benefits of hula hooping
Hello,
- my opinion, as an experienced hula hooper,
- benefits proven with measured data.
Each of this parts will provide you with knowledge about the benefits for the body, influence on the psyche & on the general well-being.
MY OPINION
At the moment of writing this article, I’ve been hooping for 13 years, I hope it makes my opinion reliable. I am a professional circus artist, but also a hula hooper in my free time, for fun, using not only the golden shiny multihoops, but also a weighted, dance hoop for relaxation, massage, warm up, flow…
BODY
What does regular HOOPing do to you body? When the hoop becomes a companion in your everyday life, you reach for it several times a week, pretty fast you begin to notice, even without the need to confirm it with hard data, how it affects your body. You begin to feel an improvement in blood and lymph circulation provide yourself a joyful cardio exercise. By making the juices flow in your body, you discover a overall improvement of the way you feel. The digestive system stabilizes, you are able to solve the gases problem quite quickly, after long time regular practice you can experience strengthening in the core zone. By performing appropriate exercises, you are able to stimulate the muscles of the lower abdomen and pelvic floor, which may even increase your libido!
You start to look better and don’t get me wrong – I do not only mean that you lose weight and start to fit into a certain model of the so-called pretty body. Regardless of your body type, height, or other physical characteristics, you start looking thriving, great, energized. Waist, hip & solar plexus hooping strenghten & tone the zone. It is proven that core strengthening, has a direct impact on improvement in balance & coordination, therefore you also feel more confident in any other movement.
MIND & WELL-BEING
It may be considered a far-reaching theory, but even logically by increasing the amount of endorphins during exercise and by stimulating our nervous system, the overall well-being of our body increases. It is followed by our mind that has more scope to act when it does not have to “worry” about a body which without training is inactive, stagnated, and more prone to injury and disease. By feeling unique, beautiful and stronger after training with hula hoop, you become more self-confident. Your self-esteem grows.
While remaining a physical exercise, hula hooping is also fun, it is joyful and carefree. Thanks to this, when you create your space, where you go to release stress, relax, have a moment for yourself, meditate, you are able to feel true bliss.
As hula hooping boosts your coordination it directly improves your ability to focus & concentrate. I personally love to make a break in the office work (like writing this article ;)) & hoop for a while, to refresh, re-focus. It is also a kind of meditation, bringing you for a moment to another state of mind.
OTHER BENEFITS
Hula Hoopers are a huge worldwide community, that unite professional instructors, circus & stage hoop artists, everyday hoop-lovers, advanced & amateur free time hoopers, fitness hoopers, hoop dancers, tech skill ninjas & many other people sharing the joy of hooping.. We share our experiences, practice, learn together, inspire each other, give & receive support. You can make new relations through your new hobby.
It’s portable! You can choose between a wide range of flodable travel hoops. But even without them it is not so hard to grab your hoop, when you’re meeting your friends, go to the beach or park, hoop in your backyard, on a festival or in any other place you think of.
Hooping definetly spice up your workout. It’s exciting, awakens curiousity, you have so many directions you can go, different techniques, variety of styles. At the same time it’s easy to organise & enjoy it’s benefits.
DATA & FACTS
Now let’s take a look at the “scientific” point of view. What are the measurable effects of hula hooping. There are several studies proving a hard data about hula hooping. Below you can read answer to the frequently asked question about hula hoop.
Q&A
- How many calories does hula hoop training burn?
According to different sources the data about calories burn slightly differ. One of them proves that the average person burns around 6 calories for each minute of hula hooping
Harvard Health Publishing, proved that a 155-pound person can burn 205 calories during a 30-minute moderate intensity dance session. While not as high of a calorie burn, a lower-intensity session can net you a burn of 112 calories Working out with a hula hoop burns 3 to 7 calories per minute, depending on your sex, weight, body composition, workout intensity and type of hoop. Women can expect to burn about 165 calories in 30 minutes of hula hooping.
- Is it possible to slim the waist and hip area thanks to the hula hoop?
Shortly & simply speaking yes, you can improve the shape of your waist & hips through hooping. Looking at the studies I think it’s best to quote results of this one:
“Decrease in waist and hip circumference -3.4cm, respectively and waist-to-hip ratio from 89.3 cm down to 87.3cm. This study of weighted hula hooping suggested that regular hooping was associated with reduced waist and hip girth together with a redistribution of body mass; however, there were no improvements in torso muscular endurance as measured by isometric testing.
Hula-hooping with a weighted hula-hoop can be used to decrease abdominal fat % and increase trunk muscle mass in overweight subjects. Its LDL cholesterol lowering effect resembles that described for resistance training.”
- Is hula hooping really an exercise that can be treated as a full body workout?
“Mayo Clinic says hula hooping is comparable in results to other dance aerobic activities. When done regularly, it can tone your abs, arms, legs and glutes while relieving stress.”
Studies of a team from the Exercise and Health Program at the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse, led by Holthusen and John Porcari, Ph.D. showed that hula hooping burn even more calories compared to other activities such as advanced pilates, power yoga or step aerobics. It is always depending ofcourse on the form of training you perform with your hoops.
! THIS VIDEO INCLUDES OPINIONS OF OTHER HOOPERS !
If you prefer to watch my little “lecture” on the benefits of hula hooping, including short opinions of other hoopers, I invite you to my youtube channel, where you will also find instructions on how to hula hoop, how to choose the first one and everything you need to start your adventure.
There ain’t no guarantee that hula hooping is a 100% everyone’s gonna love, but it is 100% worth of trying!
So grab your hoop & give it a GO!
Kafri.
photo: Michal Pawlik
video: Milena Lupa
LINKS:
- Effects of hula hooping and mini hooping on core muscle activation and hip movement
- Arm Hooping & the Anatomy of Exercise Pseudo-Science
- A six-week trial of hula hooping using a weighted hoop
- ACE-sponsored Research: Hooping—Effective Workout or Child’s Play?
- Can Hula Hooping Slim Your Waist?
- What Are the Benefits of Using a Weighted Hula Hoop?
Do weighted hula hoops provide a good workout, or are they just a gimmick?
Core exercises: Why you should strengthen your core muscles
