hooping update

so i've managed to learn to keep the hoop on my hips. YAY! what helped? getting hoops that were actually big and heavy enough for an adult. i'm learning (slowly) a few tricks, very basic right now, but i hope to have a bunch of really cool ones mastered in a few months, and (crossing fingers) lose some weight in the process. but now, the exercise part isn't as important. i'm having so much fun that i never want to put my hoop down (despite the wicked bruises on my hips).

i've found out there's a lot of benefits of hooping (for me):

1. in december of '08, i had surgery on an umbilical hernia, which was a result of my pregnancy. the doctor told me that there would be a higher chance of recurrance for me because of my weight. and indeed, about a year later, i began to feel very sore around my belly button again and feared having to undergo another surgery (that i couldn't afford). only a week or so after i started hooping (with the bigger adult hoop, one about 42" across) i noticed i was no longer sore around that area, and i can only assume that my "core" muscles have stregthened enough to hold everything in as it should.

2. my head clears when i hoop. i always thought i should try yoga or something, but never had the patience for it. so many awkward looking poses. i'd be too embarrassed to do it in front of anyone, and in my house, i have to do nearly everything in front of everyone. besides, yoga is charlie's thing (or will be...when he decides to stop just ordering a bunch of books and dvd's about it and starts actually DOING IT). when i'm hooping, it's like i've found my own little happy place where i can tune out and just relax. it feels like the hoop is hugging me on all sides and i'm in this safe little bubble.

3. david likes hooping, too. i had come to the point where i was losing things i had in common with him (other than blood). wasn't i surprised to learn that the munchkin actually LIKES to hoop with his mom. i'm not cool enough to play Nerf guns or Playstation with him, but he's not too embarrassed to hoop it up with his mommy. aww, he still loves me.

4. the stomach aches that i used to have daily for nearly 10 years have all but gone away completely. something about this hoop providing a constant massage for my tummy must've done wonders for my digestion. i mean, i still get them once in awhile, but it feels nice not to have that pain all the time.

5. last but not least, the word "hoop" constantly gets misunderstood for the word "poop," so when i say things like, "sorry i'm so sweaty and out of breath, i was just hooping, " or, "mind if i hoop?" i get really funny reactions. BOOM!