Get a Jump on Fitness
Trampoline jumping catches on as a low-impact exercise that heightens results.
In 1980, four NASA scientists published a study that said 10 minutes of
trampoline jumping burned the same amount of calories as 33 minutes of hard-surface running. Compared with jogging, the study also claimed, jumping consumed 68 percent less oxygen, which meant less demand on the heart and longer endurance. Leave it to some rocket scientists to take all the fun out of jumping around on a trampoline. It’s now exercise.
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The latest fitness craze for the masses, AIRobics, combines high-energy fun and a cardio workout that increases muscle strength and flexibility.
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But it doesn’t feel like exercise, says Jim Fosky, managing partner of AIRheads Trampoline Arena in Orlando. “It’s a fun, low-impact activity for everyone,” he says, “so it’s a great option for people looking for alternatives outside the gym.”
Elaborate arenas like Rebounderz Indoor Trampoline Arena in Longwood (rebounderzlongwood.com), BOING! Jump Center in Oviedo (orlando.boingjumpcenter.com) and AIRheads (airheads
usa.com/orlando) have opened in the last few years as trampoline jumping, also called rebounding, has caught on as an exercise craze. The arenas feature wall-to-wall trampolines where people jump for fun and fitness.
AIRheads offers “AIRobics,” a high-intensity workout that includes cardio and muscle-toning exercises that strengthen and shape arms, legs, chest and abs. With the goal of keeping your heart rate up and body moving, AIRobics is a modified aerobics class, with lots of lunges, jumping jacks, tuck jumps, and repetitive sprints called suicide runs. Resistance from the trampoline works the muscles, burning more calories.
“Depending on your weight and commitment level, you can burn up to 1,000 calories per
class,” says Jomara Figueroa, who teaches the 50-minute session.
Although rebounding seems to have just come of age, NASA was sold on it more than 30 years ago. “Rebound exercise is the most efficient, effective form of exercise yet devised by man,” the space agency once declared.
Burn Notice
One hour of rebounding can burn more calories than an hour of some of the most practiced exercise routines.
Sources: Nutri Strategy and Weight Training.com; based on the weight of a person approximately 155 pounds and intensity of the workout.
