On The Rebound

Why slog it out at the gym when you can trampoline your way to wellness? It’s great cardio, easy on the joints – and best of all – fun

- Denise Cullen

It’s a midweek evening and I’m huddled in a corner with a bunch of other first-timers, eyeing the mini trampolines around us with deep concern. “This is a really fast and furious class,” our instructor warns, all rippling abs, Bambi eyelashes and lollipop Lycra. “Don’t be surprised if you feel like you’re all over the place. It will take five to seven classes before you get into a rhythm so please don’t give up if you don’t enjoy it the first time.”

I’m at a bounce class at Pure Health Clubs in suburban Brisbane. I was apprehensive before, but the instructor’s ‘pep talk’ has made me terrified. Yet, as the techno music pounds, and I conquer my first round of star jumps, high kicks and twists, I get the sense that I’m five years old again, joyously leaping on a backyard trampoline.

The fun factor is perhaps why, as a fitness trend, rebounding, or trampolining, has swept the globe. Its fans including US celebrity trainer Simone De La Rue who promises to “torch calories” with her thumping Trampoline Cardio workout, Australia’s Michelle Bridges who treasures the in-ground trampoline in her backyard, and Hong Kong’s BounceLimit founder Lucia Tam.

Rebounding is an activity that suits all comers, no matter age or activity level. You can rebound in an organised class, or on your own. Either way, it involves jumping on a mini trampoline, about a ruler’s length off the floor. You can bounce so gently that your feet don’t leave the canvas, or you can jump a short distance in the air. If you’re fit, strong and super motivated, you can make like Superman and leap up and away.

THE BENEFITS OF BOUNCE