Top rebounding tips to cleanse your lymphatic system

Top rebounding tips to cleanse your lymphatic system

Rebounding – bouncing on mini trampolines – is low impact on your body and at the same time it delivers a massive health boost. Oh yes, it’s also great fun too! By including rebounding in your daily or weekly routine, even for just 10 minutes, your body will experience of a multitude of health benefits. Rebounding is particularly great for your lymphatic system (this is the system responsible for moving white blood cells around your body, getting rid of toxins plus many other functions). The movement of rebounding uses gravity to help cleanse your cells – see below for links to further articles on the benefits of rebounding. This month we´ve spoken to our rebounding instructors here at La Crisalida Retreats to give you some of our top rebounding tips to cleanse your lymphatic system.

Top rebounding tips

  • Be inspired by the music – choose uplifting, motivational music for you. Create your play list – if you are short on ideas, see below.
  • Warm up first (try some yoga stretches) and remember to warm down.
  • Put your rebounder somewhere easily accessible (so no excuses about having to move things!).
  • Keep your core muscles (tummy) engaged – this helps to protect your back and neck.
  • Try a healthy bounce first to start you off (read more below).
  • Find a place to bounce with friends – this will help with discipline and develop a regular practice. Some gyms are now offering rebounding classes.
  • Wear comfy clothes and ladies wear a sports bra!
  • Don’t overdo it, listen to your body.
  • Keep your eyes looking forward – this helps to maintain balance. (If you look down towards the rebounder your balance becomes unstable).
  • Put a mat beneath the rebounder so that it stays in one place and does not move as you jump. This keeps the rebounder safe and stable, and it will also protect your flooring. Most sports shops will sell small jigsaw type mats that are ideal for this.
  • Every time, before you start to bounce, remember to check that the legs are fully screwed in and that all the springs are intact.
  • Start with 10 minutes and gradually build up to 30 minutes!
  • Once you get more practiced you can add small hand weights to your routine (0.5 kilo).

Rebounding: the healthy bounce

If you are new to rebounding we suggest that you start with the “healthy bounce”. This is the simplest of “moves” keeping your body position upright with feet only slightly apart and bouncing gently up and down on the mini trampoline. The basic healthy bounce involves keeping your feet in contact with the mat (the heels might lift up a little). As you get more used to your rebounder your feet can leave the trampoline. The basic version of the healthy bounce puts minimal strain on your spine and joints and activates the lymphatic system so bounce away!

Rebounding favourite moves

In addition to the healthy bounce each of our instructors has a favourite move, which they share below:

  • John – Frogs legs
    One of Johns favourite moves is called “frogs legs”! Sounds great! As you are bouncing, simply kick one foot out to the side, and then swap, so that you flick one leg out at a time.
  • Louise – twist jumps
    Hold your elbows at right angles into your ribs and twist from the hips – the upper body moves to the left and the lower part of the body moves to the right, jumping with both feet (maybe just lifting your feet slightly from the rebounder).
  • YY – any disco moves, or “take it for a walk”
    Practice your best disco moves on your rebounder, free style. Or maybe “take it for a walk” – using the healthy bounce, take a walk with your feet in a circle around the rebounder.
  • Kelly – knee lifts
    Knee lifts are great as a warm up sequence at the start of class (after stretching), to get your body moving. Start by lifting one knee at a time to hip height, swap legs and continue moving to the beat of the music. You might touch your hand to each knee in turn as you lift it. The music can be fast and so is the exercise, leaving you feeling warmed up and ready for the class. You can vary the pace, faster or slower.

Warm up and cool down

Before starting on your rebounder, remember to warm up, to stretch your muscles. You particularly need to stretch your calf and thigh muscles, and roll your shoulders. Do the same at the end of the class. To stretch your calf muscles, you can rest your hands against the wall, step back with one foot and press the foot down into the floor, whilst keeping your leg straight. You can also use a step – place the ball of your foot onto the edge of a step and allow the heel to lower; do one leg at a time.

Music for rebounding

Everyone is different, so take some time to find music that inspires you or makes you happy. Some people like to rebound to classical music. Below we share some of our favourite pop and rock songs. If you´ve tried rebounding at La Crisalida, you might be able to work out which of our instructors preferred which tune!

“It’s my life” – Bon Jovi
“I gotta feeling” – Black Eyed Peas
“Reach” – S Club Seven
“Just the way you are” – Bruno Mars
“Can´t stop the feeling” – Justin Timberlake
“Timber” – Pitbull
“Let´s go” – Calvin Harris
“Waka waka” – Shakira
“Life is life” – Opus
“Walking on sunshine” – Katrina and the Waves
“Chantaje” – Shakira (Spanish inspired!)
“Where are you now” – Justin Bieber
“Give Love” – MC Yogi

Buying a rebounder

Most sports shops now sell rebounders – either in their store or you can shop online. You can now purchase basic spring based rebounders for a very reasonable price (they start at around 60 euros). More sophisticated rebounders (giving a smoother ride) usually have an elasticated, rather than spring based system. The price for elasticated based rebounders can be high, but may be worth researching if you are a regular rebounder.

Rebounding caution and contraindications

If you are new to rebounding we recommend that you try it first with a trained instructor.
People with any back or knee injuries should check with your health care professional first. For those people with minor back or knee injuries, remember to keep your tummy muscles active and stick to a low bounce (use a healthy bounce). Wearing trainers can support weak ankles.

Health benefits of rebounding

For more information about the health benefits of rebounding read our page on rebounding here.

You can also read more about how rebounding affects your lymphatic system in our earlier blog article here.

About the author

Lisa
Lisa
Lisa is one of the founders of La Crisalida Retreats. She is an Epidemiologist, therapeutic hatha and yin yoga teacher and also teaches mindfulness meditation. Lisa has studied NLP and hypnosis, as well as nutrition (she designs the menus).