Hoops by DJ Hoopster

If you had told me a year ago that in 2009, I would transform into "DJ Hoopster", the hula hoop lady, I would have looked at you like you were nuts.  But here I am.  Rocking the hoops, and LOVING every minute of it!

Well, how DID I get here?

It all started while surfing YouTube for Fatboy Slim videos.  I came across this video of a woman hula hooping her way across a cow pasture.  It was my introduction to "hoop dancing".  Until this point, I had only been exposed to the little plastic hoops they sell at Target.  If you were over the age of 12, these hoops were near-impossible to operate, so most of us gave it up in those pre-teen years.  After seeing the Fatboy video, I went out and bought myself one of these flimsy little hoops, and was sorely disappointed that I was not "a natural".

Still, I could not get the images of the woman hooping in the cow pasture out of my head,so I continued to surf YouTube, finding amazing videos of people hoop dancing.  Moving the hoop in ways that just did not look possible - making it look like they were doing magic.  I wanted to play with a hoop like that!

Months after discovering hoop dancing, I was lucky enough to be at my brother's cabin in January to meet the woman who introduced me to my first "adult" hoop.  Again, I was by no stretch of the imagination a natural - and this hoop was a heavy, weighted hoop.  It led to bruises worthy of Facebook photos, but I finally learned how to hoop, both directions.  I was hooked.

As a full-time mom of a very active toddler, I had pretty much lost all track of the music I like.  I certainly wasn't doing a whole lot of dancing.  And sexy?  HA!  I think it had been about 4 years since I felt anything close to sexy...

Enter hooping. 

Suddenly, I found myself hearing music EVERYWHERE.  Being more open to different styles of music.  Really HEARING the music move.  As I learned to control the speed of the hoop, I added more and more complex songs to my ever-evolving playlist(s).  I found more amazing hoop dancers, and started learning to float the hoop.

I noticed almost immediately how much BETTER I felt, inside and out.  It was as if hooping was giving my body an all-over tune-up, and I could FEEL everything whirring and pumping, and moving inside me in a harmonious way for the first time in AGES.  I kept hearing hoop dancers referring to "flow", and I have to say, I really do get the term.  It is as though through hooping, you are tapping into this great big flow of energy.  You are creating it, it is flowing through you, out of you, and spinning around you.  It feels absolutely wonderful.

I find hooping can be anything from a calming, meditative time for contemplation, to a hard-core, butt-kicking way to take out any negative energy that may have accumulated after a tough day.  I feel so much more balanced after hooping.  Calmer.  Happier.

So, I really started hooping because it made me FEEL good.  The bonus was noticing, within weeks, that it was making me LOOK good, too.  My waist became more defined within the first weeks.  Within six weeks, I had lost 13 pounds, without changing anything other than adding hoop dancing.  The weight has stayed off so far, and I am only hooping when I feel like it - several times a week - but not forcing myself to "exercise".  I just hoop when my body or mind needs it.

If you were wondering why I am so sold on hooping, and so determined to spread the word - and the fun - now you know.  Hooping has reconnected me with music.  It has reconnected me with feeling my body moving/working.  It has helped me to find my mojo.  It has made me feel better about how I look.  And it has made life more FUN.  How can I not want to share all of that with the world?

That is The Story Of DJ Hoopster.  Now, to go spread the seeds of fun...

YAY!  My webpage is live and life is Rockin'! 

No time to blog tonight, but look for regular posts now that I'm up and running.

Well, this appears to be it!  DJ Hoopster is stepping beyond the scope of YouTube and going online...

I'll be blogging here about hooping, and my experiences.  Hope you enjoy it, and welcome to the wonderful realm of hooping!