Posts Tagged ‘Hooping Tips’
4 Elements to Boost Your Hoop Dance Creativity
How can you inspire creativity to your hula hoop dance flow?
By borrowing an idea from Mother Nature, you can incorporate the four elements of Earth, Air, Wind, and Fire to boost your hoop dance creativity. Inject some #hoopspiration into your hoop dance practice. So get out of your boredom rut. Surpass your static plateau. What movement essences of these elements can you inject into your happy hooping to get you overflowing with ideas to try?
EARTH
Earth has the feeling of being grounded. It’s sturdy, solid, and foundational.
For Elemental EARTH Hooping Try:
• Actually connecting your hoop to the ground.
• Or connecting various parts of your body on the ground.
• Perhaps try foot hooping while lying down.
AIR
Air is the element of lightness and breezy movement. Unless you’re taking on twisting tornado energy!
For Elemental AIR Hooping Try:
• Hoop tosses.
• Moving your hoop through space and tracing it’s movement with your other hand.
WATER
Water flows, ripples and waves. Water can have gentle swish and grace.
For Elemental WATER Hooping Try:
•”Walk The Dog” hoop trick and variations.
• Linear Isolations.
• Cat-Eyes.
• Escalators.
FIRE
Fire heats, seduces, and burns.
For Elemental FIRE Hooping Try:
• Experiment with Anti-Spin Flowers.
• Wack yourself with some Wedgies.
These are just some of the interpretations of these elements.
How you interpret these elements can be completely unique to your experience and perspective. Try meditating, journaling, or mind-mapping on the ideas of what each element means to you.
And if you are an aficionado of Feng Shui, you can change things up using their ancient 5 elements of Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. These elements can flow in a constructive or destructive cycle, depending on how you use it. The Feng Shui elements also have corresponding colors,”cures” or remedies, areas of the body, and emotions associated with them. So you see, you can really go down the rabbit hole of creativity, pretty fast!
Bring a buddy, so you can find your way back. ♥
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~Che’ Rippinger is Hip The Hoopla‘s CHO (Chief Hooping Officer)/Owner/Founder and head humorist, with heart. She’s been hula hooping since 2008 and founded Hip The Hoopla in 2011 – while teaching, performing and making pro custom dance hula hoops. A dancer most of her life (30+years), Che’ has also been a humor writer/columnist, illustrator and cartoonist for The Denver Post and her Touché! Cartoons have been featured in PLAYGIRL Magazine.
Want more awesomeness? Sign up for our Whirled News e-mail and get your very own 10 motivational ways to make changes workbook.
Please follow Hip The Hoopla on Facebook. We’re even on YouTube (with our own channel), Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Yelp,and Instagram. To contact us for group classes, private coaching, premium service packages, VIP days, events, performances or custom professional dance hoops, please call 303-919-9280, visit www.HipTheHoopla.com or e-mail Che@HipTheHoopla.com. (Please do not add us to call/e-mail lists without permission.)
Hoop BOTH Ways!
QUESTION: Should you just hoop in one direction?
ANSWER: Hoop BOTH Ways!
Here’s why you should expand your hoop dance to utilize Both Directions (hooping to the right AND hooping to the left).
Hoop Both Ways…It Has It’s Benefits!
- Work your Body.
If you lifted weights, you probably wouldn’t just do right arm bicep curls. You’d work both sides equally, for strength and balance. When you practice utilizing both sides, you train your body to develop stronger muscle memory. - Work your Brain.
The right side of your brain controls the left side of your body, and vice versa. Also, when you challenge your brain with new learning, you create new neural pathways. - Variety and Expansion.
If you are able to get into a variety of moves from both directions, you will exceptionally expand what’s possible in your hooping practice. - Extra Ah-Ha Moments!
You may get something on your non-dominant side that you were previously struggling with when you were hooping in your comfort zone, aka “favorite side.”
Hooping in your “favorite” or “dominant” side is often referred to as your “current.” I like to hoop in both currents. I also highly encourage my students to regularly hoop in both directions. It increases what’s easily possible and accessible. If you can only get into a move or transition from one direction, then you limit your flow dance options to only what feels comfortable and accessible from your favorite direction. By working both directions while hooping, your creativity can become exponential!
How to get that “other side” when it doesn’t feel as natural?
Often we refer to our opposite current as our “bad side.” Those words actually makes me cringe, because that side did nothing wrong to deserve that ill-fated moniker, other than it doesn’t get much practice time. Also when you keep speaking those words, you can come to believe it as truth. And it’s just not fair to put something down about yourself.
So I call my so-called non-dominant side, “My Side That Needs a Little Extra Love.” So give that side more rotations, so that it does feel more comfortable. Muscle memory takes time and repetition. Practice is the key. It may not feel great while you’re first trying it, but as you practice, it will start to feel more natural, and eventually even second nature!
Warm, Cozy, and Stuck
Lastly, know that your current/dominant side can become a warm and cozy comfort zone. Sometimes of not trying new things. It can also become a rut where you get stuck. Often we develop an unconscious habit of how to do something. If you are stuck getting a new move, switch up the direction, or side, that you are trying it on. When you engage in this “beginner mind” methodology, you are way more open to discovering and trying a new technique, than the habitual patterned brain is.
Enjoy hooping in both directions. May your fun incorporating both sides, build your hoop dance tool box of possibilities.
Want to see how to “Go Both Ways” in your hooping? Check out this YouTube video now: https://youtu.be/c2NTraAbeP8
♥ This article is especially dedicated to Kat and the FabOver40hoopcommunity ♥
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~Che’ Rippinger is Hip The Hoopla‘s CHO (Chief Hooping Officer)/Owner/Founder and head humorist, with heart. She’s been hula hooping since 2008 and founded Hip The Hoopla in 2011 – while teaching, performing and making pro custom dance hula hoops. A dancer most of her life (30+years), Che’ has also been a humor writer/columnist, illustrator and cartoonist for The Denver Post and her Touché! Cartoons have been featured in PLAYGIRL Magazine.
Want more awesomeness? Sign up for our Whirled News e-mail and get your very own 10 motivational ways to make changes workbook.
Please follow Hip The Hoopla on Facebook. We’re even on YouTube (with our own channel), Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Yelp,and Instagram. To contact us for group classes, private coaching, premium service packages, VIP days, events, performances or custom professional dance hoops, please call 303-919-9280, visit www.HipTheHoopla.com or e-mail Che@HipTheHoopla.com. (Please do not add us to call/e-mail lists without permission.)
Hoop Love Ya’ll Show~Help
Hoop Love Ya’ll Show
Health, Humor and Hooping with Che’ Rippinger of Hip The Hoopla
In This “Help” Show Episode/Topics:
Help–You CAN do it all yourself, or you can take a big time/effort/expense shortcut and seek help~Expert, Network & Intuitive. Plus some helpful hooping recovery techniques that can help with learning many more moves. And a little Laughter Yoga to help reduce stress and increase your happiness.
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3 Kinds of Help:
♦ 1. Expert – Someone who has spent years of studuing or has a lot more experience that you do can b-line your learning time by a lot. TIP: make sure they are reputable~just because someone is a “professional,” does not mean that they are good at what they do (it just means they take in money for it).
Example: I do a complimentary Hoop Consultation, which can save you a great deal of time and money, since I’ve already spent a lot of both of those learning what I could give you the “Cliff Notes” for!
♦ 2. Network ~ Your family, friends and colleagues can be an excellent resource for things you may need help in, anything from getting a new product to more major life dilemmas.
Example: When my mom had cancer and finally did ask for help, her family, friends and employees all stepped up in amazing ways with all kinds of recommendations, time and effort to make her journey a little easier and a lot less lonely and scary.
♦ 3. Intuitive ~ Tap into the internal messages that the combo of your brain and heart are telling you…AKA your “Gut Reaction.” If you don’t know, pick one and see how it sits with you. You’ll find if you really tune in, you will know. Also pay attention to signs and symbols–these may be your angels networking to get you some intuitive “hits.”
Example: Angel “hits” when deciding what to do…tap in and listen, because they are conspiring for you, if you let them.
♦♦♦3 Very Helpful Recovery Hooping Tips and Techniques:
Besides learning and practice, these three recovery techniques will be the successful foundation for most all further hoop dance growth and experience, especially for on-body hooping. (All demonstrated and taught on the video)
♦ 1. Speed Up
♦ 2. Duck In
♦ 3. Turn WITH the hoop rotation
Additional Inspiration/Quotations:
♦ “I get by with a little help from my friends” ~ John Lennon
♦ “Never let your ego get in the way of asking for help when in desperate need. We have all been helped at a point in our lives.” ~ Edmond Mbiaka
♦ My T-shirt motivation for the day: Sparkly heart (tap into your heart) with wings (listen to your angels!)
♦ “Do you want to learn this the easy way, or the long way?! Your choice.”~Che’ Rippinger, Chief Hooping Officer at Hip The Hoopla
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About Che’ Rippinger: Che’ has been hoop dancing (aka hula hooping) since 2008, she specializes in teaching (mainly adults) of all levels how to hoop dance, laugh, and be happy and healthy. She has over 30 years of experience teaching dance and founded her company Hip The Hoopla in 2011 instructing, performing and creating handcrafted locally made professional custom dance hoops.
Che is a professional hoop dancer, belly dancer, fire spinner and Certified Laughter Yoga Leader. She’s also been a professional humorist specializing in “relationships” as a cartoonist and columnist, published in the Sunday Denver Post and Playgirl Magazine.
If you’d like to hire Che’ for education, performing or events, please visit www.HipTheHoopla.com for schedule, info, and to connect.
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~With Hoop ♥ ~Che’
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Want more awesomeness? Sign up for our Whirled News e-mail and get your very own 10 motivational ways to make changes workbook.
~Che’ Rippinger is Hip The Hoopla‘s CHO (Chief Hooping Officer)/Owner/Founder and head humorist, with heart. She’s been hula hooping since 2008 and founded Hip The Hoopla in 2011 – while teaching, performing and making pro custom dance hula hoops. A dancer most of her life (30+years), Che’ has also been a humor writer/columnist, illustrator and cartoonist for The Denver Post and her Touché! Cartoons have been featured in PLAYGIRL Magazine.
Keep up with Hip the Hoopla with news, #Hoopspiration and special offers. Please sign up now for our special e-mails member list: Hip The Hoopla Circle E-mail and get a free gift!
Also, please follow us on Facebook. We’re even on YouTube(with our own channel), Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Yelp,and Instagram. To contact us for group classes, private coaching, premium service packages, VIP days, events, performances or custom professional dance hoops, please call 303-980-6295, visit www.HipTheHoopla.com or e-mail Che@HipTheHoopla.com. (Please do not add us to call/e-mail lists without permission.)
Cracking the Whip: 3 Keys to Whippy Fast Moves!
How do you get that cool “whooshing” sound with a hoop?
I’d say “Fear Not,” but alas, cannot, as ‘Whipping The Hoop’ about the cabin can be…well, fun, funny, injury-inducing, and sometimes object-destructive. I really wanna emphasize the “fun” part though, especially because it is awe-inspiring to see when done well!
Here are 3 tips though to help ya out as you learn some Whippy Hoopy Thangs.* (And, as always, these ideas are kind of a metaphor for life!)
1. Make your life easier with the right tool for the right job…Use a lighter hoop. Yes, size matters boys and girls–especially for this stuff. It stands to reason that if your hoop is smaller AND lighter, that whipping it around quickly will be less taxing on your hands, arms, bendy body parts and nearby furniture. Recommended: Polypro or HDPE tubing. Not recommended: Toy hoops. Yes they will whip, but can be easily bent, kinked and warped much quicker than a professionally made hoop by a reputable hoop maker. (There are many qualified local hoop artisans you can support. Check your community. Hip The Hoopla covers the Colorado area and can ship, if you like).
2. Learn Good Technique–with a qualified teacher is best–in person, if possible. But you can also have an online coach (like Hip The Hoopla or many others world wide), or check out some video tutorials on YouTube. Get it slowwwwwwly. If you start just jamming on stuff right off the bat, you may need an injury lawyer–and no one wants to sue themselves.
3. You’ve got to PRACTICE! You knew that one was coming, right?! Whippy moves don’t come about by spontaneous combustion, or via fairy godmother. They take the time and energy of good ‘ole diligent practice. Technique is the main component. When you have that down, then confidence comes into play. Then there’s one more thing that you want to add to your practice…
One more little *Bonus Tip*:
****Facial Expression.**** Yep. Practice getting that scared, “oh crap” look off your face, and try smiling with confidence and ease. Yeah your brain chatter will be racing saying, “But that hoop is whipping near my face — I must close my eyes!” Don’t do that. Keep ’em open so you know which way to duck if you need to. Plus it’s way more enjoyable to watch someone with a pleasant expression…less cortisol for the viewer to stress about you. And, the fake it til you make it grin will bring more of your happy endorphins bubbling your confidence up, too!
P.S. Bonus, bonus tip: If you are new to the hoop whipping concept, start with grip moves before advancing to hand release moves for more control and less bonking of nearby valuables.
Hope these 3 tips and bonuses help increase your personal level of hoop dance. Happy Hooping!
♥ ♥ ♥
*Whippy Thangs can be described as very fast movements, sometimes moving so quickly that they make a whooshy sound. They can create a breeze from the hoop movement, and even more of a wind current from onlookers gasping, “Ahhhhh!” They can be moves like escalators, folds, flips, breaks, etc. Even schmears can be done at lightning speed in a whippy motion!
~Lovingly written, tongue-in-cheeky by CHO (Chief Hooping Officer) Che’ Rippinger, who’s been hooping since 2008, running Hip The Hoopla since 2011 – while teaching, performing and making pro custom hoops.
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Hey, in case you want to learn more in person, please come join us at…
“Whip It, Whip It Good: Wicked Fast Moves Made Fun & EASY!” Saturday’s 10am Hip The Hoopla theme. Jump on the Crazy Train with us: www.HipTheHoopla.com or MindBody Connect mobile app to RSVP (all levels welcome + drop-in’s too, if space available!)
Or if you prefer to work one on-one, or a private group, we can schedule an in-person or virtual meeting!
For more information, Please visit www.HipTheHoopla.com , www.Facebook.com/HipTheHoopla , or call 303-919-9280, or e-mail Che@HipTheHoopla.com and subscribe to our e-mail (no spamming–just juicy hoop goodness).
We are also on YouTube, Pinterest, Yelp, LinkedIn & Twitter #hipthehoopla.
Helpful Hints to get Leg Hooping
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It took me a year of many try to explain it to me and trying to get “leg” hooping (some do call it “knee” hooping*–but I want to name things in the most positive, safest & most accurate light–according to my own style of teaching, extensive dance training, and opinion)…Here you go with some great tips from myself & a compilation of great teachers I’ve studied with to help you get it faster, better & safer:
- *Important Safety Note: in Hip The Hoopla class, I have hoopers hoop either above or below the knees, not actually on them–because many hoops, especially the bigger heavier beginner adult hoops, can really hurt tendons in that area and increase knee problems.
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1. To heck with the right to bear arms…Bare Legs!
Wear shorts–sticky is better so skin works best. Otherwise have gaffer tape on your hoop…or at least sanding, if your hoop is plain. -
2. In a multi-hoops workshop, Luna Breeze finally brought it home in my thought process: use both legs & pulse them TOGETHER really fast. FYI: Get the fast pulse/beat going WITHOUT the hoop first. Your movement beat must be very steady (rhythmic tempo) and fast. Rule of thumb: waist hoop is a nice pace, hip hooping is a little faster, and thigh hooping is really moving.
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3. When you do the leg beat together, you can move with the hoop–ie turn more easily.
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4. It takes a lot of practice. I actually got one leg hooping way before two. (I manually started the hoop on one leg and just kept a beat.)
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And Now….to get it back up…you’ve got to get your hips to bump up & up & up like a staccato shimmy (a useful belly dance move) so the hoop crawls back up the outside your legs & hips like rungs on a ladder. Now that is really helpful to do while Turning! (Remember turning in the rotational direction of your hoop is an exellent recovery method and helpful when learning new tricks…ie. the hoops rotations slow down, so you can catch up with it!)
Happy Hooping Everyone~ From Ché Rippinger of Hip The Hoopla. Many years of dance experience, learning, teaching and growing. Helping you break down the hard stuff, step by step, with a sense of humor, Laughter Yoga, child-like play and hopefully having a wonderful learning experience.
For more class information, private lessons, coaching, custom hoops, specials, news, events & booking performances, please contact 303-980-6295 or e-mail Che@HipTheHoopla.com. www.HipTheHoopla.com
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