one year hooping

One year of hooping and I'm so blissfully proud of all that I have accomplished in these 12 months. With so many personal losses the hoop has allowed me to feel like I have some control. Achieving new skills, creating a community, stretching my comfort zone and letting my soul move....facing challenges and conquering what used to seem impossible. The 3 beat weave has mesmerized me and now I have done it...I kept cracking up because I couldn't believe I was doing it! Big big big thank you to Emma from www.hoopingmad.co.uk and her thorough tutorial.

My Hoop Mama

A Hoop Mama / Papa is the person who turned you on to Hooping...maybe taught you your first move, ignited this new passion you have for hoop dance or lent you their hoop for your first try.
This is the person who started it all for you.
I didn't have an in person hoop mama...I kind of just found my first hoop in the grocery store and felt the need to buy a toy for myself - a kind of way to escape and set some personal challenges to strive for.

As I got used to waist hooping on my own I thought there must be something on youtube about hula hooping and holy moly...I really didn't anticipate that there would be a whole community out there!
Here are some links to the first tutorials that helped me:

Lift up
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKoUKjahPHE

Drop Down
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNwAD9Fp3u0

Vortex
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDJGDhLUNIk 

Happy Hooping!

January Hooping: Dungeon vs Studio

Here's me hooping up a storm in my basement:

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/66709916/VID_00000122.mp4

I counted 3 fumbles...

And this evening I got a chance to take in some studio time at Dance Stars Academy. So wonderful to not have pipes and joists just a few feet over my head...very restrictive in hoop dance!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/66709916/VID_00000127.mp4
fewer fumbles but not as tricky as the dungeon hooping...getting close to my goal of no drops in one song!

Technology is being mean to me today so I'm sorry I couldn't post the videos directly...Click the links and enjoy! Lots of goofy moments in there for you!

New Goal: More choreography and flow! Still not too shabby for 5 months hooping. I can't really pin point when I first started to hoop but I know it was after my daughter's birthday but before my husbands...so some time around Aug 1/12.

Who's Who in Hoop Dance

Through all the online videos, tutorials, performances, online shops and blogs there seems to be a number of hoop celebrities. Not celebrities who are doing hula hooping. I'm talking about the hoopers who are leading, mentoring, and encouraging other hoopers in their hoop journey.

Some are innovators. Some are philosophical. Some are teachers. Some are performers. Some are all of these and more.

Here are some of the hoop celebrities I've been able to gleen from my online research:

Anah Reichenbach aka Hoopalicious - performances, workshops, philosophy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOTDNBISf7c&list=UUPlQoMdfPqoASNfuEMpc_cQ
since she's the mother of hoop dance she can have 2 links here:)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCk_UOdgLHs&list=UUPlQoMdfPqoASNfuEMpc_cQ

Who will I be in 30 days?

I'm feeling like I should focus my motivation a bit...give myself a structure. So I've committed to doing 30 minutes of hoop dance each day for 30 days. I am recording myself and my goal is twofold. To make it through a song without a fumble and 2nd to see what kind of hooper I become after one month of focused dance. The video documentation will be revealing...I hope!

So far I've followed through on my commitment to myself for 6 days. I was actually getting bored with my dance style. So I busted out the Hoopnotica dvds and found some old moves I forgot I knew and it gave me a burst of energy!

Going over my videos from the last few nights I can see how DARK the dungeon is!
I'll get a nice bright video up here soon.

Happy Hooping

Hooping for Him

There are a lot of dudes who are hoop dancers...here are a few of the more well known:

 Nick Broyd
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9q4Etz2wm44

Chad Forsberg
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgoKIJnDlew&list=UUJX8B700sk59XzqshnyHjZQ

Jon Coyne (Hoopsmiles)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_ehmevm6Tc&list=UUTFvGKRv48H7j1NGr-5ntIw&index=3

Nick Guzzardo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-19d24UxSo

Steve Bags
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqFTf1_Gsto&list=UUeWJ1L09aSfvgMRrj_HGaWQ&index=1

Rich Porter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIKwBsidQ4Q

Zach from Ninja Hoops
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SgSupSoTgM&list=UU_lOWgA68a7Zm9Oj4kVZjxA&index=1

Baxter from Hoop Path
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZELDHqOzYwU&list=UUY3jBrp0zR84joPfPxTT1gw&index=1

Dance Space = Motivation

Oh boy, hoopers!
I got a minute to visit a new dance studio that will be opening this month here in Charlottetown tonight.   Dance Stars Academy is working on their multi studio space and I'm super pumped that I will get to rent one of their empty studios for my practices or group classes/hoop jams and down the road workshops.

The studios will have a professional dance floor installed which means extra spring in our step! The ceilings are nice and high for those over the head moves and tosses. Dance Stars Academy will be the dance destination to train with...so exciting for them!

Here is their site:
http://www.dancestarsacademy.com/

Now to take my burst of motivation and get to my 30 min for 30 days challenge. Not only am I focused on this 30 day goal, working at some mini hoops I just got yesterday, playing with my new LED polypro that I must share with my hooper 5 yr old daughter, reading a hoop bootcamp guide I found online...but I'm also working on some blog posts about dude hoopers and who all the hoop gurus are. Revolution Hoops was launched on Facebook and I'm getting closer to starting a hooping community/ business.

This will be a hoopy new year indeed!