It entered my life on March 12 though I didn’t get started on it that night. It wasn’t until the next day I discovered The Joy of Rebounding. From there it progressed to an addiction.

Things I have noticed since then are

1. Better posture
2. Better quality sleep
3. Firmer arms
4. My chest isn’t down around my waist so much
5. Less wrinkly thighs
6. More energy

Let’s take these one at a time.

Better posture
I was taking the outside route from the nursing home to the hospital the other day when I was being observed. I didn’t know it until one of my co-workers slipped me this note while I was on the phone:

No one ever accused me of that before so it was singularly gratifying.

Better quality sleep
I sleep much more soundly and wake feeling more rested than before. Ever since I started eating raw, I’ve had energy to spare but I can tell a difference in the quality even if I haven’t gotten the quantity recommended. I need to work on the latter.

Firmer arms
Since I’m not as filled out as I used to be, my upper arms, especially, have had the appearance of crepe paper. They aren’t perfect yet but it’s amazing they are so far along their way already.

My chest isn’t down around my waist so much
I don’t think I need to get too graphic here. Anyone who has had three babies will know what I’m talking about. It didn’t help to be 70+ lubs overweight at one time, either. Body parts migrate South (unless one has the inclination and resources to correct them surgically) and it’s always winter. Slowly but surely, there’s more distance between my chest and my waist. It may take until I’m 98 but I plan to get there.

Less wrinkly thighs
They have been much worse than my arms and are more easily covered up so no one but me, unless it’s Twinkle, would ever know. Far as I can tell, Twinkle doesn’t give a tiny little rat’s you-know-what.

Anyway, my inner thighs resemble the swags that used to hang above my mother’s drapes. Not so much any more but they still have a long way to go. Let me know if that link ever doesn’t work.

More energy
I couldn’t have stayed up as late for as long as I have been lately. I know I need to mend my licks and get to bed on time consistently but maybe if I would get tired, I’d be more likely to try.

There is one negative I can think of at the moment. I’m developing saddlebags. I used to have them and then I didn’t when I recycled all that fat but they’re coming back. I need to figure out what I’m doing that’s building up that part of my body and stop it. I can’t quit rebounding, though. It’s so much a part of my daily routine, it would be like not buying bananas. To me, that would be unthinkable.

My rebounder is a permanent fixture in my living room. I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s one piece of exercise equipment that hasn’t already become a clothes rack. And for someone like me who despises almost any form of exercising, that’s saying a lot.

Side effects can be good or they can be bad. I don’t know of any instance where they aren’t present. If you aren’t having side effects from something somewhere sometime, you aren’t breathing any more.

I’ve read about side effects of rebounders. I’m experiencing some of them myself. Let’s go into the negative ones first—the ones that are the result of the El Cheapo rebounders. At the outset, I’ll have to say that all rebounders (aka mini-trampolines) are not created equal. If they were, we wouldn’t have the bottom end at less than $40 and the Bellicon at over $700. I was advised to get a cheap one then, if I liked it, I could upgrade. I don’t like to buy twice when I can buy once so I didn’t take the advice.

Now for the negative side effects.

1. Turned ankles

If your feet pronate or supinate, a cheap rebounder with straight springs may cause the ankle to turn resulting in, at the least, pain or a sprain or at the worst, a fracture.

2. Painful knees

A lot of people have weak knees. The El Cheapo (let’s call it EC after this) can cause the same things in the knees as the ankles. Believe me, an injured knee can be a tricky thing.

3. Hips out of alignment

The recoil on a cheap rebounder can be much quicker than on a better built one and can cause an uneven bounce. If the hips are thrown out of whack, it can end up with expensive trips to the physical therapist or the chiropractor.

4. Back pain

That same recoil can cause the spine to be unnecessarily jarred. Repeated jarring can do what driving heavy equipment has done to my middle child. He has chronic back pain that will eventually have to be corrected by surgery. Not anything to look forward to.

5. Neck pain

I’m the leading authority in at least a square mile area on neck pain. There have been times I was in bed for three days at a stretch because of neck pain caused by old whiplash injuries (two of them) and I wasn’t able to turn over by myself. You don’t want an overly strong recoil if you’ve ever had any kind of neck pain.

6. Headache

Any kind of pain can travel to the head as a stress headache at minimum. The same jarring from the strong straight springs of the EC can make your head hurt, too.

7. The billfold

Pain in the bank account comes when the rebounder wears out quickly. If it’s something you are going to use daily (or twice daily like I do), EC won’t hold up. The material can separate. The springs can break. One of my readers, Sarah, left a comment:

Oh, my!…I decided to work out on my rebounder. Half-way through my routine, it BROKE!!! How ironic is that? One of the loops the springs attach to separated from the mat. Fortunately, I wasn’t hurt. The inexpensive rebounder is now in my garage…

Now for the positive side effects.

1. More energy

This was the first thing I noticed after only a few sessions on my rebounder. It was definite that I was able to get more done in the same amount of time.

2. Better sleep

Now, you can believe this or not, but two of the three nights after I haven’t rebounded in the evening, I haven’t slept well. Both nights I’ve shortchanged myself in the sleep department, I woke around 3 o’clock and wasn’t able to go back to sleep. I could try it again but I don’t want to chance the same thing happening. I’ll bounce every evening.

3. Lymphatic system stimulation

I have to take other people’s word on this one. I don’t know how I could tell if my lymphatic system was improving or not. It’s where trust comes in. I’m sure it’s a good thing and belongs under the positive heading.

4. Denser bones

Once again, not speaking from my own experience here. I’d have to have a bone density test to see what it’s doing and it might not be measurable yet. I’m repeating what I’ve read.

5. Better posture

I’ve noticed I’m standing straighter and walking taller. That makes my 5’3″ frame seem a little more than it really is. At least to me.

6. More stamina

I can walk farther faster than I could before. Yesterday, I put miles on my feet with no problem except they began to complain from wearing heels they weren’t used to. That was no fault of the rebounder, though.

7. Toning

I’m barely beginning to see where the parts that were going South are migrating North. The mechanics behind this is that rebounding causes the tissues (including the skin) to stretch and, on the recoil, it “rebounds”. When this happens, it causes it to tighten. The same thing can make the muscles develop. I may have a genuine “six pack” before long.

8. Improved circulation

This might be along the same lines as stimulating the lymphatic system. Anything that gets you moving improves the circulation. Rebounding is a fun way to do it.

9. Better skin

A better body over all includes better skin. You aren’t going to modify the innards without modifying the “outards”, too. It’s all intertwined.

10. It’s fun

Every piece of exercise equipment I’ve ever had until now turned out to be work. Eventually, they’ve all been made into clothes racks. I don’t see that happening with my rebounder. I’m having a hard time concentrating on this post because I want to go bounce!

I could list more positives but I think I’ll quit writing and go give my newest exercise equipment a workout.

An FYI here—Sarah bought an Urban rebounder to replace her EC and loves it. At least one of my forum members has a Needak and that’s what Frederic Patenaude has recommended in the past. I’ve read good things about the ReboundAir. You don’t have to get a Bellicon to get a decent rebounder (they do look cool) but be good to yourself and get the best one you can afford.

Can rebounding be addictive? If it’s possible, I had withdrawal last night. My evening meal was probably too much before going to bed. I had a quart of tomato/mango “soup” seasoned to taste with Tajin and a large salad dressed with lemon juice and sea salt. Sounds okay, huh? Well, that wasn’t all that was in the salad. It included a small diced avocado.

I brushed, flossed and went to bed. My body was tense. I couldn’t relax. I willed all my muscles to let go and I finally drifted off only to wake at 3 o’clock. “It’s 3 o’clock in the morrrrrrning!” But I hadn’t danced all night long. I got up and went to the bathroom, then it was back to bed to try to catch some more Zs. Nothing doing. At 4-something I got up and took a melatonin hoping to get at least another hour and a half. Nada. I didn’t get sleepy.

There wasn’t any use to go back to bed 15 minutes before I had to get up so I sat down at the computer and caught up on some of the forum posts. I had plenty of time to get ready for work. No need to hurry.

I showered and, as usual, I ended it with the hot water turned all the way off and the cold all the way on. Maybe that would perk me up if I couldn’t crawl back into bed and to sleep. I smile when the cold water hits so, if my face should freeze, at least I’ll be smiling. Well, it didn’t help a whole lot. I was beginning to feel out of it.

Getting my breakfast ready was a chore. I juiced a quart of grapefruit juice (complete with pulp and seeds) and blended a quart of green smoothie (three rather large bananas, a cup of blueberries and a large amount of baby spinach with a cup of water). I packed them in my Little Debbie tote DS1 and his family gave me for Christmas (just one of the things). Along with the citrus juice and smoothie, I put in four bananas, a large container of romaine and some grape tomatoes for my lunch. Maybe getting some food into me would do the trick.

I drooped all day. Early on, I came to the conclusion that I’ve already gotten used to rebounding every day and when I missed one, it threw my body all out of whack. That theory may not hold water but sleeping so well after I bounced and so poorly when I didn’t convinces me.

Call me an addict. I’ll admit it. I put in 15 minutes this morning and another five when I got home. That was before I had the last plum and my supper of a quart of tomato/mango/Tajin “soup” and half an avocado. I’m going to sleep tonight. I’m sure of it.

Why didn’t I get a Needak? Well, I figured if I got a rebounder it would be the only one I’d ever have and I wanted to do my homework. I know people who have Needaks and love them but then I heard about the Bellicon. I knew there was no way on God’s green earth that I could afford one but it does look cool. It’s also rated at four stars.

I started doing some research. For about five minutes, I contemplated the ReboundAir. To be absolutely truthful, I thought about it longer than that but in the grand scheme of things, it wasn’t what I’d call downright serious.

Then I found a site, Rebounders Reviewed. Sure, they sell the ones they review for the most part but they seem to be genuine in what they are saying. They have a page showing what the ratings mean that’s pretty fun reading on its own.

To get back to the purpose of this post, I was impressed to find while the Needak was rated at three stars, the ReboundAir was only 2.5. The Urban came in at two but there were none that only had one star. The Bellicon and the Cellerciser both came in at four stars—the maximum number any rebounder could get. No wonder the Cellerciser is their best seller!

No, I didn’t buy mine from them. I got mine from an eBay Power Seller who had an excellent rating. (That’s important to me. If other people have had good experiences, I am confident I will, too.) The Rebounders Reviewed people don’t have prices listed or a way to order on their site. Not particularly user friendly. They seem like a nice bunch but not CyberSpace savvy. Maybe they are careful who they sell to. I don’t know.

Anyway, my Cellerciser was delivered on Thursday as promised. Last night, I described my setting it up this way:

I decided I would at least open the rebounder box. One thing led to another and I pulled the rebounder out (not an easy task). In the middle of the floor, I tried opening it up. It folds in half. I’m glad I didn’t get the tri-fold. It would have been that much harder to handle, I’m sure. I finally turned it over with the legs on top and put one foot on one side and one on the other and pushed down. There was a satisfying “click!” and it was open. I popped the legs onto their pegs and rolled it to what has proved to be its final resting place.

I was going to wait until the next evening to put the bar together and install it but I was still loath to go to bed. The instructions was for the old style bar but I figured it out in spite of that and had the bar assembled in a few minutes. Then I had the job of putting it on the rebounder. The ends were supposed to go over Legs 1 and 3. Okay. That made sense but how? I picked up Leg 3 and took off the tip. The bar thingy slipped over the leg easily and I put the tip back on. That wasn’t hard at all! Now to Leg 1. Not so fast! It went on at an angle (because the other one was all the way on) and bound up. I pounded on it and beat on it and I couldn’t get it to go the rest of the way or come off, either one. I had to pray my way through and the Lord had mercy on me. It came off.

I took the Leg 3 side off and decided I could put them on at the same time if I turned it over. So I did. Didn’t work. The bar doesn’t do any good if it’s hanging down from the rebounder and the rebounder can’t sit flat on the floor with the bar hanging down. Back to square one. Or maybe it was round one only it was about round three by then and I was getting tired of trying. I’m not one to give up easily, though, and I started praying again. It was back to Leg 3, then Leg 1 and this time, it worked. Praise the Lord!

The thing came with a carrying bag. That will never be used—not by me! There’s no way I could break it back down, put it in the bag and carry it around. THEN it would be to assemble again. I don’t think so. HA! I say!

To celebrate my victory, I got on My Cellerciser and bounced a few times. Then I went to bed.

To say I’m in love wouldn’t be accurate but I’m certainly in like. I’m one of those people who hates to exercise. I would rather be sunning or working in my little Square Foot Garden. Or watching some of the programs I’ve recorded. The nice thing about rebounding is I can watch TV while I do it. The Cellerciser is totally quiet. Out of curiosity, I got on it and bounced as hard as I could and there was barely a sound. Not the squeaky squeaky I’ve heard from more inexpensive ones. Rebounding is easier and more satisfying than either my Healthrider or the NordicTrack.

My Cellerciser came with a DVD, a book that looks like it will be interesting reading, a laminated instruction sheet, a sheet that details how to get started (beginners and seniors—me—are supposed to start out at two minutes a day 3-5 times per day), a booklet about Dave Hall, the developer, and the history of the Cellerciser. It’s guaranteed for five years.

Well, I started bouncing before I read the material and I still haven’t read all of it. I’ve put in 10 minutes at a time. Once the first day. Twice the second day. Once the third day. And twice today. I’m sold. I have more energy. I sleep better. It’s a little soon to look better but I’m planning on that, too.