Rebounding -- Oh what fun it is to jump!

Not everyone knows what I'm talking about when I say I do rebounding or that I worked out on the rebounder this morning. They say, "The what?" It's just a fancy fitness term for mini-trampoline. I don't how the rebounding word surpassed the mini-tramp word, but it is what it's called, so I'll go with it.

Here's a little news clip that talks about rebounding. One form of rebounding is Cardiolates, which is a combination of mind-body (Pilates posturing) and rebounding for the cardio. I have a Cardiolates dvd that does explain this posture and it makes a big difference in what I get out of the workout.


I bought my rebounder close to 5 years ago. It's one of the nicer ones -- by Reboundair. The Needak rebounder is similar to the Reboundair in quality and bounce. The Urban Rebounder is also a good quality rebounder that has a firmer bounce.

I first tried to save money and bought one for less than $50 at the sporting goods store. It was fun to use, but after about 15 minutes of running and jumping on it, my ankles would hurt and my feet would go numb. It didn't feel all that great.

I saved up a bit and bought the Reboundair off of Amazon marketplace. It was the best price at the time $129 + shipping. Now they start at $199. I bought the one that doesn't fold -- just the legs fold under for storage. The 1/2 fold and 1/4 fold models are easier for transporting and for storage, but I just keep mine out in the family room all the time. Everyone likes jumping on it. I figure the ones that don't fold are probably more stable.

I'll write more about workouts tomorrow. Sorry for the partial post! Until then, check this out. I want to do some kicks like they do!

I rebound in a variety of ways -- just to my own music (usually while watching something silently on TV just to keep my brain going) or to the Cardio Coach CDs (which are super motivating -- I wrote a whole post about Cardio Coach awhile back and still need to post reviews on each CD).

I also rebound with exercise dvds (surprise, surprise!) I only use two dvds that are specifically for the rebounder though -- Cardiolates and FitPrime G-Force. Here are some reviews of those from the VideoFitness website. I was the only reviewer for Cardiolates and others reviewed G-Force: FitPrime G-Force my review of Cardiolates

G-Force is a cardio/weights circuit workout where you jump on the rebounder for part of the time, then get on the floor for weights periodically. I've only done it that way a few times. Most of the time, I do it as an all cardio workout and use the weight increments as cardio intervals and do higher impact jumps and kicks to get my heart rate up. I love it that way.

Cardiolates is 1/2 rebounding and 1/2 Pilates (on the rebounder). I prefer doing my Pilates on the floor and like my other Pilates dvds better, so I just use this dvd for the rebounding.

I also use my rebound all the time with other dvds. Sometimes when I'm doing one of Cathe's circuit workouts, I'll get off my step and go use the rebounder to make it a step & rebounding all cardio workout. My favorite to do this with is Cardio & Weights. I also use the rebounder in place of high impact drills or intervals that are too much for my if-fy knee. I can still do the impact and get my heart rate up, but without the jarring to my knees. I probably do this the most with IMAX2, which is actually on the same dvd as Cardio & Weights. If you love step aerobics, this is a great dvd to have whether or not you ever use the rebounder.

I've also just started rebounding to walking dvds too. First I tried Debbie Rocker's (see that post below) walking workouts, then a good friend of mine sent me some Leslie Sansone workouts for my birthday, so I've been trying them too. They work great on the rebounder and get my heart rate up a bit more than if I were doing the workout as designed on the floor.

Last, and certainly one of the most fun ways to use my rebounder, I "just do it" while watching an old sitcom. I have a big collection of dvd sets like The Brady Bunch, The Partridge Family, Gilligan's Island, Gidget, The Flying Nun, That Girl, Get Smart, and I'm not sure what else off the top of my head, but (oh yeah, Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie too!) for a fun quick cardio workout, I'll put an episode on and just jump, fun, whatever while watching it (they last about 25 minutes) then will stretch a bit afterwards. My youngest daughter does this from time to time too. Sometimes I double it for a longer workout.