I have been asked recently by several parents at our Flair Gym Clubs to explain the top benefits to health & fitness that the sports of gymnastics and trampolining offer. To which I replied “There are 100’s” …Well I’m obviously hugely biased since I’ve been involved in gymnastics now for over 36 years BUT, gymnastics (which includes trampolining) is regarded by all sports coaches to be the Foundation of ALL sports and therefore it is THE sport that your child should do at school and after school and on the weekends and for the rest of their life if you want them to be the very best that they can be in everything they do. This will become very obvious to you if you bring your child along to a Flair Gym Club. We have a very long list of parents who sight gymnastics as the main thing that has benefited their child the most out of all the extra curricular activities that they take part in.
Sorry, I digress…Here are FLAIR’S TOP 3 Benefits of Trampolining That May Extend Your Life
Backed by some proven research by those clever people at NASA
I studied Biology for 1 year as part of an A level, which the teacher (after the 1st year) recommended I dropped, which I did, after my year of painful study to spend more time at gymnastics. He was a wise guy, since I was probably costing him a lot of time as a slow, non-academic learner… But I did manage to complete an A level in Physical Education passing with a ‘B’ grade which for me, as a non-classroom type of learner (non-academic) is a real achievement in itself. BUT what is even more of an achievement is that I actually retained lots of the information!
- Mainly because I really enjoyed the subject
- Had wonderful teachers who connected with me on an individual level.
- I applied and still do apply a lot of the teachings to the real world of gymnastics and was doing this whilst studying the A-Level as a competitive gymnast.
I tell you this to give you a little background as to my knowledge of anatomy and physiology, but please don’t just take my word for it, always do your own research as this article is just my personal opinion. But it is backed by some research from those clever people at NASA!
What happens when you jump on a trampoline?
You experience a brief weightless state at the top of the jump.
AND when you reach the bottom of the jump your body experiences up to 4Gs!!
THE JOY OF JUMPING
Trampolining Classes
Trampolining classes are considered by some, to be one of the best forms of exercise because they provide a combination of health and fitness benefits that no other exercise can provide.
Here are our TOP 3 Benefits of Trampolining and how you will become stronger, fitter, healthier and live longer as a result of Trampolining.
There are HUGE BENEFITS that you will gain by taking part in Trampolining at any age.
To join a Flair Gym club and start your gymnastics adventure…
BOOK A TRIAL CLASS >> www.ukflair.com/clubs
BOOKING HOTLINE >> 01483 654440
NUMBER 1
You WILL burn more calories than the same person who is jogging AND it has less stress on your joints.
BURNING CALORIES
If you trampoline at a moderate pace, you can still breath comfortably. It gets you moving without stressing your metabolism.
For more effective weight loss, rebound 15-20 minutes at a moderate intensity for a minimum of 3 times per week.
Many of the CV (cardiovascular) exercises …the ones that increase the heart rate like jogging, exert excess pressure on the joints, mainly your knees, back and feet. This can lead to joint pain (wear and tear) which can be painful and may even cause long-term injury to your, ankles, knees and back.
Jumping on a trampoline is more effective, less stressful on the joints and gives a better workout… because you can exercise for a longer time without feeling tired or feeling pressure on your joints. AND there is no high impact on the body that occurs when exercising on a hard surface.
The G-force produced by jumping on a trampoline also improves muscle strength and tone because you are using the whole body (all muscles) NOT just your heart and lungs like traditional CV exercise.
When trampolining, the impact is absorbed by the trampoline bed and the risk of injuring your muscles and joints are reduced.
The gravitational force (G-FORCES) in your joints; ankles, neck, back and knees is more equally distributed when you JUMP on the trampoline.
NASA USE TRAMPOLINING TO RECONDITION ASTRONAUTS!
The NASA Journal of Applied Physiology listed a very interesting finding after their research into trampoline rebounding. When comparing similar heart rates and oxygen consumption between trampoline rebounding and running, they found a significant increase in “biomechanical stimuli” with rebounding.
This means that jumping on a trampoline is more beneficial to your body than running,
…and it’s because of this, NASA now use trampolining to recondition astronauts after space trips to help prevent muscle and bone degeneration.
NUMBER 2
Increase Lymphatic Flow, detoxification of the body and improves the immune system
INCREASE LYMPHATIC FLOW
The lymphatic system is the network of vessels through which lymph drains from the tissues into the blood. It helps to get rid of the body toxins, waste and other unwanted materials in the body.
The lymphatic system needs our bodies to MOVE so as to create the PUMP for the draining of the junk out of our systems.
Trampolining is the perfect exercise for this, where the complete body is working and pumping in support of the lymphatic system. The jumping motion causes the lymphatic valves to open and close and therefore increases FLOW by up to 15 times.
The weightlessness at the top of each jump and the gravitational pull at the bottom of each jump (of up to TWICE the force of gravity) aids the body’s natural detoxification systems and the use of the body’s muscles during each jump aids the lymphatic system and helps with the circulation of the GOOD nutrients throughout each cell in the body.
The lymphatic drainage that is helped by trampolining carries away damaged cells, waste products and bacteria and helps the system to transport lymph, a fluid containing infection-fighting white blood cells, throughout the body. Lymph is responsible for fighting infections in the body, it also destroys damaged or abnormal cells in the body such as cancerous cells.
This boosts immunity, removes toxins and help slow down the ageing process.
NUMBER 3
Get Rid of Cellulite and naturally remove varicose veins.
This is one of the biggest known benefits of trampolining…..
PREVENT CELLULITE
As we now know, JUMPING on a trampoline helps the body to act like a HUGE pump. Pumping your body by the motion of JUMPING on a trampoline has some very positive effects on the thyroid gland. It helps stimulate the thyroid gland to start cleaning itself and the entire lymphatic system of stored fat, also in this case the targeted fat is cellulite.
Trampoline exercise is the most proven way of eliminating cellulite.
The thyroid gland produces hormones which regulate the body’s metabolic rate as well as heart and digestive function, muscle control, brain development and bone maintenance.
It’s the spoon that stirs our hormonal soup…
It produces several hormones that transport energy into every cell in the body and are vital for feeling happy, warm and lithe. The gland also acts as the boss of our metabolism. Which is why symptoms of hypothyroidism (low activity of the thyroid gland) include weight gain and fatigue as well as constipation, depression, low body temperature, sleep disturbances, difficulty concentrating, edema (fluid retention), hair loss, infertility, joint aches and light sensitivity.
So…. Trampolining stimulates the thyroid gland and is a quick way of building muscle and losing fat. That rebounding motion firms legs, thighs, abdomen, arms and hips, increases agility, and improves your balance.
The gentle detoxification that occurs when you are rebounding encourages fat loss and thus the removal of cellulite.
Rebounding is also a natural way of permanently getting rid of varicose veins!
Varicose veins is a condition that causes the veins in the leg to enlarge.
Reasons for varicose veins may have a lot of other contributing factors ranging from body posture, emotions to physiological aspects that affect blood circulation.
HOWEVER….
Regular jumping on a trampoline increases circulation of blood flow and this can greatly reduce the pressure that your veins have to endure and eliminate the inflammation and the pain that comes with varicose veins.
Be sure to also drink plenty of water throughout the day, and maintain a healthy body weight – which trampolining can of course help with too!
I hope that helps you realise the HUGE benefits of taking part in Trampolining at any age.
Until next time…
To join a Flair Gym club and start your gymnastics adventure…
BOOK A TRIAL CLASS >> www.ukflair.com/clubs
BOOKING HOTLINE >> 01483 654440
Best wishes,
Richard
Flair Founder and CEO
P.S. BOOK A TRIAL CLASS >> www.ukflair.com/clubs
BOOKING HOTLINE >> 01483 654440
References for this article include
Journal of Applied Physiology
1998 study conducted by NASA by A. Bhattacharya, E.P. McCutcheon, E.Shvartz, and J.E. Greenleaf; Biomechanical Research Division, NASA-Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, in cooperation with the Wenner-Gren Research laboratory, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky
Thanks to NASA for the use of Image in this article