Patch Blog: Hooping it up in Eagle Rock

Anyone who says that she can teach anybody to hula-hoop, regardless of age, fitness level or prior experience, must possess a most uncommon confidence. An adventurous kind of person who decides to go to Burning Man with people she just met on Craigslist. A giving sort of person who, when she gets there, volunteers to massage countless tired, achy, dusty feet. A kind of person that is A.J. Rowbottom. 

When Eugénie Nogueira invited me to an hour-long hoop class at her home, I had my doubts. Yes, it looks like fun when other people are hooping. I’ve never learned it well enough, however, to consider doing it for an entire hour. It sounded like more bending-over-to-pick-it-up exercise than I consider fun. And one thing I know about myself is that exercise has to be fun, or else I won’t do it.

I went, anyway, and was relieved to find that the instructor wasn’t one of those young girls I’ve seen on YouTube videos, twirling multiple hoops with flash and glam. A.J. is “my age,” not to mention disarming and personable, a humble self-taught enthusiast.

She had me try one of her really big weighted hoops, nothing like the plastic children’s toys, the kind that I’d never mastered even when I was a child. The weighted hoops move more slowly, making them easier to use, and you burn more calories in the process. I did do as much of the bending-over-to-pick-it-up exercise as I did of the hooping kind, but A.J.’s encouragement and that of the other hoopers made that hour fly by. 

A.J. told me that she herself had only been hooping for the past year-and-a-half. And that she’d lost a cool 40 pounds since she started. I wanted to know more about that. She told me that she got interested in hooping when she learned from a friend on Facebook that she’d lost 15 pounds in three weeks just by hooping 30 minutes a day.

That got her interest. A.J. also said she’d been walking regularly and hadn’t lost any weight. An inventor at heart, she made herself a hoop and started hooping daily. When she saw results after just one week, she was hooked—caught firmly in the hoop of the hula hoop. Forty pounds later, she’s still hooping it up.

According to a recent study, working out with a hula hoop burns about as many calories per minute as step aerobics, boot camp or very brisk walking. Hooping strengthens core muscles, improves posture, and increases circulation. Various sources say that hooping can minimize the effects of arthritis, osteoporosis, and depression.

“You just can’t be depressed” when you’re hooping, A.J. says. As with any exercise, however, she does recommend you consult with your physician before you begin hooping—if you have any medical concerns.

Fueled by her newfound love and her entrepreneurial spirit, A.J. started offering hoop classes, with the intention of making hooping accessible to everyone. “I’m not a kid anymore, and I was very overweight,” she says. “So if I can learn—I believe anyone can.”

This year, A.J. will start a nonprofit organization called “Give a Hoop,” which will fund the donation of hoops and free classes for kids in schools. As a mother of three boys, she is concerned that public schools don’t offer much in the way of physical education any more.

To engage our entertainment-saturated kids, exercise must be fun to get their attention, she says, and hooping fits the bill. A.J. also plans to start teaching hooping at Senior centers because it can reduce or alleviate so many symptoms associated with aging. Her ultimate goal, in fact, is to teach seniors to teach the kids. Retired seniors have the time, and kids can benefit from their mentorship.   

Bounding with energy and imagination, A.J. is the quintessential visionary and entrepreneur, all wrapped into one fiery redheaded package. So, naturally, I invited A.J. to attend the weekly Work@Homers networking events I have blogged about in the recent past, and she has quickly become an integral part of our community. A.J. is offering a hoop class, by donation, this Thursday, April 26. Our network of Work@Homers will Hoop-it-Up with A.J. at 1 p.m., right after our noontime networking. The community is invited to join in the fun.

Eugénie Nogueira has also graciously opened her home for community hooping with A.J. on Thursday mornings at 8:30 a.m., 2154 Hill Dr. Cost is $5 and hoops are provided. Hoopers will meet in the backyard, via the entry gate that faces Eagle Rock Boulevard. Eugénie recommends arriving 10 minutes early. Bring a bottle of water, and wear workout clothes and comfy shoes.

If you call A.J. at (818) 618-1037 and mention this Eagle Rock Patch blog post, you will get 20 percent off a custom-made hoop (they start at $25 each) or a 20-percent discount off a private lesson.

However you decide to go about it, I recommend you get to know A.J. You just might find yourself hooping it up.

Click on any—or all—of the following three links for further reading:

1. American Council on Exercise study: Hooping—Effective Workout or Child’s Play?
2. Give a Hoop Foundation (Facebook page).
3. Networking For Work@Homers.