[Guest blogger Ingrid White is 52-years-old and she's in the best shape of her life.]
by Ingrid White
YouTube can be both a blessing and a curse. I see wonderful young hoopers spinning so gracefully. Tall and thin, part of me yearns to be like them. While there are times the striving does help me to practice, practice, practice – and that’s a good thing, part of me (mostly the part that looks in the mirror first thing in the morning) knows I’m trying to make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. I will never be that young again, nor will I likely ever be that thin or that graceful. Time and tide are working against me and I have to accept it. While a hooper in his or her twenties can look forward to decades of blissful spinning ahead of them, at 52, how long can I keep going? 10 years, 20, more? And what can I do to keep myself strong and fit enough to hoop?
I went to some great hooping flow classes in Sydney and watched a few newbies (young, of course!) spin two hoops at the same time around their chest and waist effortlessly, while I, a woman who practices for an hour everyday, just couldn’t seem to figure it out. So I sat down and really thought about the problem. My head told me that a 52-year-old can’t have the same natural muscle strength as someone who is 20, so that was one factor. I’ve also had two children and I’ve always had a soft “tummy” too, so the factors were stacked against me. So what can we do to strengthen our weak area?
For those of us who are “softer” hoopers, particularly my fellow hoopers out there in our forties and beyond, I’m here to remind you that it’s never too late for us to enjoy exercise, especially when the exercise is as enjoyable as hooping. While I’ve always worked out in one way or another – swimming, bicycling, dancing – the day I discovered the hoop was a totally different feeling. Suddenly exercise at the end of a long day was something to look forward to, not a chore to get over because I wanted to stay fit. While quite a number of us weren’t born with the body of an athlete and have to work damn hard at keeping our fitness levels up, that doesn’t mean we can’t still do it. And hooping, especially around the waist, around our “core”, is especially important.
As part of my regular hoop practice I now incorporate some targeted hoop exercises to strengthen my body. I focus on one area of my body for a full song, then move on to another. My waist is the weakest area of my body for me personally, so I focus on that the most, but I also want to make sure I’m getting my whole body exercised so that I can keep hooping into old age. Someday I guess the hoop will stop and the wrinkles will keep on for a few turns more, but until then – what the hell! Let’s hoop!
Staying physically fit is the best way to help us avoid illness and to be full of energy well into old age too. As we get older our fitness needs change. There’s no need to be jumping up and down for hours at an aerobics class or spending hours at the gym or trying necessarily to keep up with the young ones. Keeping yourself physically fit as we get older is about maintenance and regularity rather than breaking records. I will spend a whole song just waist hooping in one direction, and another song just waist hooping in the reverse. I chest hoop, hoop on my feet, hands, legs. I do rollovers onto my stomach, and back over to my back, then up to a shoulder stand (where your body and legs are straight up in the air and you are supporting yourself on your shoulders and your arms are forming a triangle support at your back). Getting older may mean we can’t do everything, but you might be able to do a lot more than you think and the only way to know is to try. Shoulder stands, for example, are great for the legs and abs.
I am not trying to tell another hooper how to hoop necessarily, but encourage all of us to simply go for it – regardless of our age. Try new things like hooping with regularity for thirty minutes or more each day. Try it for a few weeks and see if you improve not only in your hooping, but in your overall wellness while strengthening your weaker areas. Just take it slow and if you feel any pain at all – stop. I usually get a stitch if I am getting too carried away – and that’s my signal to take a break. With some attention, maintenance and regularity we will help ensure that we are abile to hoop into infinity and beyond. Take time out each day for hooping and most importantly, have FUN!
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Ingrid White discovered hooping and it has taken over her life. She lives in Appin, New South Wales, Australia, and you can also find her on Facebook.
Hooray for Ingrid White! When exercise is fun it is easy. It keeps you going. I too have found the joy of hooping as exercise and as something to share with others. My hooping business card says “you are never the wrong size or the wrong size for hooping”. It’s the truth!
oops–it really says this:
“you are never the wrong size or the wrong AGE for hooping”…that’s the truth.
Agree as we get older our muscle strength deteriorates, however our nervous system doesn’t ever need to. Therefore, I concentrate on sensitivity moves such as shoulder hooping rather than strength moves such as hand spinning/isolations and multiple hooping. I’m 55 and you can see my video “shoulder jumping” on YouTube. eric.taichi.hooper
Yay Ingrid – I love this article. I didn’t start hooping till I was over 60, not quite 2 years ago – I’ve become healthier than most of the young adults I work with. I love all of it, on and off body, and it has changed my heart, soul and body in the best ways. Thanks for writing!
This is what I want to hear! That I can keep on hooping- so my 60s is the next milestone for me!
I am glad there are other hoopers my age and older who can relate, and that I can relate to.
I aim to get my name in the papers at 100 as the oldest hooper in the world!
Hi I an almost 51 year old hooper. I couldn’t agree with you more. Sometimes I wonder how many “hooping” years I have left and then I think of how much more I have to learn and experience through my hoop practise and get very excited by it. I think this excitement is helping me stay young at heart and am very grateful. BTW I love that you used the term “softer” hoopers. Even if I was younger I don’t think I could be lightning fast and crisp like Spiral or SaFire…though I do try some days.
Awesome article I am going to use it for some of my older client. Cheers,
I am so glad to know that there are lots of older, “softer”! hoopers out there just like me. From the replies I am heartened to hear of even older hoopers than me still going strong. Its the one big regret for me that I didn’t discover hooping years ago- at that time wasted!!! Well I am damn well NOT going to waste any hooping time anymore.
Ingrid, are you coming to Hoopy Happenings?
yes I am going to Hoopy Happenings. I was too scared last year to go, and was going to just go to each day’s sessions and not stay over night as I thought I would be out of place with all the young hip hoopers, but Jewelz has twisted my arm and her telling me she is 47 has made me decide to go the whole hog. So I am doing the whole thing this year. I am already organising my hoop clothes!
It is brilliant, hoopers of all ages and levels and just full of amazing people! I am on HH 3 for 3 this year
You will love it!
As an older(chronologically that is)hooper, don’t let anyone out there you can’t have fun, be fit and healthy after age 50. In fact it’s the best revenge! I got into hooping whole hog 2 years ago(when I was 63) and haven’t stopped since. Since I’ve had a physical fitness thing going since age 26, it was relatively easy for me to pick up another thing to do. I had done some hula hooping as a kid and loved it, and later did ballet for 4 years and loved that, so coming into hooping reconnected me with dance, which was very powerful for me.
As far as muscle strength goes, keeping that going via a solid workout program is VERY important always, but especially as we age. Otherwise, that age-related muscle loss is very real. Same with stamina.
As far as body shape, we all have to do the best we can with what we have, and any limitations we might have. A body that is authentically in motion and offering up to the sacredness of dance is by it’s very existence beautiful. Our awesome hoop teacher instills this in us all the time, which is very empowering. Very important as out in the world we are told so many things that disempower us. The hoop is a powerful tool for women!
Hooping keeps us young in so many ways!
You have inspired me, Ingrid! Thank you for sharing your experience with us. I too hope to hoop to infinity and beyond! See you there.
Thanks for this Ingrid! I’m almost 54 & can’t believe it! I hoop with people much younger than I & what I find is that our life phases are really different, which is the hardest piece for me to accept – it isn’t so easy for me to spontaneously hoop mid-day, for example. I’ve danced, moved, worked out & done yoga my whole life & hooping has breathed new life into all that. I feel the number of responses to your great article is a testimony to how many of “us” are out there! Hopefully we will be posting on whatever form of media exists for years to come!