My new adventures…with a hula hoop

So I’ve kind of been in a rut lately, and I think it was reflected by my absence in this beloved space. Changes are abound — I feel it in my bones. All I would say right now is, it’s all about work, discipline, patience, waiting and often times with gritted teeth.

I’m sad to say that I’m struggling to find the same sparkle of joy when Tokyo was new to me. I do what every seasoned expat does — go to my favourite places and do my favourite things again and again.

But in the midst of what I feel is groundhog day, I found immense joy in a hooping class last Tuesday. I’m glad I climbed out of my hole for a day…and look what I found!

Where did I get this idea from? Since late last year I had been itching for something different but I didn’t know what. I wanted to focus this restless energy I had and yet feel less awkward in my movements. I was always a gym rat/jogging/weight-training fiend but I felt it was time for something to make me feel “gorgeous”.

I stumbled upon Gala Darling’s blog and can I just say I LOVE it. When I need some optimism dressed in frosting and sequins, I go to her blog. For a while she was into hooping and she made it look like awesome fun. In her exploration of hooping, she interviewed Deanne, the founder of Hooplovers in Japan and I was like, “Cool, there’s hooping right on my doorstep.”

I signed up for a beginner’s class during the Golden Week holidays and I had a gleeful two hours. Besides spinning a pink hoop around my waist, I learned how to do hooping with my hand, and other neat tricks that involved some can-can moves and propellor-like maneuvers.

Hooping makes you sweat within minutes and it’s a full body workout. I can see why hooping enthusiasts all have amazing abs — something I have been dying to sculpt in a fun way. I mean, there are only so many sit-ups, stomach crunches, leg lifts I can do in one session and they also require some kind of discipline. Before my aerobic workouts, I always have to take a deep breath, get changed, and jump into it even though I don’t feel like it.

Now, hooping….it feels like it beams with dizzy, happy joy, like this picture:

I’m keen as beans to get a hoop so I can do some hooping in the morning on the terrace. What a great way to start the day…

Photos: imylthinle and slavafrombrooklyn

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