Youre only ever this weightless in the womb, or in outer space, says Jesse Sandiford, minutes after Ive tentatively stepped onto a massive trampoline at Mississaugas Sky Zone Indoor Trampoline Park.

Its 9 a.m. on a Saturday and Im about to partake in SkyRobics, an aerobics class conducted on a trampoline. Its purported to have the calorie-burning power of plyometrics the form of explosive jump training made popular by the Insanity DVD series minus the joint stress, all for a reasonable $11.50 per session.

Balance-challenged as I am on planet Earth, the extreme bounciness of the 27-metre-long trampoline throws me off guard. We spend the first 10 minutes of class practising jumping. Although I dont fall, Im also careful to never clear more than a foot. (The recent 30 Rock episode, in which Liz Lemon refers to trampolines as hymen demolishers and death traps, is still top of mind.) Around me, its clear who in the class of 15 twentysomething men and women have been here before theyre the ones bouncing off the walls.

After surviving the warmup, we proceed to rouncing skipping across the length of the tramp, then walking back. Its a lot harder than it sounds: Movements need to be controlled or youll fall.

We divide into two groups, the more advanced jumpers on one half of the trampoline, beginners on the other. While the advanced group spends the rest of the class in a circuit of sprints, squats, burpees and rouncing, we newbies spend the next 30 minutes practising various jumps: jacks, bringing our knees to our chests, touching our heels to our butts, and jumping back and forth and side to side. We also attempt to fly, jumping as high as we can while fluttering our arms back and forth, which makes me feel as though Im in a Fatboy Slim video.

Its undeniably fun there are worse ways to spend a Saturday morning than bouncing around to your hearts content but also a hell of a workout. (Aside from all the jumping, the instability of the tramp increases core activation as your body constantly tries to steady itself. Abdominal exercises are particularly intense: My stomach muscles tremble about 10 times more than usual while planking.) By the end of the jump segment, I nearly have to crawl to my water bottle. Aside from exhaustion, Im also more than a little dizzy, apparently common among first-timers.

The 60-minute class flies by it feels more like playtime than a workout and I leave on a trampoline-induced high. I havent had this much fun exercising in ages, and its effective to boot, at least judging from the fact that my quads burn well into Monday. Id definitely try SkyRobics again, Liz Lemon be damned. In terms of trampolines, Ive experienced a true leap of faith.

Read the original:
Turn your workout into playtime with trampoline aerobics

The need to exercise and to be active is necessary for a healthy lifestyle. Yet, running the roads, lifting weights at a gym or practicing yoga is not for everybody. Luckily, there are a variety of other exercises available that give people the same benefits.

One of them is water aerobics.

Water aerobics consists of aerobic exercises performed in shallow water and is a type of resistance training. It is usually low-impact but high-energy and is performed in the water to support the body and reduce the risk of muscle or joint injury. It places less stress on the joints when stretching and can allow a greater range of motion, making it an ideal exercise program, even for the elderly.

Proper exercise can result in improved body composition, physical performance, increased muscle tone, heart conditioning, increased balance, core strength and flexibility, said Paytone Delmars, a Sedona water aerobics instructor who has been teaching the exercise for over 30 years. Other positive health outcomes include increased socialization, self-esteem, self-awareness and enhanced mood to name a few.

For the full story, please see the Friday, Feb. 1, issue of the Sedona Red Rock News.

Here is the original post:
Pool aerobics lowers stress on both joints and muscles