Treadmill, crunches, squats. Treadmill, crunches, squats. If your gym routine is anything like mine, you probably feel like it’s Groundhog Day every time you lace up your sneaks.
With my body desperately begging me a for a change, I thought it was time to put an alternative fitness class to the test. Enter JumpLife’s Jump Dance Class.
Let me set the scene: A dark room with strobe lights flying, black lights glowing, and music blaring. For the sake of full disclosure, this is not usually my scene. But … I really couldn’t resist the opportunity to bounce around on a trampoline for 45 minutes while listening to dance-inducing songs. And the bottom line is, I’m happy I didn’t!
Here’s why I loved it:
Low impact does not mean easy
I broke a major sweat while I huffed and puffed my way through the class. JumpLife owner Montserrat Markou says one 45 minute class, you can burn anywhere between 500-600 calories. Jump Dance is all about cardio, but if strength-training is what you’re looking for, there are trampoline-based classes for that too.
Targets trouble spots
While I am injury-free (for now), I love knowing that having an injury doesn’t need to sideline me from a fitness routine. Working out on a trampoline is easy on the joints and targets your core and leg muscles. As Markou points out, it also helps with coordination, balance, and circulation. For those of us that are less coordinated, fear not…there’s a bar in front of your trampoline that you can hold onto if you start to lose your balance.
I didn’t look at the clock once
My fitness routine generally includes staring at the clock, counting down the minutes. Not this time. This class moves! In fact, you don’t actually stop moving for the entire 45 minutes.
It’s FUN!
While my lack of rhythm was apparent, I could feel the stress escape my body as I let loose and moved (the best I could) to the beat. With the instructor encouraging us to shake it all out, I spent the entire 45 minutes actually focused on exercising — and having fun while doing it. That marks the first time in a long time my mind wasn’t wandering during a workout.
Verdict:
If you’re injured, stressed, or just straight-up bored with your gym routine, try a trampoline class. It’s fun, challenging, and worth the energy. While my class was all women, don’t hesitate to try it guys…it’s not as easy as it looks.
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