FORTY FORT, Pa. — Nicole Smith says her least favorite part of the day is when she has to work out.
“I really don't like cardio, I don't like running, I don't like high-impact stuff,” she said.
But her mindset changed after she found Bounce Fit and Bowls in Forty Fort.
"I haven't jumped on a trampoline in a long time, so I thought, 'OK, we're going to get on a trampoline jump up and down?'" Smith added.
After taking her first class, Smith quickly learned she was wrong.
“I found out really quickly that it is really the perfect way for me to get the cardio that I need,” said Smith.
The official trampoline workout term is called rebounding, a workout session centered on a trampoline.
“Rebounding for ten minutes is actually equivalent to running three miles, so it's really great cardio and easy on the joints,” explained Calli Ogurkis, a staff member at Bounce Fit and Bowls.
The program is designed to benefit people like Smith, who don't like traditional workouts, and college athletes like Ogurkis, the owner's daughter.
“You come home, and you're not in the same environment that you're used to being in. You're not with the people you train with every day,” said Ogurkis
She says working out in her mom's gym has given her an extended family to train with during the off-season.
“Nobody wants to go to the gym alone. Most people don't even know what they're doing in the gym. So here you have people who have taken the classes, there's an instructor that stays with you, corrects you as you're going through the classes, and motivates you,” owner Denise Ogurkis explained.
That motivation has kept Smith coming back week after week, saying this trampoline transformed her life.
“I'm definitely shedding pounds. I definitely needed the cardio to help kickstart me on my weight loss journey, so I'm definitely seeing the pounds shedding off,” she added.
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