A rebounder is essentially a mini-trampoline.Moe Doiron/The Globe and Mail
The question
I bought a rebounder a couple months ago but I don't really know how to use it. Can you help?
The answer
Congratulations on your purchase. A rebounder is a great piece of equipment because it allows you to get a cardiovascular workout while having fun and feeling young at heart at the same time.
I use it in a few different ways:
1. You can use a rebounder as part of your broader cardiovascular workout. For example, do three sets of six minutes of rebounding, with four minutes of walking or running up the stairs in your home after each set. For each rebounder set, do: 1 minute of easy running, 1 minute of high knees, 1 minute of easy running, 1 minute of jumping jacks, 1 minute of easy running and 1 min of kicking your bum.
2. If you are weight training at home, use the rebounder as a warm-up before the weight section of your workout.
For example, try this rebounder pyramid: 10 high knees, 10 easy low knees, 20 high knees, 10 easy low knees, 30 high knees, 10 easy low knees, 40 high knees, 10 easy low knees, 50 high knees, 10 easy low knees.
3. If you do circuits as part of your at-home weights workout, use the rebounder as part of your circuit.
For example, do five of your favorite weight-training exercises followed by one minute of high knees on the rebounder. Repeat three times.
Trainer's Tip
As an added bonus, rebounders are said to improve the way the lymphatic system functions. The lymphatic system is an often ignored, but extremely important, system of the body. Its network of tissues, organs and vessels helps maintain the body's fluid balance, cleanse bodily fluids of foreign matter, and provide immune cells for defence.
Send certified personal trainer Kathleen Trotter your questions at trainer@globeandmail.com . She will answer select questions, which could appear in The Globe and Mail and/or on The Globe and Mail web site. Your name will not be published if your question is chosen.
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