Australian hurdler Michelle Jenneke loves hula hooping! She shared this image with us on Facebook not too long ago, thanking Hoopnotica for introducing her to this awesome workout! Janneke's pre-race warm up dance went viral last year...
and we love the fact that she brought her personal style and incredible energy to the race (that she went on to win!). We hope she brings her hoop to the 2016 Olympics!
Going strong...take a hint from Michelle, and try keeping your arms raised out to the side or up above your head next time you waist hoop to engage your arm muscles!
More and more studies are showing that sitting down for hours at a time is one of the worst things we can do to our bodies.
So what is a working woman or man to do? It's actually very simple: get yourself moving during the day with a hoop break!
By hooping for just part of your lunch break you are...
Getting your body moving
Clearing your mind
Working off your stress and frustration
Improving your spine's strength and flexibility
Toning your core
Getting your daily dose of cardio
Putting a huge smile on your face
AND...
Now that's what we call multitasking! So remember...A hoop sesh a day keeps the doctor away and make for happy bodies and happy minds! Please share your lunchtime hooping pics with us: @hoopnotica #hoopnotica #lunchtimehooping
Gloving, by Lizzie Photographie
I remember a time not too many years ago when I used to used to tell people we had a hula hooping company and people would laugh.That or I would get comment's like "oh that's cute". Many were skeptical were in fact a real business... As our company has grown not only have we had the business of growing our business but we have have had the added challenge of showing people that Hooping is more than just a "fitness trend": it is a true practice and a lifestyle. This lifestyle has in improved countless people's state of mind and overall health, has given them a sense of purpose, new friends, new-found confidence, and for many even, the career of their dreams. Once they realized that this wasn't a joke, they looked very concerned and asked how that worked. Now a days, nine times out of ten when people hear what we do at Hoopnotica their response is, Oh, I keep hearing about that....I've been meaning to pick up a hoop..As we've grown as a company, it's exciting to see other new practices and companies develop out of their love of what they do and their desire to share it with others. One thing that we found that fascinated us is Gloving, a relatively new art form that, like hooping, requires skill, coordination, rhythm but is all too often dismissed as child's play or even just something stoners or druggies do (we used to get that about hooping too) but gloving like hooping is indeed an artform.
We were fortunate enough to meet the top in the gloving game, the awesome creative team at Emazing Lights and hear from them what exactly Gloving means to their global community.
Emazing Lights created the video below to give people a sense of what gloving is and what it means to it's practitioners, known as Glovers.
(Listen for how much what they say sounds like us hoopers talking about hooping as a practice, a form of expression, and a wonderful escape!)
We personally can't wait to see what the Emazing Lights team will be doing in five years! Gloving is a practice that will continue to evolve and become more and more widespread as people (like you!) discover it for themselves. You can read more about what Emazing Lights does, learn more about Gloving and watch tutorials here.
We give Emazing Lights two flashing gloved thumbs up!
An HCI is a Hoopnotica Certified Instructor. The HoopnoticaFiT San Fransisco Training was filled with some fun-loving hoopers getting certified to teach what they love: hooping!
Check out this adorable clip of a new partner hoop move they came up with...
The training was lead by the inspirational Jacqui Becker (whose contagious laughter you can hear in the video above)! Thanks to everyone for bringing so much good energy to class and congratulations to San Francisco's newest group of amazing HCIs!
Why Become a Hoopnotica Instructor? Find out here.
BEWARE: Hoopnotica will be having a Hoopy Halloween Costume Contest for all of you die-hards who just HAVE to include your hoop in your Halloween costume this year! TRICK OR TREAT? Read More for Hoop Costume Ideas, A Ghostly Hoop, and....some secret savings... Introducing The Casper Hoop: An all white gaffer hoop, perfect for ghoulish hoopers of all skill levels, ghosts, and mummies! You can also decorate this hoop with sharpie markers, glitter, rhinestones, paint or fabric to customize it to match your Halloween costume....this hoop is literally a blank canvas! You may also want to check out some of our Patterned Hoops like The Daisy Duke or the Halloween Section in our shop for great ideas! 
*code valid through 10/8/13 For some more inspiration, here are some Halloween Hooping Costume Ideas from last year's winning hoopers! Robin Hoop, By Ellen Phillips @californiahoopgirl 
The King (of Hoops!), by Hula Boy Craig 
The MockingJay Pin from Hunger Games @missmojangles
Circus Performer (Dead or Undead...your choice!), by Amy 
Check back on our Facebook for more information on how to submit your extraordinarily scary, cute, and/or original Hooping Costume pics! Dare to share! Anyone want to be kind and share some great Hoop Costume ideas? Start a conversation below....
We already know that hooping as a mom is cool but we still asked our hooping mamas why they love hooping...
Hooping is my "me" time.
Let's face it, moms aren't the center of attention often enough! You can be the center (and find your center) in your hoop and use your time hooping as a way to reconnect with yourself at any given time during a busy day!
"I started hooping 3 years after I had my youngest and it is my go-to when I'm stressed out. Me and my boys go to the park and I tell my kids, Mommy is going to hula hoop land."
-Lindsey C.
Hooping is a practice that can grow with you...and that you never outgrow!
Most of us hooped as children and then rediscovered hooping as adults. Hooping can continue to grow with you through adolescence, adulthood, pregnancy and motherhood! Hoopnotica founder Gabriella Redding hooped through her second pregnancy and even brought her hoop with her to the hospital to use during her initial labor pains! (MORE: Check out our selection of Preg-O Hoops.)
"I began hooping about 6 months after my son was born, and hooped all during my pregnancy with my daughter. He will be three and she will be one next week. Because of the hoop I am back down to my wedding weight! Never thought that would happen! A passion for hooping has been awakened inside of me that I would never exchange for anything!"
-Krissy K.
"I am a mother of 4 grown daughters, including twins. I am in the best shape of my life. I hooped as a child, with my daughters as they grew up, and now as an older adult. I live my life, and forget my age. You are never too old to come out and play!"
-Diane P.
"I loved my hula hoops when I was a little girl but, somehow, I lost touch with hooping. Then I had three daughters and, of course, I made sure they had hula hoops. The toy hoops were too small for me as an adult and I just assumed that was it! One day I was watching Ellen and she had Marissa Tomei on her show and she was hooping! I looked up hoops and found Hoopnotica. I promptly ordered my first hoop and then another and another!"
-Kim D.
You're staying fit, the fun way.
As a mom, you have a lot of schedules to juggle in your household, which doesn't always leave time to go to the gym. Hooping can help you maintain a healthy lifestyle by giving you a high-intensity low-impact workout in your living room or back yard. (MORE: The Health Benefits of Hooping)
"I loving having the option of doing 5 mins [of hooping], or trying to do a trick, or just playing with my hoop with kids. I don't feel like I'm exercising at all! I have now lost 38 lbs and people notice! They ask me what I'm doing...hula hooping! I never would have imagined me hula hooping, or enjoying exercising!"
- Robin C.
Hooping is a fun way to connect with your kids...
Mommy & Me: Much more than just a healthy hobby, with a hoop for every member of the family, hooping is a fun activity that brings your family together. Hooping is also a great way to instill healthy habits in your children, especially when you lead by example! You can bring extra hoops with you to neighborhood barbecues and backyard play-dates and see how quickly everyone gets involved in the fun!
"I started hooping this summer, not long after my one and only son turned 4. When he goes outside to ride his bike in the driveway, I grab my hoops and go with him. It's been a fun way to finally start getting back in shape!"
-Kriss L.Z.
"I also use hooping as a method of explaining why practice is important and whenever things seem difficult. My daughters know how much I practice and try until I get it. Hooping is very much a part I my life. Whenever my kids draw pictures of the family, I have a hoop."
- Janelle W.
...at any age!
"Started hooping as a Mom.....with my beautiful daughter Rory and her friends. I will always hoop for her." -Kathy W.
"I started hooping for joy about 4 years ago. My daughter decided she would try it with me and now both of us are Hoopnotica Certified Instructors and share hooping at twice weekly hoop jams. Lots of mommas come and bring the kids. Not many mothers do things with their 16 year-olds. Hooping brings us together." -Anna D.
Are you a mama who hoops? Tell us your story below!
Hoopnotica was invited to lead a 1 hour hooping workshop at this years' Inspire Convention in Copenhagen, Denmark.
The convention took place September 14th, 2013 and the Hoopnotica workshop was a hit! Many convention attendees were inspired to pick up a hoop and join Hoopnotica Certified Instructor Carina Høj in a Hoopnotica class. So much so, that next year we are going to need more room to spin!
Carina shared this pic with us and the exciting news that there are now dozens and dozens of new Danish hoopers in the world.
Welcome!
Neil Patrick Harris seems to be suffering from "Excessive Hosting Disorder" as he suggests doing a quick bout of fire hooping on roller skates...
Maybe next year, he'll give hooping a spin!
GET THE GOLD: Check out our gorgeous Golden Eye Skinny Mini Hoop!
Photo: www.hotandhealthymom.com
Ivy suffers from MS and discovered hooping when brainstorming creative ways to exercise and stay active after a difficult hip surgery. Ivy was seeking a way to stay fit without putting stress on her joints... and hooping did the trick and got her her much needed cardio that was missing from her wellness routine! Ivy is an inspiration to her devout Clean Cuisine community and to us as well. We at Hoopnotica have been devouring Ivy's book co-written with her husband Dr. Andrew Larson, Clean Cuisine: An 8-Week Anti-Inflammatory Nutrition Program That Will Change the Way You Age, Look, and Feel.Learn more about how hooping fits into Ivy's clean cuisine lifestyle here.
You can read Ivy's incredible story here.
Corrie Novak recently picked up her life and moved cross country to LA. Why? "I wanted to live in a place where I could hoop all year long." Well, viva la hula hoop and viva Corrie! Her adventurous spirit and great performance style qualify her to be a Hoopnotica-Featured Hooper. Watch Corrie rock out! 
Name: Corrie Novak Hooping Hometown: Ringoes, NJ Years Hooping: 2.5 years Who introduced you to hooping? Festival Friends What was the biggest challenge for you? Hooping during the winter months What are the qualities that you think make a good hooper? Simply loving it. Doesn't matter how "good" you are, as long as you jam out, smile, and love what you're doing! Where is your favorite place to hoop? Parks and grassy knolls with sunshine! What prompted your move to LA? I was working in NYC and realized that my heart was out here. I wanted to live in a place where I could hoop all year long. I listened to my heart and worked my buns off and here I am! How does the LA hooping scene differ from back home? People are gathering all year out here. There are all different kinds of hoopers too! From the work-out gurus to stunning performers, you get every flavor! There are also a lot more classes, hoop gatherings and events to attend. What has been, in your opinion, your biggest achievement as a hooper? Simply sticking with it. I lost touch with my hoop for a bit during the winter and realized how much I missed it. After moving out here I have made a point to hoop more and be a part of this community. What do you consider to be your signature move? Smiling! :) What is your hooping dream? To still be rocking out at 60+ ! What is your hooping confession? I tend to sweat a lot (gross, but true!) and I can be found in the background.....that's where I can vibe and jam out! Quotable Corrie: "Hooping is my hobby and so so so much more! I have learned things about myself through hooping that I will carry with me always." "Because of Hooping I ... am blessed to be a part of a beautiful community of men and women. Although we all have this similar interest, it goes so much deeper than that! When I meet someone who is also an avid hooper, we both know that there is a shared connection to a piece of ourselves that not many people understand."
