Did you know hula hooping can actually reduce stress and relieve chronic pain, while shrinking your mid-section?
Some of you may be thinking right now, “Well Jennie, the only issue is… I’M NOT 7. OH and I’m and I’m probably going to have to hula hoop for a while in order to burn x amount of calories.”
Consider the following:
- Hula hooping works over 30 core muscles, improving both balance and posture.
- It’s a great exercise for a lot of people who are trying to lose weight but do not enjoy going to the gym day to day and get bored by their routines.
- Hula hooping helps you get in touch with yourself, with a mind-body connection. It allows you to tap into your inner child, let go, and be goofy. Hello, creativity-boom!
- It improves flexibility, dexterity and coordination, tones and reshapes the abdomen, buttocks, and legs with regular use.
- Hula hooping is accessible! All you need is the hoop, which means you can do it inside your house, even when it is freezing out or pouring rain.
- It can be great for lower back pain! After being slouched over your desk all day, the fluid hip motion of hula hooping allows the muscles in your back to loosen up!
When you first start hula hooping, you may want to start with a standard hula hoop just to get the rhythm down and then start increasing the weight. With that being said, you could be burning at least 100 calories every 10 minutes! That is just as much as running on the treadmill!
Hula hooping is an aerobic activity, and can be even better for your body than strictly running for cardio because it’s low impact and doesn’t put stress on your joints. It also requires coordination and helps with flexibility. The more you keep the hula hoop from falling, the more calories you burn.
One fun way to challenge yourself with it is time yourself to see how long you can keep it up and then try to beat that time as you go on.
Another way is to incorporate some interval training with it. For example, hula hoop for 2 minutes then do 50 jumping jacks and then do 25 crunches and repeat 3-4 times without stopping.
Once you get good at hula hooping with the regular hula hoop, you can purchase a weighted one at any sporting goods store or online to get the most out of the workout.
Who says working out is no fun?
Sources:
http://www.livestrong.com/article/438506-does-hula-hooping-slim-your-waist/
http://life.gaiam.com/article/hoop-your-way-weight-loss-top-5-tips-hoop-workout-expert
http://www.hulahooping.com/hoop-fitness.html