Fitness Friday: The Weighted Hula Hoop

Lately, I’ve written a lot of posts about fitness and not much else. I make no apologies for it. Working out has the power to change your body, your mindset, and your life. I never knew how much I could gain from being fit until I actually got into shape. Everyday, I find new ways to challenge myself in my workouts, creative ways to eat fewer calories, and marvel at the results.

The fall season of television has arrived and I’ve found myself wanting to see some of my favorite shows, but conflicted and antsy about sitting for such a long period of time. Even though I try to only watch TV in increments on 20-30 minutes, I still feel guilty just sitting there.

I’ve never been able to hula hoop. I’ve tried and always been envious of those who could keep the hula hoop up and going. After picking up a hula hoop a couple of weeks ago, and discovering that I could finally successfully hula hoop, I decided to get the multi colored weighted hula hoop that I’ve always wanted. Yup. I had already picked out my future hula hoop before I could even use it!

The 3 lb weighted hula hoop is a great challenge. Your middle is almost instantly challenged as you tighten your core to give the hula hoop something to swing off of as it spins. Now, I hula hoop for about 30 minutes while catching up on some of my favorite shows. Yes, it took a while to get up to 30 minutes. Your sides will hurt initially and you may even get bruises. Take a day or two off and then get back into it. Once I worked my way up to 30 minutes, I tried changing directions. It was like spinning as a child in one direction until I was dizzy and then trying to switch directions. It was not easy. My next goal is to switch directions without stopping . . . and then tricks! I’m already eyeing the 5 lb hula hoop . . .