by Julie Hall on August 30, 2011.

Dani Hemmat thought she had bought a cool toy for her daughter when she walked out of Target with a hula hoop around her shoulder. She had hooped as a kid but was sure that at nearly 40 she had “lost her mojo.” She gave it a spin anyway and realized she had really bought the hoop for herself.

But real inspiration didn’t kick in until she saw someone “rocking her hoop” at the Bainbridge Island Blue Grass Festival. Like a groupie, Hemmat asked for hooping advice and soon got a proper hoop fitting for her adult body. “It’s all about physics,” she explains. “Most hoops in stores are made for kids and don’t work for adults. Adults try them and get discouraged. The key is getting the right sized hoop for your body.”

Once she had the right hoop, she started practicing, getting better and building stamina. At first Hemmat says she couldn’t do more than a minute at a time. Now she can go for three hours, though an hour is plenty for a good workout. The workout is so good, in fact, that the American Council on Exercise (ACE) recently recommended hooping, saying at 400 to 600 calories an hour it burns as much as kickboxing. “Not only can hooping workouts result in improved cardiovascular health, muscle conditioning, flexibility, and balance, but hoopers may also enjoy a fun, relaxing, and potentially meditative effect due to the activity’s rhythmic nature,” says ACE’s Cedric Bryant.

Hemmat points out that hooping also loosens up your hips and spine and trims inches from your waistline. “It’s a full-body workout because you have to hold your arms up and power with your legs,” she says.

But the clincher for Hemmat was the sheer joy of hooping. She says she loves the circle of expression she enters inside her “orbit.” When she proposed teaching a hooping class at Island Fitness, owner Alexa Rosenthal was delighted, saying she had been looking to add hooping to their program. Soon Hemmat had founded Island HoopFit and begun teaching regularly.

HoopFit donated proceeds from hoops sold and rented at July 3rd Summer Vibes.

Hemmat, who lives with her family on Bainbridge Island, is now teaching a weekly HoopFit class at Island Fitness on Thursdays from 1:30-2:30 p.m. and another class through the Bainbridge Island Metro Parks and Recreation District on Wednesdays from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. She welcomes beginners, saying there is usually at least one in class each session. Her students range from 15 to 85 years old, in all shapes and sizes. Hemmat explains that hooping is a low-impact, joyful, personal jam session that’s not especially about being athletic. Her students love her music mixes and often groan with disappointment when they realize their hour of hip-rolling funky fun is over.

For the hoop curious, the HoopMistress will be offering free 1-hour classes at Battle Point Park, by the play structure, on Fridays August 12, 19, and 26, from 10 to 11 a.m. Beginners are welcome. Learn more at Island HoopFit.

Featured photo courtesy of Jeff Hemmat, Island HoopFit logo courtesy of Dani Hemmat, kids with hoops photo by Sarah Lane.