Click the play button on the video window to the right to see the show segmentThe Hula-Hoop, which burst into 'fad-dom' fifty years ago, is hot all over again. But this time as a revolutionary workout program that reinvents the body and the mind.
Christabel Zamor, credited with reviving the Hula-Hoop with her HoopGirl Workout, is leading what Time magazine calls "the inventive new wave of fitness."
Based on the curriculum she teaches to fitness clubs across America, "
HOOPING" is a full-color, fully illustrated book plus a 40 minute instructional DVD that pulls together the best HoopGirl moves and combinations that engage the core, arms and legs.
More than just a physical fitness routine, HOOPING might evoke in its participants the same laughter, smiles, and fun they had hula-hooping as kids.
It's both for the body (tons core, buns, arms) and spirit (promotes happiness, relieves stress, builds confidence).
Hooping allows women and men to have a fun, affordable and total workout anywhere they can take their hula hoop.
Here's just one of the fun and challenging moves to try:
Snake In this sure-fire “wow”-inducing move, the hoop revolves around your upper arms and chest on the horizontal plane. To master SNAKE, constantly turn in the same direction as the hoop.
1 Get the hoop in Pump and start turning. Dart one arm inside the hoop as in Slinky (p. x), but now rather than pulling your hand back out, keep that arm pressed against your body and continue to Pump.
2. Slip the other arm in and immediately nudge the hoop up your torso to just above your breasts. You are using the surface of your arms (ideally your biceps) to lift the hoop up incrementally. To achieve this, some people visualize using their arms like spoons to “stir” the area inside the hoop. Try to relax your shoulders and elbows and remember to breathe. Half of the challenge.
3. Now shimmy your torso side to side (as opposed to the forward and back), while still turning. Leading with your elbows and using the surface of your triceps (as if you were elbowing someone out of the way) push out and diagonally into the hoop whenever you feel it make contact. Bare arms make this easier.
4. As much as you can, exert pressure all the way around inside the hoop, using your upper arms, bringing your chest diagonally forward to meet the hoop, and pushing diagonally back with your upper back. Envision the mesmerizing spinal spiraling of a cobra. Keep turning and breathing!
5. If the hoop drops, capture it in PUMP by resuming the forward-back motion of your hips. When you are ready, insert your arms again and nudge the hoop up, and then continue the side-to-side/diagonal pulsation in your upper body.
