Childhood Classic Kicks Up Cardio Class
By Melanie Scherenzel, Special to BET.com

Posted July 17, 2003 -- Pre-video games and cable TV, simple activities like the Hula Hoop were the hit of the block. Today the circular toy conjures up nostalgic childhood memories. (Tell us Beyonce’s twirling hoop in the video for “Work It Out” didn’t take you back.) But it can also be the path to toning your troublesome mid-section. Like the step and jump rope, the Hula Hoop has entered fitness classes, offering folks a combined cardio and strength workout, while getting their hula on.|

Hoop History
Although Hula Hoop was a popular child’s game between the 1950s and 1980s, its roots actually date back 3,000 years to ancient Egypt, where circular hoops were made from grape vines or stiff grass. The hoops were swung around children’s waists or rolled on the ground using the stick for fun. Today the Hula Hoop has been upgraded for increased fitness performance.

Wendy Iverson, a Milwaukee fitness instructor, was using a traditional Hula Hoop in the privacy of her home for years. Looking to increase the workout level, she inserted telephone wire into the tubing. The result was a heavy-weight versatile hoop. The three-pound hoops are now used in fitness classes (called Heavy Hoop or Cardio Hoop), rehabilitation centers and physical education programs across the country. The hoop is available in various sizes and weights, but the average hoop is 36 inches in diameter and weighs three pounds.

Hula Benefits
Hula Hoop is one of the few fitness classes that primarily targets your middle. With circular trunk movements, it directly works abdominal muscles, hips and waistlines. As a result, class participants gain both a cardio and strength workout. In fact, one minute of Hula Hooping burns as many calories as running an eight-minute mile or high impact aerobic class, according to the Cooper Institute, a health-based, nonprofit research and education center. In addition, Hula Hooping promotes correct body alignment from the circular motions and proper posture in the upper body routines.

How To Play Hoops
Aerobic Hula Hoop classes require minimal skill level to take the class. Even if you haven't picked up a hoop since you were 10, you should be able to learn quickly.

“We get all kinds of students, including students, corporate and government type,” explains Vivian Thurman, group exercise director at Bally’s Total Fitness in Washington, D.C. “All you need is to have an open mind and be willing to feel a little klutzy at first.”

Both 60-minute -and 30-minute classes are offered through Bally Total Fitness gyms, throughout the country.

Here is the breakdown of a 60-minute class:
1. Warm up – Although a three-pound hoop may seem light, it gives the shoulders, arms, hips an intense workout. The first 10 minutes of class involve stretching and warming up the upper body.
2. Upper body routine – The next 20 minutes students use the hoop in an aerobic arm routine, involving lifts and turns.
3. Waist routine – For the next 20 minutes the arms get a rest and the hoop drops to the waist. This aerobic routine involves circular waist movements, along with squats.
4. Cool down – Since Cardio Hoop is a low-impact class, the cool down is not a dramatic shift. After stretching the arms, shoulders, and leg muscles, students start an abdominal routine using the hoop.
Click on the video links to the left to see a class in action!

Home Hooping
Too shy to Hula Hoop in public? Take your skills to the comfort of your living room. The hoops are available for purchase online at 'www.heavyhoop.com', in a variety of sizes, weights and materials for about $70. In addition, there are 18-minute -and 25-minute instructional workout videos.

Video shot at Bally's Total Fitness in Washington, D.C.