #osteopenia #bonemass #bonehealth #weightandbonemass #womenshealth #drsusanbrown #betterbonesbetterbody #preventosteoporosis\nExercise for bone health: patreon.com\/betterbones\n\nTranscription:\nhi this is dr. Susan brown director of\nthe center for better bones today I want\nto talk to you about a really great type\nof exercise that will help to build the\nstrength of the hips and prevent hip\nfractures bone is very much like muscle\nin that the more you use it the stronger\nit grows the case with bone and hip bone\nin particular is that we like impact\nexercises that put a little extra stress\nsend a message to the bone you need to\ngrow stronger for example if I walk\nthat's one sort of impact but if I stop\nor or better yet if I hop that's a much\ngreater impact and today we're going to\ntalk about hopping hopping is an\nexcellent way to stimulate the growth of\nthe hip bone the strength of the hip\nbone now hopping is not for everyone\nbecause some people have knee injuries\nleg injuries foot injuries but if you\ncan hop and you enjoy it I'm gonna give\nyou suggestions some suggestions first\noff if we do happen for example on two\nlegs the higher up we go the more impact\nwe have and we come down the more force\nwe have for building going if you say\nwell I can't really that's uncomfortable\nthat kind of hopping then we might say\nstomping marching like they do in the\nmilitary that gives a nice impact and\nsome people like to do heel drops where\nyou go up on your toes and down on your\nheels now you can go up and down very\ngently like that or you can go up and\ndrop down that's a nice impact up drop\ndown up down that is a very nice impact\nalso for building bone the most potent\nhapping exercises for building bone\nstrength particularly hip bone strength\nour exercises that involve one-legged\nhopping and that's because we put the\nwhole weight of the body on one leg and\nwe have that extra those extra g-forces\nwhen we jump up and come down in fact a\nvery interesting European study took 70\nyear old men they had them hop 50 times\na day on one leg and it took a few\nmonths to work up to doing that 50 times\na day they didn't just jump into him and\nthey had the men happen different\ndirections\nlike I'm going to show you and they\nfound that in various different parts of\nthe hip bone joint they gained strength\nit's interesting to note with this\nhopping exercise the bone density didn't\nchange a lot but when they were able to\ndo a 3d image of bone strength they saw\nthat bone strength increased and what\nthey did in this study was one-legged\nhappening like this they hopped in one\ndirection then they happen in another\ndirection then they happened in the\nother direction and then the other\ndirection and of course the higher up\nyour hop the better impact you're gonna\nget so you might remember hopscotching\nas a kid if you like that get the kids\nout and try it\nhopping is what we're talking about\none-legged happening is the supreme two\nlegged hopping just simple hopscotching\nall of that so a lot of fun so let us\nknow try some hopping if you can do it\ndon't hurt yourself but have fun if you\ncan do it let me know how it goes\nthis is","thumbnailUrl":["https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/ARz_KIwwmJk\/default.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/ARz_KIwwmJk\/mqdefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/ARz_KIwwmJk\/hqdefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/ARz_KIwwmJk\/sddefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/ARz_KIwwmJk\/maxresdefault.jpg"],"uploadDate":"2015-05-08T14:49:34+00:00","duration":"PT3M8S","embedUrl":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ARz_KIwwmJk","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCm6Zry9uGdrZpm05sQLIxMw#Organization","url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCm6Zry9uGdrZpm05sQLIxMw","name":"Dr. Susan E. Brown","description":"Dr. Susan E. Brown, PhD, is a medical anthropologist, a New York State Certified Nutritionist, and the author of Better Bones, Better Body -- the first comprehensive look at natural bone health. Dr. Brown specializes in osteoporosis, osteopenia, bone health regeneration, and auto-immune disease. She is also famous for her natural approach to bone health; check out her Better Bones programs and products.","logo":{"url":"https:\/\/yt3.ggpht.com\/ytc\/AIdro_m0l08uY9k8RO1FbN8-VsYIOa8fiq9BtocNNM_k3xw7a7s=s800-c-k-c0x00ffffff-no-rj","width":800,"height":800,"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ARz_KIwwmJk#VideoObject_publisher_logo_ImageObject"}},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ARz_KIwwmJk#VideoObject_potentialAction","target":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ARz_KIwwmJk&t={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"},"interactionStatistic":[[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ARz_KIwwmJk#VideoObject_interactionStatistic_WatchAction","interactionType":{"@type":"WatchAction"},"userInteractionCount":19588}],{"@type":"InteractionCounter","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ARz_KIwwmJk#VideoObject_interactionStatistic_LikeAction","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":349}]},"about":["Exercise"],"wordCount":607,"keywords":["exercise","bone building","hopping"],"articleBody":" Print PDF eBook\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFacebook\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTwitter\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGmail\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLinkedIn\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPinterest\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBecome a Patron!One of the reasons this bone health community is so much fun for me is the participation of readers like you!\u00a0 From adding insight on the topics to sharing your experiences to catching typos, I know I can count on you.\u00a0 Hearing from you is truly rewarding!My recent blog on hopping was a great example.\u00a0 I received so many questions and comments from hoppers \u2014 as well as non-hoppers \u2014 that I thought I would share them:Table of ContentsToggle     3 Minutes ReadQuestion:\u00a0 What if I can\u2019t hop?Question: What about a rebounder?Question: Do you know if shoes can be worn while hopping?\u00a0 \u2014 Jan-MarieQuestion: Would jumping rope 100 times each day have the same benefit? \u2014 GailWatch Dr. Brown hop to strengthen bonesQuestion:\u00a0 What if I can\u2019t hop?Answer from Dr. Brown: First, as several readers emphasized, hopping is not for everybody!\u00a0 If you would like an alternative to hopping, I suggest walking down the stairs. The weight you put on your legs as you step down actually increases bone.\u00a0 Walk down the stairs consciously and perhaps with a little bit of extra thud.\u00a0 Oh yes, heel drops are also a nice alternative to hopping. They can be done gently or with more force.Special note:\u00a0 See my video at the end of this blog for more about how to hop.Question: What about a rebounder?I’ve recently started using a rebounder. I bounce 300 times, and I do shift from leg to leg for part of the time. Hopping is too painful for me because I apparently don’t have much padding in my heels any longer and I have fibroids in my arches. Do you think bouncing on the rebounder will give me the same bone building benefits?\u00a0 \u2014 HeatherAnswer from Dr. Brown: A rebounder is a wonderful exercise to increase the circulation of blood and lymph, but it does not provide the impact that is necessary to seriously stimulate bone. In fact, the rebounder is meant to limit the impact and make the contact softer. It still great exercise to do though, so keep it up!Question: Do you know if shoes can be worn while hopping?\u00a0 \u2014 Jan-MarieGrace, a reader, shares her experience: I have been doing some hopping and jumping and appreciate this regimen.\u00a0 From my experience, I would suggest shoes SHOULD be worn for this.\u00a0 When I started, I was having some heel issues, but eventually that went away.\u00a0 I couldn’t overdo it at first, so my advice is start slowly and yes to shoes.Answer from Dr. Brown:\u00a0 Jan-Marie: yes, wearing sneakers can be helpful when hopping, especially when hopping on hard surfaces. As Grace shared, it may be essential for those with knee issues. Listen to your body.\u00a0 Personally I always wear shoes when hopping.Question: Would jumping rope 100 times each day have the same benefit? \u2014 GailAnswer from Dr. Brown:\u00a0 Jumping rope is a nice high impact exercise. While it is possible jump rope with just one leg, I don’t think it would be a safe option for most people due to the tripping hazard. If you enjoy jumping rope anyway you do it, continue to do so. As a high impact exercise, it too can provide benefits for bone health similar to hopping,Thank you for all of your wonderful questions.\u00a0 As you can see, we have a lot to learn from each other.\u00a0 Other great places to take part in the conversation are my Better Bones Facebook and Twitter pages.\u00a0 Please join us!Watch Dr. Brown hop to strengthen bones"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Exercise","item":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/exercise\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Answers to your hopping questions","item":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/exercise\/answers-to-your-hopping-questions\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]