Trampoline workouts

Depending on how long you have been attending your local gym you will have probably tried most of the equipment that your local has to offer. But you always seem to see a trampoline propped up against the wall and yet nobody is using it. Now we are seeing trampoline fitness classes pop up everywhere – could you have been missing out on a valuable piece of equipment this whole time?

One thing a lot of people are looking for when it comes to fitness nowadays is low-impact. As people get older one of the most common complaints to hear about is joint pain. And quite rightly everyone is doing whatever they can to reduce the risk of experiencing a similar fate in later life. Running is a great way to exercise and it should never be discouraged but people are finding new ways to vary their fitness training to take some of the stress off our knees that can take a hell of a battering if we take to the pavements every day of the week.

If we are being completely honest, there are plenty of other forms of cardio that require a far higher intensity of work and that is one thing that might let trampolining down. But if you are working out effectively then there is no way you won’t be getting your heartbeat up. Where trampolining concedes intensity to other forms of cardio, it makes up for it in the need for balance. Very few other forms of cardio will help to improve your balance in the same way. And the best thing is you don’t even realise that you are working on it.

If you could go back 10 years and watch a trampoline fitness class then you would probably be disappointed with the variety of exercises that are being used. But now, just like with lots of other types of equipment in the gym, people are designing new, innovative ways to get the most out of the equipment that they are using. If you are standing in front of a trampoline your initial thought is to stand on it, right? But if you want to add real variety then you need to get creative.

If you try a trampoline class then your instructor will probably have all their own exercises. But that doesn’t mean you can’t suggest others that work for you. The important thing to incorporate is a range of movements. You don’t want to be stood there bouncing up and down for half an hour.

When you are bouncing up and down the danger is that you lose good form when you are focusing on retaining good balance. So if you want to incorporate some of your usual exercises to the trampoline then you need to ensure that your form doesn’t suffer. If you love doing squats for example then they are perfect for the trampoline but focus on retaining the form that you have normally. Once you have mastered this your balance is bound to increase.

The truth is that trampolining isn’t going to replace your usual fitness exercises but it is becoming more popular and you might want to think about trying to incorporate it into your workout.