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Nearly two dozen women in matching red shirts formed a circle inside Simons Recreation Center in North Philadelphia on a recent Friday night.
They are members of the local 40+ Double Dutch Club, which brings older women together to revisit a favorite childhood pastime to stay fit as they age.
“Alright, partner up. Everybody should have a partner,” Chocolate K. Jordan, 48, told the group.
As the beat of “Rockin’ Robin” filled the room, each woman high-fived her partner to the left, then to the right, before reaching high and squatting.
“Partner, partner, up, down. Partner, partner, up, down. Partner, partner, double, double, down,” Jordan chanted as she led the group through the warmup.
Soon, pairs of women picked up two long white ropes. Standing about 10 feet apart, they swung the ropes over and under in alternating circular motions as a third woman matched their rhythm, hopped into the middle and started jumping.
The click-clack of the ropes as they hit the wood floor was often drowned out by laughter, singing and cheering from other women waiting their turn or walking the perimeter of the gym.