The benefits of Rebounding

By exercising on a well-sprung professional rebounder, with good technique (see our basic bounce for the correct rebound posture) and following a well-designed exercise programme you will kick start your metabolism, burn unwanted fat and improve cardio-vascular health. Just 30 minutes of rebounding a day could help you lose 1 stone in 3 weeks, burning more calories than you would by running for the same period – without all the strain on your joints!

Rebounding achieves the higher calorie burn because as you bounce your body needs to work harder to push down into the mat then then jump up out of the mat. This continual bouncing movement creates G-Force that causes your exercising body weight to be heavier (up to 3.24 times than normal) which in turn causes your body to burn more calories more quickly and so aids very effective weight loss.

Rebound Fitness trampoline workouts utilise all the fundamental movement patterns needed to stimulate all of our limbs, joints and muscles in a very healthy and balanced way. These functional movement patterns and exercises performed on the professional rebounder can consist of squats, lunges, twists, bends, pushes and gait patterns including postural exercise that force every muscle in the body to continually contract simultaneously and then relax.

This results in our joints and muscles working and moving together a we do in everyday life and whilst playing sport, resulting in a more functional full body workout. This makes us becoming stronger, leaner and more flexible. Rebounding also strengthens the pelvic floor muscles and deep abdominal muscles (the muscles that help give us a flat tummy!). Increasing the muscle tone and volume will result in making our skin appear smoother, and younger.

The lymphatic system makes up part of your immune system & plays a vital role in defending your body against harmful bacteria, viruses, parasites and toxins. Spread throughout your body, like blood vessels, the lymphatic system removes excess fluid and waste from your tissues and returns it to your bloodstream via the heart which are then excreted out of the body via the lungs, skin, kidneys and bowels.

Periods of poor diet, relative inactivity and stress can put a strain on the lymphatic system and contribute to it becoming sluggish thus lowering the immune system. The best way to stimulate the lymphatic system, give it a boost, and get it working efficiently again is to exercise – Exercising on a high quality mini trampoline, in particular, is incredible for achieving this!

Prehab not rehab is a motto we live (and bounce) by. Traditional forms of exercise such as running, cycling and power walking place a lot of stress on the joints of the knees, hips, ankles and feet. Low impact exercise or fitness activities are those that do not require you to place one of your limbs in contact with a hard surface. Typical low impact activities are swimming, cycling, rebounding and trampolining.

Rebounding is the “King” of low impact exercise – not only does rebounding reduce 87% of the shock of impact when using a high quality, well sprung rebounder, compared to working out on a hard surface, it is also a weight bearing activity and therefore strengthens bones, larger muscles and stimulates the smaller stabilising muscles in and around our joints improving muscle strength and tone, flexibility and overall joint health.

We have been conditioned and brain washed to train our core muscles lying on our backs doing variations of an abdominal crunch or curl exercise. This is in fact dysfunctional with limited benefits, targeting only external superficial muscles rather than important deeper core muscles. Probably the only time of day we need to do this type of sit up movement is when we get out of bed in the morning!

Exercising on an unstable surface, such as a low impact rebounder, provides a very healthy and constant balance challenge forcing the involuntary contraction (meaning we don’t have to think about it!) of the very important ‘deeper core muscles’ that surround and protect our joints and organs.

Having a baby, being overweight, age, illness – there are many things that can adversely affect the pelvic floor and bladder control, and many can feel quite embarrassed by the situation. Exercise can therefore be the last thing on your mind – in fact, rebounding works wonders for improving the pelvic floor and bladder weakness.

The sphincter on the bladder is an annular (circular in shape) muscle which, through opening and closing, controls the flow of urine out of the body. Pregnancy and birth can weaken the sphincter muscles; they can lose strength, elasticity and their original shape.

As we get older, we lose bone mass and mineral content from our bones which means they become frail and porous leading to osteoporosis and other degenerative skeletal conditions. Osteoporosis affects over three million people in the UK and over 200 million worldwide. The cell in the body that is bone forming is known as “osteoblast”. Rebounding causes osteoblastic activity thereby stimulating bone growth and restoring bone density.

In the NASA Report published in the Journal of Applied Physiology 49(5): 881-887, 1980 they state:

“. . . for similar levels of heart rate and oxygen consumption,the magnitude of the bio mechanical stimuli is greater with jumping on a trampoline than with running, a finding that might help identify acceleration parameters needed for the design of remedial procedures to avert deconditioning in persons exposed to weightlessness.”

Following a well-designed exercise programme performed on a high quality and very low impact rebounder, can have a carry over on to the playing filed and give you that vital edge over your opponent. By mimicking movement patterns used in our chosen sport or fitness activity whist on an unstable surface such as a swiss ball or rebounder, you can increase muscles stimulation, improve balance and increase joint stability by making them more difficult to perform than when done on a rigid surface.

The effects of unstable surfaces on strength and performance is quite easy to measure by doing some pre and post exercise testing. Also, biomechanical laboratories, sports science departments in universities and hospitals are equipped with electromyography machines, which use skin-mounted electrodes to measure electrical signals sent to your muscles through your nerves. By measuring the intensity of these signals, we can get a pretty clear idea of how strongly a particular exercise engages the muscles being tested.

Rebounding, or mini trampoline exercise, is great fun and suitable for all ages, genders and fitness levels. You are in control of how hard you work by how hard you push into the mat surface through your legs. This controls the intensity of your workout and allows you to increase your fitness levels gradually. In the beginning 5 minutes might be sufficient for you to work up a sweat and you can gradually increase the time of your workout, and the more you push into the mat of the rebounder the harder you will work.

So whether you are a complete beginner or elite athlete you can tailor your rebounding programme to suit your requirements. The Rebound Fitness team have produced a whole mixed genre of exciting mini trampoline workouts available in our Bounce & Burn membership for everyone to enjoy and benefit from.