step aerobics

One of the personalities who made the exercise form Steppaerobic popular in the late 1980s is ginMiller. After a knee injury, she and her orthopedist are said to have developed a convalescence program based on moving up and down from a milk crate. When the sportswear manufacturer Reebok offered a solid plastic board in the team with Miller instead of a milk box, the new sport got its firm place in gyms and exercise programs for at home. In fact, Steppaerobic is an effective endurance training for younger and older people alike, even without performing more or less complicated and predetermined choreographies of professional trainers. During private training in one’s own four walls, care should be taken to ensure that the muscles of the right and left legs are balanced and that the pulse rate does not exceed the appropriate level. Under these conditions Steppaerobic is for most people one of the easiest endurance sports ever to do – if appropriate quilting board is available. By contrast, the „substitute“ use of small furniture or crates is urgently advised against, because these could collapse.

The quilting board and its variants

The classic quilting board is a rectangular elongated box with rounded edges and the ability to change the height of rise by attaching or removing parts. Other names for this species quilting board are steppboard or stepper; in the latter, it is not uncommon to confuse with another training device, which is also referred to as a „stepper“, but is built completely different and not the varied uses as the actually simpler quilting board offers. In addition to its versatility, its general benefits u. a. in efficiency and also simplicity. This includes the usually low weight of the training device, which should be easily transported by men and women within the living area. In addition to the classic designs, the market now also offers quilted boards, which are particularly high, have more than two possible step heights or even several steps. There are also Aqua-Stepper with suction cups for exercising in the water.

Find the right quilting board

The classic stepboards are available in different sizes. If you are a steppa-beginner-beginner and would like to do choreographies or faster movements, you might be able to cope with a height of about 10 cm (with the carrier part removed). But even for people who should exercise moderately conditioned condition, a low step height is recommended. When attending a course with more complicated steppaerobic steps, it is a good idea to measure the equipment in the studio and get a board of appropriate dimensions for practicing at home. (You may also find a model of comparable size and lower price.) And if you just want to boost your ability to climb normal stairs without much „cha-cha-cha“, then a step board with a possible step height of approx 17 cm are ideal as stairs are often between 14 cm and 19 cm high. When choosing a quilting board, however, not only the height but also the length and width must be taken into account; On the other hand, these sports equipment are so versatile that there is unlikely to be a model (in acceptable quality) that would be unsuitable for training. For very long feet, however, care should be taken that the tread of the board is not too narrow.

The Zumba quilting board

For example, the Zumba Rizer can be purchased as part of the ZUMBA® Incredible Results Kit (TM) fitness package and is something special because it is round. With its diameter of about 46 cm (15,92 “ / 18,54 “) and its height of about 10 cm can be made with him very varied and effective workouts. Actually, it is amazing that only many years after the appearance of the first quilting boards, one now conquers the market in a round shape and for good reasons, wins more and more fans. Due to its rather low height, the Zumba Rizer is primarily used for endurance training, but it can of course also be part of the equipment for a muscle-building training, depending on the movement you have made. The maximum load capacity should be obtained from persons with higher body weight or when using training weights as a precaution from the manufacturer. (This also applies to all other quilted boards without this information.) The Zumba Rizer can be used very well for Steppaerobic choreographies or improvisations, which in combination also include various moves next to the quilting board.