Rebounding Workout Intensity: Where Your Heart Rate Lands on a Trampoline

Moderate or vigorous: what the bands mean

Exercise scientists sort intensity by how close you are to your maximum, either your maximum heart rate or your maximum oxygen use. The American College of Sports Medicine bands, which most of the studies below use:

Band	% of max heart rate	% of max oxygen use (VO2max)
Moderate	64 to 76%	46 to 63%
Vigorous	77 to 95%	64 to 90%

(Garber 2011.)

The other number you'll see is METs: how many times your resting energy use an activity takes. Sitting still is 1 MET.

A New Zealand team measured people on a trampoline and on a treadmill at three intensities. At a given setting the two weren't identical, but heart rate, oxygen use and energy cost rose along similar lines, so they suggested the heart-rate zones people use for running can be applied to trampolining too. (Draper 2020.) So if you train by heart rate, keep your watch on.

What the studies measured

Most of the research is short lab sessions in small groups. That's normal for this kind of question, and it's why every row says who was tested and what they bounced on.

Study	Who	What they did	What they found
Rodrigues 2018, Biology of Sport	19 young, active men	The same 8-minute jog-in-place game, once on a hard floor and once on a mini-trampoline, in random order	On the floor: 53% of max oxygen use, 67% of max heart rate (moderate). On the mini-trampoline: 69% and 77% (vigorous)
Höchsmann 2018, European Journal of Sport Science	Endurance athletes, and inactive adults with overweight or obesity	Six mini-trampoline exercises after three practice sessions	Average heart rate in the moderate to vigorous range for both groups; average oxygen use 35 to 69% of max for the athletes and 48 to 71% for the inactive group
Eynur 2026, BMC Sports Science, Medicine and Rehabilitation	13 young women	A five-minute mini-trampoline routine to music, easier half then harder half	About 7.8 METs in the easier half, 11.5 in the harder half
Bhattacharya 1980, Journal of Applied Physiology (NASA)	8 young men	Trampoline jumping at four heights	Heart rate from 102 to 175 beats a minute, rising with jump height
Smith 1995, Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation	15 men aged 20 to 43	A steady jog on a mini-trampoline, with and without light hand weights	Pumping the weights raised oxygen use and heart rate every time

A few notes on those rows. The Rodrigues comparison is the cleanest: same people, same game, same distance, and the only change was the surface. The Höchsmann numbers are relative to each person's own maximum. Both groups were moderate to vigorous by heart rate, and the less fit group generally worked at a bigger share of their maximum oxygen use than the athletes did on the same exercises. The authors called the intensity "self-adjusting". The Eynur study is small and treated each person's moment-to-moment readings as separate data points, so take its numbers as a rough picture. (Rodrigues 2018; Höchsmann 2018; Eynur 2026.)

The three dials that set your intensity

How big you bounce. In the NASA study, heart rate went from about 100 to about 175 beats a minute as jump height went up. In the Eynur mini-trampoline routine, the harder half came from bigger jumps and quicker movement to the same music. (Bhattacharya 1980; Eynur 2026.) Small, quick bounces sit at the gentle end. Push down harder and leave the mat more and you climb.

How you bounce. The New Zealand team tested four bounce styles against a plain bounce, three minutes each, and oxygen use and energy cost changed significantly with the style. (Clement 2021.) Tucks, twists, jacks and jogs don't cost the same, so mixing them changes the workout even if your height stays put.

What your arms are doing. In the Smith study, men jogged at 120 steps a minute with their feet about 15 cm above the rebounder rim, and the authors described that steady, unweighted jog as relatively low intensity. Light hand weights raised it substantially. Pumping 1.36 kg weights to 91 cm instead of 61 cm added about 11 beats a minute, and oxygen use rose with it. (Smith 1995.) You can try the idea without weights by driving your arms instead of letting them hang. That part is coaching: the study used weights.

And the surface itself is a dial. Moving the same jog-in-place from the floor onto a mini-trampoline lifted the young men in the Rodrigues study from moderate into vigorous. (Rodrigues 2018.)

Is trampolining cardio over weeks, not just one session?

One session tells you where your heart rate lands. Fitness comes from landing there week after week.

The training research is thinner than the lab research, but it points the same way. In a small 1985 study, previously inactive college women who did rebound aerobic dance on mini-trampolines three times a week for eight weeks raised their aerobic capacity (VO2max) by 9%, while a control group didn't change. (Tomassoni 1985.) And in a randomised trial in adults with type 2 diabetes, 30 minutes of moderate-intensity bouncing on a mini-trampoline three times a week for 12 weeks improved insulin resistance, cholesterol profile and waist circumference against controls. (Nuhu 2018.) That second trial was in a specific group, so the takeaway for everyone else is the schedule: three half-hours a week, for three months. We've built a sensible weekly plan around doses like that one.

Bouncing also loads your body differently from running. The NASA researchers found that, for the same effort (oxygen cost), the body does up to 68% more biomechanical work on a trampoline than running, with the force spread more evenly across the body. (Bhattacharya 1980.)

Where a rebounding workout fits in your week

Australia's movement guidelines ask adults for 30 minutes or more of moderate to vigorous activity on most days, plus muscle-strengthening on two or more days a week. (Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care.) On the studies above, a rebounding workout can count towards those 30 minutes.

If running is off the table for your knees, bouncing sits alongside cycling and swimming in our low-impact cardio guide.

On a full-size trampoline with a coach

A guided session at Run The Wall runs 1 hour 45 minutes, adults only, in groups of up to four. It starts with a floor warm-up, the kind that gets you ready to jump, then moves to coached blocks on our full-size trampolines and the wall. The three dials are the ones a coach uses here: bigger or smaller bounces, a different shape, more arm drive. You set the intensity, and the coach helps you turn it up or down.

FAQ

Is rebounding cardio?

Yes. In the best-controlled study, young active men doing the same jog in place went from moderate intensity on a floor to vigorous on a mini-trampoline. (Rodrigues 2018.) Smaller mini-trampoline studies in athletes and in inactive adults with overweight found heart rates in the moderate to vigorous range too. (Höchsmann 2018.)

Can I use my heart rate zones on a trampoline?

Probably, yes. One study comparing trampolining with treadmill running found heart rate, oxygen use and energy cost rose along similar lines, and its authors suggested the percentage-of-max-heart-rate zones used for running can be applied to trampolining. (Draper 2020.)

I'm unfit. Will a trampoline workout be too hard?

You set the pace. In the mini-trampoline study that tested both endurance athletes and inactive adults, average heart rates reached the moderate to vigorous range for each group, relative to their own fitness, and the authors described the intensity as self-adjusting. (Höchsmann 2018.) Start with small bounces and short rounds, and build from there.

Should I add hand weights?

They raise the intensity: in one mini-trampoline study, light weights pumped higher added about 11 beats a minute. (Smith 1995.) Learn to bounce steadily with free arms first, and keep the weights light if you add them.

I have a heart condition, or I'm getting back from an injury. Is a trampoline workout safe for me?

Check with your GP or physiotherapist first if you have a heart or blood pressure condition, get chest pain, dizziness or unusual breathlessness when you exercise, are pregnant, have a recent injury, or are managing a joint or pelvic floor problem. The studies here tested healthy volunteers, and none of them was designed to test safety in people with medical conditions. If you're cleared, start gently and tell the coach when you book.

Ready to find your own number? Guided sessions at Run The Wall in Brookvale are adults-only, on full-size trampolines, in groups of up to four, coached from the floor warm-up to the last bounce. Book a session.

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References

• Rodrigues, G. A. A., Rodrigues, P. C., da Silva, F. F., Nakamura, P. M., Higino, W. P., & de Souza, R. A. (2018). Mini-trampoline enhances cardiovascular responses during a stationary running exergame in adults. Biology of Sport, 35(4), 335-342. doi:10.5114/biolsport.2018.78052 (PMID 30765918)
• Höchsmann, C., Rossmeissl, A., Baumann, S., Infanger, D., & Schmidt-Trucksäss, A. (2018). Oxygen uptake during mini trampoline exercise in normal-weight, endurance-trained adults and in overweight-obese, inactive adults: a proof-of-concept study. European Journal of Sport Science, 18(5), 753-761. doi:10.1080/17461391.2018.1449894 (PMID 29544075)
• Eynur, A., Ünveren, A., Harmancı, H., Karavelioğlu, M. B., Gülaç, M., Eynur, B. R., & Altıntuğ, M. (2026). Energy expenditure in women who participate to recreational mini-trampoline activities. BMC Sports Science, Medicine and Rehabilitation, 18(1), 323. doi:10.1186/s13102-026-01757-y (PMID 42152023)
• Bhattacharya, A., McCutcheon, E. P., Shvartz, E., & Greenleaf, J. E. (1980). Body acceleration distribution and O2 uptake in humans during running and jumping. Journal of Applied Physiology, 49(5), 881-887. PMID 7429911
• Smith, J. F., Bishop, P. A., Ellis, L., Conerly, M. D., & Mansfield, E. R. (1995). Exercise intensity increased by addition of handheld weights to rebounding exercise. Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation, 15(1), 34-38. PMID 8529085
• Draper, N., Clement, T., & Alexander, K. (2020). Physiological demands of trampolining at different intensities. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 91(1), 136-141. doi:10.1080/02701367.2019.1651448 (PMID 31617827)
• Clement, T., Alexander, K., & Draper, N. (2021). Investigating the effect of bouncing type on the physiological demands of trampolining. European Journal of Sport Science, 21(1), 1-6. doi:10.1080/17461391.2020.1721564 (PMID 31973686)
• Tomassoni, T. L., Blanchard, M. S., & Goldfarb, A. H. (1985). Effects of a rebound exercise training program on aerobic capacity and body composition. The Physician and Sportsmedicine, 13(11), 110-115. doi:10.1080/00913847.1985.11708928 (PMID 27410016)
• Nuhu, J. M., & Maharaj, S. S. (2018). Influence of a mini-trampoline rebound exercise program on insulin resistance, lipid profile and central obesity in individuals with type 2 diabetes. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness, 58(4), 503-509. doi:10.23736/S0022-4707.17.07120-1 (PMID 28249384)
• Garber, C. E., Blissmer, B., Deschenes, M. R., Franklin, B. A., Lamonte, M. J., Lee, I. M., Nieman, D. C., & Swain, D. P. (2011). American College of Sports Medicine position stand. Quantity and quality of exercise for developing and maintaining cardiorespiratory, musculoskeletal, and neuromotor fitness in apparently healthy adults: guidance for prescribing exercise. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 43(7), 1334-1359. doi:10.1249/MSS.0b013e318213fefb (PMID 21694556)
• Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care. Physical activity and exercise guidelines: recommendations for adults (18 to 64 years). health.gov.au (accessed 4 October 2026)