Trampolines

A trampoline is a major purchase. Trampolines come in several styles and brands. You can choose outdoor trampolines, a children trampoline, a jumpzone trampoline, a kangaroo trampoline or a jumpstart trampoline. You can select from different sizes, shapes and colors. There are rectangular, octagon and circular-shaped trampolines. They can be small at 4’ x 6” or large at 9’ x 14.’ Before you buy a trampoline, you need to decide its purpose. You also have to consider the individuals using it and the amount of available space as well as how much you can afford to spend. Keep in mind, the best trampoline is one that suits you and does not tax your pocketbook. The best trampolines are also ones that are safe trampolines.

The man who invented the trampoline did so as a means of improving his exercise skills. The inventer of the trampoline, former American diving and tumbling champion, George Nissen, called this new sport “rebound tumbling.” He built the apparatus in his father’s garage. The origins of the name, however, are not as clear. There are Spanish and Italian words relating to the concept and root of the word “trampoline.” “Tampolin,” in Spanish, means springboard while the Italian word “trampolini” means performing on stilts. Other people state the word trampoline comes from the name of a French Acrobat in the Middle Ages.

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Trampoline jumping and trampoline tumbling are two uses of the trampoline. The trampoline also forms the basis for an Olympic sport. Trampoline became an Olympic event at Sydney in 2002. In 2004, at the Athens Summer Olympic Games, the Men’s individual trampoline standings were as follows: Yuri Nikitin of the Ukraine, gold, Alexander Moskalenko of Russia, silver, and Henrik Stehlik of Germany, bronze. In the women’s individual trampoline competition, the medal standing was as follows: Anna Dogonadze of Germany, gold, Karen Cockburn or Cnada, Silver and Shanshan Huang of China, bronze.

Before you attempt Olympic-style complicated or even simple stunts, however, you must learn a few important basic trampoline moves. Jumping on a trampoline, like any sport, requires warm-ups. A warm-up stretches your body, reducing the risk of injury. It also helps you avoid the stiffness common after a exercising on a trampoline or any other type of physical exertion. Include such exercises as neck rotations, arm curls, side stretches, quadrucep stretches, hamstring stretches and calf stretches in your routine warm-up. Only after you have warmed up and stretched your body should you proceed to actual practicing some basic trampoline moves on the trampoline.