The BENEFITS of HULA HOOPING
The Benefits of Hula Hooping are endless! But here’s a few to get you motivated:
Therapeutics
Ask any hooper, and you’ll most likely find that the benefit and draw of using a hula hoop is more than just a workout. I myself find hooping to be among the healthiest therapeutic releases I have. Whether you’re seeking an emotional, physical, mental, or spiritual release, the physical act of “hooping it out” is no joke. It serves very therapeutic purposes for me and comes with the added benefit of a workout. (And potentially some entertainment!)
Cross Generational
Having a fun and healthy recreational activity that any member of the family can enjoy is never a bad thing. Whether you’re hooping for fun or hooping for fitness, this is something that everyone can do, you just have to make sure you have the right sized hoop! (Yes, we adults need larger hoops than when we were kids!) A larger hula hoop can actually be significantly easier to keep up…give it a try, you’ll be surprised!
Body Awareness
There’s nothing like defying gravity by forcing a round, hollow object to move around you without falling. It takes some practice, but through that practice, you learn about your body and how to isolate specific parts of it to sustain the hoop’s motion. Hula hooping teaches you body awareness inherently, as it’s conception relies upon it. Hoopers with backgrounds in yoga or dance tend to respond very well to this element.
Fitness
Hula hooping is an excellent layer to add to your fitness regime. It’s core strengthening. It’s cardio. It’s versatile, and can be incorporated into other workouts. It’s even stretching you out. (Read on to find out how!) You can burn up to 400 calories an hour JUST from waist hooping alone!
Low Impact
Depending on which exercises you choose, working out with a hula hoop can have little-to-no impact on your joints. When compared to hobbies such as running or ball sports, hula hooping is straight up gentle. Your biggest danger is walking into a very heavy hoop with cold muscles and potentially tweaking something in your back. But lets be honest, you can tweak your back just from laying down wrong. Be smart. Do a couple cat-cows before picking up your hoop!
Flexibility
After a period of time, you will notice that by studying the movements and muscle isolations necessary to keep a hula hoop rotating around you, you will begin unlocking movement in your core you never knew you had. As you do so, you’re able to loosen tight muscles and joints through movement.
Low Cost
Very few sports/hobbies are completely free to access. Whether it’s a gym membership, running shoes, yoga mats, ballet shoes, or weights, recreation can cost anywhere from very little to a lot. Hula hooping is a relatively cheap hobby to pick up. All you need is one weighted hoop…that’s it! As long as you have that, you’re free to hoop away, barefoot in your living room if you want!
Convenient
Many hula hoops on the market today are designed to break down into sections, or coil down into a smaller circle. This way you can break the hoop down for convenient travel and easy storage. It’s convenience also extends to it’s use. You can take a hoop anywhere. You can hoop in your living room, your front yard, a local park, the neighborhood gym, in the airport while waiting for a connection…you get the idea.
Inspires Dance
I’ve known many hoopers that claim the hoop taught them how to dance. Some are naturals from the beginning, and some require patience and practice, but in the end, finding your rhythm within a hoop is bound to unleash your inner dancer. Even if no one ever sees you but your trusted pet! Generally, the more size and weight you’re working with, the easier a hoop is. Due to the heavier nature of a weighted hula hoop, you will have a much easier time learning to be graceful within your hoop!
Appropriate for All Ages and Body Types
I have taught hoop classes to seniors, to children, and everyone in between. You can hoop if you’re overweight. You can hoop if you’re underweight. You can hoop if you’re a woman or a man. A few weeks ago, I saw a YouTube video of a wheelchair-bound woman shoulder hooping like crazy! No joke. I’m serious when I say, YOU CAN HOOP.
Fun
There’s really no way around it. Hooping is fun! Kids wouldn’t go so crazy for it otherwise. I myself (and not all that long ago) have spoken the words “Oh, no, I can’t hoop anymore. Maybe when I was a kid!” I proved myself wrong, and now am a full time hoop dance instructor and performer. And let me tell you, I wouldn’t do it if it wasn’t so much fun!
Can you think of something we missed? Comment it below!
♥ HoopingSkill.com
