Hula Hoop

Options
alibee88
alibee88 Posts: 31
in Fitness and Exercise
It's my first post so be gentle!

I've been given a 2.5lb weighted fitness hoop for Christmas (charming haha...) and having struggled for a couple of days to even make it go, I have got the hang of it now.

Thing is, I can only do it anti-clockwise. I can't decide if I it's worth persevering to try and master going clockwise or if it makes no difference and I should just get to grips with doing a full 5 minutes the only way I can haha

Thanks!
«1

Replies

  • AllanMisner
    AllanMisner Posts: 4,140 Member
    Options
    In general, you're only going to get a small kick in heart rate and some core strength. But that has limited benefits toward full fitness or weight loss. Start with what your overall goals are and find the diet and exercise programs that address them.
  • goldfinger88
    goldfinger88 Posts: 686 Member
    Options
    The hoop is excellent exercise and will reduce your waist. Makes no difference which way you go. Practice your own style daily and before long, you'll be doing it great. I did a video recently myself. It's great fun. You'll enjoy it. Don't give up on it. People who don't hoop don't know what they're missing. You're lucky you got that as a gift and whoever gave it to you did you quite an honor.
  • GoMizzou99
    GoMizzou99 Posts: 512 Member
    Options
    In general, you're only going to get a small kick in heart rate and some core strength. But that has limited benefits toward full fitness or weight loss. Start with what your overall goals are and find the diet and exercise programs that address them.

    And...have fun with the hula hoop. Not many people master it anymore. I would do it just for the bragging rights, and the for-sure-to-follow ridicule from my buddies :-)
  • climbing_trees
    climbing_trees Posts: 726 Member
    Options
    Hello there! I'm a hula hoop dancer!

    You MUST practice in both directions. Your body will quickly become off balance. Strength will be built in one side of your body, while the other is not used. This can cause discomfort, and possibly major physical issues down the road if you stick with hooping. My first instructor hooped in only her dominant direction for four years before she realized that was what caused her back pain. She now makes a conscious effort to spin in her other direction for at least a small percentage of total time hooping.

    Think of it like this, if you were doing bicep curls, it will be easier and you can lift more weight with your dominant hand. But you'd still perform the exercise with your non-dominant hand. You wouldn't just skip it or go light because it is harder. :P

    Not to mention, learning to spin in both directions opens a new world of possible tricks to play with! :) Enjoy your hoop and I hope you find joy in the dance~ It really is a fantastic workout!
  • MrsLannister
    MrsLannister Posts: 347 Member
    Options
    I would love to try hula hooping, but I have a 43" waist and the largest hoop I have found is 45", which would not even fit over my chest.
  • yogicarl
    yogicarl Posts: 1,260 Member
    Options
    @Climbing Tree - you have motivated me enough to take that hoola hoop I have upstairs and actually do something with it. Thank you!
  • alibee88
    alibee88 Posts: 31
    Options
    Ok I'll persevere with the other way. I find it quite hard work all round as I know I have poor balance and a weak core. I thought this might be quite good targeted exercise for this.

    I guess I should focus on my overall goals but seeing as I was given this, I thought it could be something fun I could do for 10 minutes a day while watching the tv instead of sitting on my bum.

    I have about 25kg to lose in total and my main target is eat sensibly everyday. My exercise at the moment consists of a body conditioning class twice a week which bloomin hurts so I hope it's helping. I also swim about 4 days a week more to relax than anything else.

    Maybe once I've made some more progress with the eating, I can get some proper advice on the exercise regime. I just didn't want to end up with half a 6 pack or something hilarious from only hooping one way :D
  • JanieJack
    JanieJack Posts: 3,831 Member
    Options
    how cool! I've never heard of a weighted hoop before- sounds like fun!

    I hope others reading this won't discount the value of the hula hoop motion. I don't use a hula hoop, but I found the hip circles motion excellent for keeping the hip joints flexible, reducing pain, and reducing the impact of running on my leg and IT band.

    Enjoy!!
  • cafeaulait7
    cafeaulait7 Posts: 2,459 Member
    Options
    I have a friend who is a professional hoop dancer now, and hooping completely changed her life. She didn't know she was a dancer before, I guess. It really does something for her as an entire mind-body thing. She also travels internationally performing and has a video out, etc.

    So you never know :D
  • MrsLannister
    MrsLannister Posts: 347 Member
    Options
    Oops. I just looked closer at the hoops and realized the size is the diameter and not the circumference. That makes more sense. So a 42" hoop is around 132" circumference, which should work, even for my big ole frame, I think.
  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
    Options
    Any recommendations on other features to look for - weighted? Studded? Padded?
  • alibee88
    alibee88 Posts: 31
    Options
    Well I was looking a bit suspiciously at my 40" hoop wondering how that could be the size of someone's waist.

    I would absolutely say not to start much heavier than the 2.5lb one I have as doing it today, I can feel my waist has bruised a bit and my hoop is padded. I can't think of anything worse than studs hitting into you! I'd think you'd bruise pretty badly.
  • medpretzel
    medpretzel Posts: 4 Member
    Options
    Hi, new to the forums here, but certainly not to weight-loss and fitness.

    I am 41, and noticing my usually flat stomach turning into a muffin-top, I decided to turn to hula hooping about a month ago. I've been doing - faithfully - at least 30 minutes of hooping a day. I got a fitbit tracker and I've been logging my food on myfitnesspal. I am not really cutting anything out of my diet, so it's really just the hula hooping that has changed. And I am a little more conscious of the water I am drinking. It ends up to be 3 liters per day, but that is pretty normal for me. I have a very sedentary job.

    My weight basically stayed the same for 3 weeks, and lo and behold, I had a massive drop in the last 10 days or so of about 1.5 kg. I also have been noticing it in my jeans and trousers, which is so great.

    I started out at 66.9 kg, and am now down to 65.6 kg. I am quite pleased as to how it is going. And all I am doing is 30 minutes of hula hooping. I usually turn on a crime show or something else interesting on youtube for 30 minutes and track my calorie progress with my komen heart rate monitor. Today, after 40 minutes of relaxed hooping, I have burned 325 calories. This is - at least in my eyes - 325 calories that I normally wouldn't have burned. Does my heart rate get up? Probably not as much as it should/could, but, like I said, it means I have burned some calories that I normally wouldn't have. My muffin-top? I think it's shrinking, and I feel hugely better about my body, even if it's "just" 1.5 kg.

    However, I have managed to get my heart rate up with some more intense hooping, to some great songs (same beat per minute as walking) and I have burned 350 calories within 30 minutes. So, I do think that it can help.

    So, if the question is, "should I bother with hula hooping," my answer would be, yes. If you are like me, just trying to get into a bit more of shape and drop a few pounds, it's great. And, the nice thing about it is that it's fun. Is it going to prepare you to run a 5k marathon? No. Is it going to get your heart rate up? Oh yes, it can. But that depends on you and how you push yourself.

    Oh yes, I started out with the "knobbed" hula hoop which was awful. I went then for the hoopnotica travel one, and it's so much more fun and less traumatic.

    Just my 2 cents worth

    M.
  • MrsLannister
    MrsLannister Posts: 347 Member
    Options
    I went ahead and ordered a hula hoop. It will probably take a couple of weeks to get it, though. I wonder if my BMF armband will be able to accurately track the calories, though. Sparks People has hula hooping in their database and from what I can see it burns about the same amount of calories as a brisk walk.
  • pinkvici
    pinkvici Posts: 140 Member
    Options
    I have a weighted hoop (although a knobbly one!), and it did bruise me for a coupel of days,but now its fine!

    Now I'm back on MFP I'm doing 30DS and will start hooping as well - how does everyone record the calories??? I can probably only do about 20 mins (I'm very much a beginner!!)
  • hulahoopmama
    hulahoopmama Posts: 140 Member
    Options
    I have 3 levels of intensity for my hooping just like you'd have 3 intensities of anything. I rely heavily on my FT4 to give me a decent read on it but it averages 450/hour for slow-medium hooping and 600/hour for medium-fast.... fast-fast is about 800/hour otherwise known as "when you start hooping" because as you get better it becomes easier to hoop. Less exhertion means less cals burned which is why I keep getting smaller and faster hoops!

    When I first started I would sweat like crazy keeping it up!
  • doutri2
    doutri2 Posts: 186 Member
    Options
    As a Hoopnotica instructor, I recommend for beginners to buy a non-weighted hoop (no knobs or padding). I also think beginners would feel comfortable with a hoop that when the bottom is touching the floor, the top comes up to somewhere between the belly button and the bottom of the sports bra. This gives the body more time to react and to find the rhythm of the hoop.

    Also, wear natural fiber clothes and be sure your hoop has tape on the outside known as gaffers tape. It will help to stick to you, but is not sticky. Also, get a video to learn the basics of hooping.

    Best of luck.
  • PaulaJo1954
    PaulaJo1954 Posts: 5
    Options
    I will turn 60 this year and have been hooping for about 4 years. It's the only exercise I truly enjoy and it's proven to be both aerobic and toning for me. There are always new moves to learn and there's learning them in both directions, so it continues to challenge my body and my mind. I simply put together some music playlists and play with one (or often several) of my hoops a day. Didn't think I'd ever say this, but "look, Ma, no more thunder thighs!"
    I highly recommend the Hooptnotica DVDs and I love the classes offered at hoopcity.ca Browsing youtube.com for tutorials is also fun!
    All in all, it's a great way to nurture the child inside while getting fit.
  • Pamstimelines
    Pamstimelines Posts: 79 Member
    Options
    Wow! I thought the hula hoop was just for play, I didn't even know there was such a formal exercise using them. I am going to totally look into it. Sorry I can't answer the original question - I like to know too!
  • doutri2
    doutri2 Posts: 186 Member
    Options
    I picked up the hoop 2 years ago and I haven't put it down since (not literally). I love using the hoop for fitness when I need a light, casual and fun workout. Plus, I can easily hoop for 30 mins in the morning while I watch the news before starting my day.

    As for the original question about hooping in one direction, I find that my left handed students spin their hoops to the right and right handed hoopers spin to the left. I hoop 80% of the time to my left. I also didn't even know that reverse hooping was possible until about 9 months into hooping. So, you still have time to get your basic hooping mastered. Once mastered, start working on reverse hooping.

    I highly recommend Hoopnotica videos level 1 and 2. Plus, I think you get a discount if you order them together. Look around the web for hoops too. There are different price points.

Categories