Leg and foot hooping
At today's BAH gathering at Dolores Park, we started to incorporate a lot of legs and feet into our hooping routines. Hooping with your legs and feet can be daunting at first because, as with every limb, you have to re-learn how to assume control over the hoop. Additionally, a lot of leg tricks require the hoop to be off the body, at least temporarily, and this is something that can really disturb a hooper's comfort zone since there's nothing like the hoop pressing against your torso to make you feel all warm and fuzzy and secure.
But once you overcome those barriers and relinquish control to your legs and feet, you can have a lot of fun! Below are some tricks that BAH members practiced today.
Here is Philo doing the knee hoop. Both Philo and I first saw Christabel do this at the Moontribe ten year anniversary in June. We were utterly impressed. Philo has now mastered this trick, and I am utterly jealous.
Amy got really into the Rockette move today. She threw her legs up in the air, left, right, left, right, passing the hoop underneath the leg each time.
This is a perfect example of hoop trick recycling. Seth today showed us a trick that Ariel had taught him at Burning Man. It involves sticking out your leg and rolling the hoop on your foot for about a fourth of a rotation before passing it back to your other hand. Jason extended this trick by bending his knee and using the foot to guide the hoop all around the back side of his body before passing it back to the same hand that placed the hoop on the foot.
Finally, here is myself doing a trick that Jason taught me today. You start out with the hoop on your hand above your head. You lower the hoop to about your waist but don't put it back on your body. Step/jump out of the hoop one foot at a time, then bring it back around. At first I was tempted to switch hands but that isn't necessary.
Foot and leg tricks are a lot of fun! Once you dare, you can't stop.
Comments
As Anah pointed out to me at HSMF, knee hooping takes on a whole new level once you're able to use both legs to control the hoop. Initially, when hooping around my knees, I would only use my right leg to keep the hoop going while keeping the left leg still.
When you start using both legs you can dance around while keeping the hoop around your knees.
Once you've got knee hooping down, start working on ankle hooping! I haven't found a lot of tricks you can do once you have ankle hooping down but let me know if you do!
Posted by: Tom | September 15, 2003 9:02 AM
I am a total failure at knee hooping. I can do thigh hooping, but that's about it for this point.
And as for the foot carry? I got that trick from Jen at Hoop Revolution, originally, so it's almost like a game of telephone...travelling along from her, to me, to Seth, to Jason...and ONWARD!
Posted by: Ariel | September 15, 2003 9:18 AM
Yes, it's true, spread the word across the land. I can not only knee hoop now, I can bring it up from a dead stop on the ground all the way up with zero hand action boys and girls. I know the secret of the knees - and I'd like to thank Tom specifically, hooping.org and hoopers everywhere for this award. Namaste
Posted by: Philo | September 15, 2003 3:39 PM
Inspired by Philo's success, tonight I spent almost two hours doing knee-work down on the beach with the Monday night group. Anah gave me some tips that really helped (keep your knees not too close together, and drive with the front of one knee AND THE BACK OF THE OTHER!), and after many bruises and fits and starts — I think I got it!
Thanks to Philo for the inspiration!
Posted by: Ariel | September 15, 2003 7:54 PM
Vera, thanks for showing us these cool tricks. I was working on them yesterday. I found that when trying your trick (jumping out of the hoop) a bigger, slower hoop worked better for me. I'd love to know more about how to do the one that Jason's doing...any pointers or video clips of this?
Posted by: Joy | September 29, 2003 8:39 AM
Hi Joy,
There aren't any video clips of this, but this is how you do it (assuming you hoop counter-clockwise; if not, reverse everything): Hoop with your hands around your body at about waist height, i.e. the hoop is off your body and you pass it from one hand to the other in front and in back of you, so that it goes in a circle around you like the earth rotates around the sun. At one point, when the hoop is in your right hand, stick your left foot up and put the hoop on it, leaving it sort of half-horizontally dangling off of your foot. Bend your knee and move your foot around your body towards your back, the hoop still dangling from your foot. Reach behind your back with your right hand, grab the hoop and continue on the path you were on before you put the hoop on your foot. Hope this helps!
Posted by: Vera | September 30, 2003 6:38 PM