Can I Lose Weight From Hula Hooping?
June 11th, 2008 . by Lindsey McGuire
It’s one of our goals at Yummy Fitness to deliver you fun and easy ways to get in shape.
So how would you like to transport yourself back in time to when working out was actually fun.
Would you believe me if I told you that you can probably remember a time where working out wasn’t huffing, puffing, and secretly wishing you could just stop, go home, and just relax. Instead, back in this time you actually worked out while laughing, smiling, and were genuinely happy.
Would you be happy if we could bring that back for you?
Well, there’s a lot of ways to accomplish that goal, but one way that seems to make a lot of people very happy is hula hooping.
Yes you did read that right, you can in fact lose weight by hula hooping.
You might be asking yourself, “but how can I lose weight from hula hooping?” We’ll get to that in a minute, but first I want to clear up a few quick things first…
We’re not just talking about your “average” hula hoop. Hula hooping has reached a whole new level with the invention of the “weighted” hula hoop.
But why in the world would you want to have a weighted hula hoop? I mean that could hurt someone right? I bet you can just imagine hearing a “whoops!” followed by a 15 pound hula hoop wizzing across the room. That’s not a game of catch you want to play!
But all kidding aside…
The advantage to the added weight is that it’s actually easier to keep momentum with the hoop, which makes it easier to keep the hoop centered on your body. It also makes the experience more of a physical workout because you’re essentially turning hula hooping into a resistance exercise, similar to lifting weights. In addition, the constant movement you must maintain to keep the hula hoop spinning makes this an aerobic activity as well, which burns calories, and can lead to weight loss.
To boil it down, with the new weighted hula hoops you are combining both weight training and aerobic training at the same time. And hopefully you’re having fun while you’re doing it too.
Although you can hula hoop in the privacy of your own home, by doing your own thing, or buying a DVD for a routine, but hula hoop classes are also beginning to spring up around the nation. So you can also take classes for added motivation and a community atmosphere.
But what areas of my body does hula hooping work out?
The answer to that question is “where do you want it to work out?”
Hula hooping can be applied to almost every area of your body. For example, you can do the traditional hula hoop “move” by spinning the hoop around your waist. This will help tighten and tone your midsection or your “core” (your abs and lower back areas.) Spinning around your midsection also works to tighten and tone your glutes.
You can also spin the hula hoop around your, arms (this works your shoulders) or you can spin around your forearms (this works your biceps and triceps.) There are many more advanced “moves” you can do to work out your legs. Changing the position and angle of your limbs works different areas of your muscles as well.
Instructors in local classes can be a wealth of knowledge on how to get the most out of your hula hooping, and I know that there are some great DVD’s you can buy from your favorite store. We can’t personally recommend any of them because we haven’t reviewed them. We don’t feel comfortable giving recommendations on products we have little experience with, I hope you don’t mind.
Hula hooping does not have to be the only exercise you use in your “bag of tricks” but it can be a great way to spice up and add variety to your fitness plan.
The more fun you can have, the more progress you’ll see in the long run.
But to answer the question “Can I lose weight from hula hooping?” I would say, yes you can lose weight from hula hooping. Why? Because it’s both a resistance, and aerobic activity, and it has the potential to burn calories as well as helping to preserve lean muscle mass.
Ultimately, remember, regardless of the workout plan you choose to follow, you’ll always have to combine it with a great diet program as well. 80% of all your results will come from your diet, and 20% will be a result of your workout plan.
Remember, if you’re curious, you can get customized and free diet programs created for you in just a few seconds with our program OK-Cal.
To download your free copy of OK-Cal today, just Click here.
Enjoy OK-Cal, hula hooping, and remember to have fun!







