It’s the Best Jogging You Can Do
Jogging on a Rebounder vs. Jogging on a Treadmill
On days when I just want to do some cardio, one of my favorite activities to do is jogging on a rebounder. Jogging on a rebounder is similar to jogging on a treadmill in the sense that you are jogging in place but jogging on a rebounder produces much less stress on your feet, ankles, and knees. Think about it. A treadmill is a hard surface. Even if you are wearing high quality, cushioned running shoes, your shoes are still hitting a hard surface with each step. This is not the case with a rebounder, especially if the rebounder has a high-quality mat (the surface area where you jump) and a high-quality support system (the spring or bungee system that connects the mat to the frame). You can check out my page on how to spot a quality rebounder by clicking here. When jogging on a rebounder, you can jog with your running shoes on or you can jog barefoot, whatever feels most comfortable to you, although I prefer to jog barefoot.
Your posture and movement will be somewhat different when jogging on a rebounder versus jogging on a treadmill because with a treadmill, the belt you run on is moving and you are jogging at the same pace as the belt is moving. This is the best way to simulate jogging outside where you would be jogging and moving in a forward direction and because of this, your posture and movement will be quite similar whether you are jogging on a treadmill or jogging outside (your hips, pelvis, and chest are naturally extended slightly forward, with your shoulders slightly back, which allows your upper body to remain in alignment and in balance as you take longer strides with your legs and feet). However, when jogging on a rebounder, the mat is stationary, so your posture and movement will be different. When jogging on a rebounder, your upper body (hips, pelvis, and chest) will also naturally extend slightly forward (shoulders will extend slightly backwards) to maintain balance, but you will notice that with each step you bring your knees up higher than with normal jogging. This engages more of your core muscles (abdominals) and hip flexor muscles than normal jogging does. You will also probably notice that you engage your arms more than with normal jogging. This engages shoulder and bicep muscles more than normal jogging. So, with jogging on a rebounder, you engage in more muscle movement during cardio exercise than with normal jogging.
If you are already a runner or a jogger, don’t be surprised if you become out of breath more quickly while jogging on a rebounder. This is normal and it is because of the additional muscle engagement I mentioned in the previous paragraph.
With jogging on a rebounder, you avoid the “shock” of your feet hitting a hard surface with every step plus you engage more muscles than normal jogging. What’s not to like?
If I had just purchased a rebounder and never used one before, I would start by jogging on it at a medium pace (not a leisurely pace but not a vigorous pace where I would be out of breath in two minutes) and work up to 10 minutes at this medium pace. Once I worked up to 10 minutes at this medium pace with maybe one or two 30-second rests in between, I’d work my way up to 20 minutes. I would do this routine every other day.
High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) on a Rebounder
Have you ever heard of high intensity interval training or HIIT? High intensity interval training is basically the next level of cardio training. Let’s take jogging on the rebounder as our example. If I jogged on the rebounder at a moderate pace for 20 minutes with maybe two or three quick 30-second rests in between, that’s a good cardio workout. Now, let’s say that instead of jogging on a rebounder for 20 minutes at a moderate pace, I broke that routine up into three of four intervals by jogging at a vigorous pace with a one-to-two-minute rest period in between. So, I jogged on my rebounder as fast as I could for maybe a minute or two until I couldn’t go any longer. I then took a minute or two to recover enough so that I could jog again. That’s basically a HIIT workout.
Why do a HIIT routine instead of a 20 minute, moderately paced routine? Well, there are a few reasons. First, a HIIT routine can burn more fat. With a HIIT routine, you burn calories and fat not just during the routine but up to 24 hours after the workout! Yes, you read that right. More vigorous exercise provides more benefits after the exercise is completed than a moderately paced cardio routine. Second, a HIIT routine provides more of a stimulus to your cardiopulmonary system (your heart and lungs) and circulatory system than traditional cardio does. Third, you’ll also feel better at the end as this routine triggers a release of a greater amount of endorphins (the “feel good” hormones) than a moderately paced routine. This is the type of routine personally do on my rebounders.
If you want to try this type of routine on a rebounder, I would suggest working up to 10 to 20 minutes at a moderate pace first if you do not currently do any type of exercise. Once to attain some level of fitness, then you can break up the routine into more vigorous, but shorter, intervals.
A HIIT routine is much more beneficial to your heart, lungs, and circulatory system than regular cardio but it does place more of a demand on those systems so I would strongly suggest consulting with your doctor or other licensed healthcare professional before attempting such a routine, especially if you have a preexisting medical condition.
My Personal Routine
After a one-to-two-minute warmup of light jogging and bouncing, I do an interval of high intensity jogging, which lasts for about one to two minutes followed by about one minute of simple bouncing on my rebounder to recover from the jogging interval. I do this four times, and this typically takes me about 15 minutes. I feel great afterwards. I do not feel worn out or tired as my routine only took me 15 minutes or so.
You Must Have the Right Tool for the Job
To perform this exercise or any other rebounder exercise, you must have the right rebounder. There are only two rebounders I recommend. They are the Cellerciser® and the bellicon®. I own one of each and use both very frequently. The Cellerciser® uses springs as its support system while the bellicon® uses bungees as its support system. The Cellerciser® is the best spring-based rebounder money can buy while the bellicon® is the best bungee-based rebounder money can buy. You can learn all about the Cellerciser® by clicking here and you can learn all about the bellicon® by clicking here.
If you’ve already read about each rebounder and know what you want, click the buttons below to make your purchase.
