Skin

They say hoops love bare skin. I'm learning this to be true. I tried more knee hooping today, taking off my leggings. So the video is not fit for public consumption. *wink*

I was able to keep it spinning longer. I think the trick is to spin it faster than I think it needs to, then it tends to stay. I even managed to keep it spinning on my upper thighs. But phew, I get so winded from that!

Took some more video. Canyon Hoops is doing a 30 day challenge. This was their little routine today. I can't let go of the hoop indoors; it's likely to fly and hit my ceiling. But it didn't look too bad. Continued with some hip hooping after. That's fun. (I never thought I'd say this, but I'm looking forward to warmer weather when I can properly hoop outside. I have no proper indoor hoop space. Pity.)

Then worked on some chest and shoulder hooping. Chest hooping is still slanted. I'm thinking I need to activate my back more. It's dipping behind me. My big boobs are propelling it upward in front. le sigh.

Shoulder hooping is coming along. It still feels a touch awkward but less so. I can keep it going a few times stationary, then I rotate to help it stay. Check it out...one day I'm going to master this and won't be able to believe I was so bad at it once. Right? Right.

p.s. this is what hooping does to my heart rate...
(second half of my workout today was lifting weights)

Knee Hooping

Almost had an aha moment last night. After several tries, I managed twice in a row to get it spinning above my knee for 5 or 6 rotations. Then lost it. But after those two successful tries, I couldn't do it again. Perhaps I was tired. Hooping is quite the cardio!

This gives me hope that I'll eventually get it. I just don't have it yet......

Derby Goals changing

Had some disappointment in the structure of derby practice for 2016. The main league are overhauling practices and who can come. I used to love coming to Thu night skills night. Usually it was individual skills stuff, but not all Day One, which gets boring after awhile. I was usually the only rec league skater who would join, sometimes I'd have other rec league skaters but usually me.

Except now, they are restricting Thursday night to skaters who've passed assessments.

Gee, if they wanted me not to come on Thursday nights, they could've just asked.

I guess in essence they're not allowing newbies on Thursday night but are instead offering another practice weekly just for newbies. This will be Saturday mornings at 10am. Nope. nope nope nope. For the same reason I don't go to the Sunday morning practice at 10am. I get two days a week to sleep in. I live hella far from the practice warehouse. I would need to wake up around 8am in order to make a 10am practice.

Nope.

But I'm so disappointed. I had thought I might make a goal for 2016 to pass assessments, maybe at least Day One. Not anymore. I'll skate with the rec league on Tuesday nights. But they only skate Mar-May and Sep-Nov. On Tuesday nights. If I can't also have a Thursday night, there's no point. I am NOT going on Saturday morning.

Well, never say never, I don't like to say never, but I highly, HIGHLY doubt it.

I'm just totally bummed out by this change. Maybe it's a sign from the universe to focus more on hooping.

Vertical Hooping Video

I finished a long treadmill run/walk workout and decided to take a quick video of hooping.

Vertical Hooping

A breakthrough! I finally had my aha moment with it. Chest and shoulder hooping are still a hot mess. I thought I was getting chest hooping until I took a video. My boobs are too big. It creates a slant, going up at an angle when it hits my chest, then down at an angle behind me. It needs to be a nice, flat spin. And shoulder hooping is getting better if I pivot in a circle, cannot do it standing in place.

But vertical hooping, I finally figured out how to bounce in my knees in order to get my body to push the hoop around. Can actually feel the points of contact giving the hoop momentum to keep spinning. After a good, long while, it starts to get out of alignment, like on my right side, it drops, and starts to bump my right knee. Need to figure out how to keep it in its plane.

Maybe over the holidays, I'll take some video...