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Jump Your Way to Health & Fitness
Specifications for the Perfect Rebounder
Depending on the quality, rebounding devices may be relatively low in cost, especially a department store model that’s no more than a toy. Bouncing on such poorly-constructed models, usually imported from Asia, may actually be harmful to one’s muscles, joints, and nerves. There’s no yield to them and the abrupt jarring effect is the same as landing on the floor. My recommendation is that one should avoid purchasing these cheaply priced models.
Rebounding devices can be acquired from sporting goods stores, department stores, by mail order, and in some health food stores. No one manufacturer has a lock on the market for rebounders, but some are better manufactured than others. It’s best, perhaps, to purchase your exercise unit directly from the manufacturer. (See Resources.)
Most important for excellent rebounding is the mat material. It should give no stretch during the downward landing, while at the same time providing a resilient rebound. Such a mat will be made from Permatron® material, which has a smooth finish. The Permatron® is resistant to ultraviolet rays, doesn’t break down as do other fabrics, and allows no moisture absorption. Part of the specifications for a perfect rebounder is that its mat will be sewn together using 5760 stitches of high-grade nylon thread with two layers of strong polypropylene webbing stitched around the mat’s edges.
Attached to a heavy-grade, all steel round frame should be an oversize spring mechanism holding four-inch-long, custom-made jumbo springs which deliver a soft bounce. Thirty-six springs made of quality wire will hold the mat to the frame. The springs should be shielded by a protective cover. Individual spring mounting pins prevent frame wear. Tapered coils help to give extended wearability to such springs. (Untapered coils allow low-quality springs to break frequently, requiring replacement.) Replacement springs must be available directly from the manufacturer since retail distributors seldom stock spare springs.
The spring-loaded legs should fold for easy storage under a bed or behind a door. For a folding rebounder, the frame should fold in half to be packed into its carrying bag, allowing for storage in a car trunk.
To jump for health, rebounding devices that exhibit all of these features of excellence I’ve been describing are the Needak® Soft-Bounce™ rebounders. They meet all of these specifications for the ideal rebounding device. The stabilizing bar is an optional accessory that is easily attached to the Needak® rebounder.
Resources
Jumping for Health – A Guide to Rebounding Aerobics
Toil and sweat your way to fitness no more! Rebounding aerobics is here! A non-strenuous exercise system with more benefits than ordinary sports like tennis or jogging, rebounding makes exhausting workouts a thing of the past. Inside these pages, Dr. Morton Walker details how this enjoyable activity has helped folks from eight to eighty enhance their health and fitness. What it did for them, it can do for you. $12.95 Dr Morton Walker. 248 pages, pb
Footnotes
1. The chart comes from research performed by Victor L. Katch, Ph.D., Dept. of Physical Education, University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.
2. The chart comes from research performed by Victor. L. Katch, Ph.D., Dept. of Physical Education, University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.
This article appeared in the July, 1995 issue of the Townsend Letter For Doctors, pages 42 -48.
Copyright Needak Mfg. and Dr. Morton Walker.
For more information on the Needak® rebounder and Dr. Morton Walker’s book “Jumping for Health“, or other books and videos on rebounding, contact Needak Manufacturing at the number shown at the bottom of this web page.
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| Photo 3. Shown is the author standing on a rebounder and engaged in a low bounce. This “Health Bounce” is a good warm-up exercise. In the center of the rebounder, move up and down by using the toes and calf muscles. Your feet shouldn’t leave the mat. | Photo 4. Jumping Jacks. Show is the high bounce exercise of jumping jacks. Stand in the center of the rebounder with your feet together, hands at your sides. Jump to a position of feet apart, swinging arms to the side and up over your head. Keep arms straight. Return to starting position and repeat. | |
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| Photo 5. Running in Place. In the center of the rebounder, start a walking, jogging, or running motion. Lift your knees high in front of you. Don’t wait for the rebounder to bounce your leg up-run at your own speed. | Photo 6. The V-Bounce. Sitting in the middle of the rebounder, lift your legs to a 45 degree angle while your back is at a 45 degree angle. Using the motion of your arms, try bouncing without touching the rebounder with your hands. | |
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| Photo 7. High Bounce. Standing in the middle of the rebounder, use your toes and calves and bend your knees to bounce off the mat from four to ten inches vertically so that you land in the center of the rebounder. | Photo 8. High Kick Step. In the center of the rebounder, land on your left foot, while kicking your right foot straight out in front of you. Then land on your right foot and kick your left foot straight out in front of you. | |
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| Photo 9. The Slalom. With your feet parallel to the right of center, and your toes pointing ahead and to the left, bounce to the left of center and your toes are pointing ahead and to the right. Your knees and hips should be bent slightly. All the action is below he hips so that the torso remains virtually motionless and facing straight ahead. (It isn’t as easy as it looks, but then neither is skiing.) | Photo 10. The Twist. In the middle of the rebounder, bounce so that your hips and legs turn to the left and your chest and shoulders turn to the right. On the next bounce, turn hips and legs to the right and the chest and shoulders to the left. On the next bounce, reverse again. |