21st January

Wednesday 21^st January

Another well attended week! This week there were 30 of us. I’d still like to keep the numbers down to 25 max if possible as it’s nice for us all to have a bit of space to practice our hoop moves. I feel so guilty turning away those eager faces so PLEASE remember to book before turning up. You can book in class the previous week (this is most ideal) or contact me no later than Sunday to check if there are any spaces free for the following class. This way I hope not to have to turn people away at the door.

In this weeks class we practiced our basic waist hooping. You’ve all progressed so much since the first week when we started and the room echoed with the sound of 40+ hoops falling to the floor! This week I could see a lot of progress in you all. How can I tell?

1) Your hooping was much smoother (the plane of motion was near on horizontal).

2) You were standing tall (no slouching forward chasing the hoop)

3) Your pushes were stronger so you are really starting to ENGAGE those muscles – toned tums here you come!

We attempted stepping and turning with the hoops. Some of you weren’t quite ready for this yet but next week I’m sure you’ll be feeling braver. It seemed as though you were quite happy practicing your basic hooping but LET ME KNOW if you feel you want more. The few people that tried the grapevine step did really well. It can take a lot of concentration and I could see it in your faces! When hooping I find I have two expressions 1) smiling and enjoying myself or 2) frowning with concentration as I try to get a new move.

I expect that a few of you will find your first hoop bruises after this weeks session. This is perfectly normal. ruises can be as much as 4 inches long andare usually found diaganolly across your hip bone. Remember – as you develop and progress with your basic hooping these bruises will stop popping up. At the moment you are knocking your hip bone, with practice the hoop will stay above the hip. Also watch out for bruises on the back of the hand – again, as you get stronger these will stop appearing. In the menatime you could try wearing weight lifting gloves (grippy and padded) to protect the back of your hand.

We also tried a bit of power hooping so you could feel the difference as the hoop whirled around your body at uber speed! If you try this at home remember DON’T do this for more than around 40 seconds without a break. Sets of 4 are good – try to do a set in one direction then a set in the opposite direction.

I was impressed at how well everyone picked up the hand hooping! I thought there would be hoops flying everywhere so WELL DONE! This move not only tones your biceps but also frees up you feet for some dancing if you feel you want to get into the rhythm.

Finally we tried some squats and lunges while hooping – just to keep you going until next week! At the end of the session you all looked rosey faced so well done for putting in all that hard work.

Wednesday 14th January – the class update for the taster session can be found on the home page.