This was one of those activities I planned for the kids anticipating that they will go absolutely ape over it and proclaim me the best parent that ever walked on this planet. G1, having been there before for a friend’s birthday party, was already familiar with the place and his enthusiasm only served to fuel his brother’s. In my book, it was a surefire winner. Well, the thing about kids is that there are never any surefire winners – as we discovered on that day…
When they entered Jump Street, they were on fire – rearing to go, and I had to reign them in until it was their turn on the trampoline. Within twenty minutes of jumping, G1 hit his shin and was out for the count, G2 was “so over” his jumping frenzy that he wanted to “go home”, and I was left standing like a guppy out of water.
Most of the children I saw were having a ball of a time so I guess it was just my kids who were feeling underwhelmed. Lucky we didn’t manage to get that second hour because it was fully booked…
About Jump Street
Jump Street is basically a warehouse filled with trampolines where children and adults can jump around.
The Cage
This is the place for the littlies…
The Foam Pit
Slam Dunk
Ever want to slam dunk a basketball but unable to reach the ring? Now you can…
High Performance
This is where the pros and experienced jumpers go to show off their stuff, or not. At the end of the hour we were able to watch the real pros do some stunts here. This is the home of “The Wall” and “The Bag” where all the serious stunts are done.
Main Court
Dodge Ball
Two teams on either side of the red line take turns to throw a ball at opponents from the opposite team. If the ball hits you, you’re out. The last team with players still standing wins.
Entry Fees
Jumping time is paid by the hour. The second hour is cheaper if you have the energy to last that long. Only a fixed number of jumpers can be on the trampolines at any one time so once they reach the limit, no more tickets will be available for that hour.
If you’re planning to go, it is advisable to book your tickets online. Based on our experience, those tickets go very FAST.
You will also need a pair of special Jump Socks that can be bought for RM4.50 a pair. What’s special about them is that they have thick, “grippy” rubber soles so you don’t slip on the trampolines. You get to keep the socks so you can use them again the next time you go.
Age Requirements
Anyone can jump but your child must be at least 3 years old to jump independently. Children below 3 years old can jump in an area called “The Cage” as long as they are accompanied by a paying adult.
Where is it?
8, Jalan 13/6, Seksyen 13, 46200 Petaling Jaya.
Why You Should Take Your Kids Jumping
It’s fun. Well, most children think so – just don’t take my children’s word on it… But jumping is also good for our children.
The Benefits of Jumping for Children
Well, if sports and physical activity are good for children, then jumping, by virtue of it being a physical activity, is also good for children.
PHYSICALLY fit children achieve better results in class than unfit students as exercise becomes a major indicator of academic performance. Researchers also found that the more physical exercise or structured sport that students do, the better they perform with their classwork.
“30 to 40 minutes of physical activity per day has demonstrated benefits for kids’ cognitive and academic development”. – News, Australia
Source: A Systematic Review to Inform Physical Activity Guidelines for Children and Young People
Are there any other specific benefits to jumping?
According to Wellness Mama, trampoline jumping (also called rebounding) provides the following benefits:
- boosts lymphatic drainage and immune function
- great for skeletal system and increasing bone mass
- helps improve digestion
- more than twice as effective as running without the extra stress on the ankles and knees
- increases endurance on a cellular level by stimulating mitochondrial production which is responsible for cell energy
- helps improve balance by stimulating the vestibule in the middle ear
- helps increase the gains from other exercises
- helps circulate oxygen throughout the body to increase energy
- improves muscle tone throughout the body
- some sources claim that it can help support the thyroid and adrenals
I can’t say that I did a thorough search of the literature, but the studies on rebounding seem rather scanty. These are the main research findings I came across:
- rebounding is as much as 68% more efficient than treadmill jogging – Journal of Applied Physiology (1980)
- improves proprioception – Cornell Hospital for Special Surgery, Studies Urban Rebounding
- decreases the incidence of injury compared to running on hardwood floor – The University of Utah
And for the parents who are thinking about taking up rebounding, you might find this one interesting – how rebounding stacks up against step aerobics. Aside from building leg strength, rebounding exceeds or matches up to step aerobics in all other areas – cardiovascular fitness, building bone density, improving balance and coordination, and reduces cellulite. Yup, cellulite. Now there’s a reason to get jumping with the kids…
Jumping offers long term skeletal benefits
Although this wasn’t about jumping on a trampoline, it is probably worth noting that the jumping as an activity is beneficial for building bone density. The exercises performed in this study involve jumps off of a two-foot high box which produce a force 3.5 times the child’s body weight on the bones of each leg.
“jumping exercises for just one school year in early childhood can trigger increases in bone mineral density (BMD) that are sustained for several years” – National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases
So there you go – plenty of reasons to take the kids jumping and to get jumping yourself…
Related:
Nurture for the Future 