Hoop Dance can be a solitary practice that brings stillness to your mind, energy to your body and flow to your dance style. Having a hoop certainly gives you a reason to stand in a park and dance, you have a partner you are never really alone. The thing is it is so much more fun and inspiring to get together with a group of hoopers and share the joy of a hoop journey.
In the beginning of my hoop dance journey I would hoop alone in a park every day. When I started teaching hoop dance classes in Tokyo I wondered how many other lone hoopers where spinning around the city and so CIRCLE was born.
As the Hoop Lovers site will tell you CIRCLE is a community of playful, positive and spirited movers and dancers. CIRCLE is a time when we come together to share and enjoy free movement, play, hoop tricks, poi moves, contact play, music, rhythm, dance, beats, release and fun!
CIRCLE was created as a space to move, groove and engage in dance, liberating your body and your mind.
CIRCLE began as a randomly scheduled event but is now run two times a week in Tokyo, every Monday night in Inokashira Park and every Wednesday night in Yoyogi Park. It has become a sacred time for the hoop crew to release, share, get together, invite friends and of course just hoop, hoop, hoop.
I highly recommend starting a CIRCLE of your own, in a central location or in your neighborhood.
Here are my tips for starting your own hoop CIRCLE;
* Pick a location that suits you and other hoopers. Be mindful that equipment such as hoops, mats, speaker systems and other materials need to be transported there each time. An outdoor location, that is safe and accessible is best.
* Pick a regular time e.g every Tuesday sunset, the 1st Thursday night of the month etc This will stop confusion. If you plan to have your hoop group CIRCLE in an outdoor location (suggested) having a regular time will also help passers by to know when you will be there.
* Always bring extra hoops, it is all about sharing, you want to invite as many people as possible to enjoy the hoop fun.
* Have an online presence, start a facebook group, a forum, mailing list or have a space somewhere dedicated to your CIRCLE hoop meet up so that you can communicate details online.
* Be prepared. I have a CIRCLE bag, mats, hoops, ipod with funky playlist and speaker all charged up and ready to go. It makes it easy when heading to CIRCLE two times a week.
* Invite anyone and everyone, chances are they will have a great time and the more hoopers the merrier.
* Don’t worry if people don’t turn up every time. It takes time to build community. Sometimes you may have more people than hoops and other times it may just be you and another hooping buddy. Remember the reason why you started the CIRCLE, so you would have some one to hoop with, but if it is just you then don’t be discouraged you still have your sparkling hoop as a partner. Don’t give up. If you hoop it, they will come.
* Be prepared to socialise, organise, meet greet and share as well as hoop.
* Check in with your local council for permit requirements, insurance needs etc
* Share the hoop love in your local area.
Affirmation: I see life with love. I am safe and free.
Inspiration: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead
Today we are doubling up. Let the tutorials guide you to mastering some super twin action. Grab yourself some twins and get to play!
Enjoy the balanced flow, spin through the frustration and above all keep on spinning, the rewards of feeling the twin flow is something else!
Action of the Day: Talk to your hands, literally. Use focussed self talk to help your twin progress.
Affirmation: (An affirmation for healthy, strong arms) I lovingly hold and embrace my experiences with ease and joy.
Inspiration: “There are two things in life for which we are never truly prepared: Twins.” Josh Billings
In the West dance is often used as a form of entertainment, exercise, study, art, attraction or discipline, with form and structure. A dance class often takes on a rigid sequence from warm up to cool down. At times dance is not as commonly used as a prayer, connection, or a meditation. However the spread of dance as a healing and spiritual practice is apparent.
Gabrielle Roth believes that the fastest way to still the mind is to move the body. A pioneer of ecstatic dance in the west and creator of the model five-rhythm process she calls “The Wave” Gabrielle is quoted as saying “If you just set people in motion they’ll heal themselves.”
Embracing dance as a healing method and a connection to source has seen the rise in popularity of Ecstatic Dance or Trance Dance gatherings. According to the growing San Francisco Ecstatic Dance gatherings Ecstatic Dance is: a free form conscious dance where movement expands, spirit activates, boundaries melt, boredom ceases, creativity breaks out, hope happens, beauty flows, communities collaborate, ritual is reinvented, harmony resonates. The beat deepens as an electronic tapestry of world rhythms weave us together as individuals within a greater family.
“If you feel at all dance-challenged or have some sense of performance anxiety, just know that there are no wrong steps in ecstatic dance! Every move you make is right. You don’t have to be concerned about being aesthetic, graceful, disciplined, pretty, strong, confident, coordinated or contained as we’re so often taught that dance is about. In many ways, ecstatic dance is the antithesis of everything we’ve been taught that dance is supposed to be. In the ecstatic dance journey, your whole being becomes the paintbrush that your spirit guides across the canvas of your soul. To become the paintbrush all you need do is relax, surrender into the rhythms, and let your body’s wisdom guide your movements. In other words, trust and release your grip on the steering wheel. You’re dancing for your Self and no one else.” Karen Berggren
Action of the day: Set aside 30 minutes, put on some comfy clothes, your favorite incense or scented candle, perhaps a fan or open up your windows for some cool breeze, set an intention, prepare some phrases or affirmations collect some visuals, crank up your favorite mix that you know helps you to move naturally and then go for it. There is no wrong way, move, heal, enjoy, breath and feel.
Affirmation: I move with intention. I move with freedom. Thank you for my healing.
Inspiration: To dance then, is to pray, to meditate, to enter into communion with the larger dance, which is the universe. Jean Houston
A thought provoking piece by Trixie Maru. How are you progressing with your Hoop Boot Camp goals with just 10 days to go?
Progress.
What exactly does progress mean? Of course the simple definition is getting better at something, but in my experience, I’ve found that progress is rarely a black and white affair. Of course there are some skills that are very obvious, e.g. I couldn’t keep a hula hoop going around my waist when I first starting hooping, but now I can. Fairly straightforward, right? But how do you measure the progress you’ve made from day to day? Am I a better hooper today than I was yesterday? I haven’t learned any new tricks, although I’ve practiced some that I already know. In spite of the fact that nothing I was doing today was completely new, I still dropped the hoop a few times. Does that mean today I regressed rather than progressed?
I sometimes worry that I develop one skill at the expense of another. I often had this feeling when learning languages. At various points in my life, I’ve studied (but not mastered!) 6 languages, and at one point I was even studying 3 at the same time, but I have always felt that one language was dominant in my mind. It’s interesting how this has shifted. When I was in my first few years of college, I was most confident speaking Spanish. Then, after spending a semester in Paris, my French was better. Now, after living in Japan on and off for the past 7 years, my Japanese is probably the best.
Does it work the same way for hooping? For the most part, I feel that I continue to add to my repertoire and expand my abilities, but sometimes, in moments of doubt, I wonder if I’m somehow allowing certain skills to languish when I let others flourish.
I also wonder sometimes if I am getting too obsessed with the idea of progress. Ideally, learning would be like climbing a mountain – you’d start at the bottom and make a slow and steady ascent. However, I don’t think it necessarily works that way. Sometimes you work at something for what feels like forever, waiting to see it pay off in even the most minuscule way. Other times you try something a few times and it’s like you’ve been doing it your whole life. I would like progress to manifest itself in big explosions, but what I find to be the case so much more often is that I will suddenly have a brief epiphany – “Hey! I didn’t use to be able to do that, but now I can.” While this is not the fireworks display I long for, it is elegant in its subtlety.
In a Hoop Path video, one of Baxter’s students quoted him as saying, “Hooping is not about how good you can get. It’s about how good you can feel.” And that’s the type of progress that I welcome, no matter what form it appears in.
Video of the day:
Question of the Day: What progress are you making? Have you been hooping towards your goals, grabbing what you want, doing the best you can with the time and space you allow?
Action of the day: Celebrate your progress! Today is Tink’s 1st Year Hooping Anniversary and she celebrated by making a Hoop Cake…how super sweet is that? Now that is progress!!
Affirmation: I embrace my success.
Inspiration: Happiness resides not in posessions and not in gold; the feeling of happiness dwells in the soul. Democritus
Progress, happiness and love to you all!
xx
Inspired by the luscious raw women, a few of the Tokyo hoopers got together and whipped up a raw lunch full of vitality, color and nutrients.
Raw Ladies Lunch Menu
- Walnut and Ginger Nori Wraps
Tink kicked off the super food feast with Walnut and Ginger Nori Wraps inspired by Ani Phyo’s Almond and Ginger recipe.
Quick, easy and jam packed with vitamins and minerals. My mouth is watering looking at these photos.
- Raw Pad Thai
Tracey made the most amazing raw Pad Thai. The sauce was a divine mix of sun dried tomatoes and hijiki with lots of special raw treats.
We spooned the scrumptious sauce onto a bed of zucchini noodles and sliced veggies…unbelievable flavor. This had us licking our plates.
- Ani Phyo’s Raw Oatmeal Cookies
It was then time for desert. Meli Chan being the sweet hooper that she is was in charge of whipping up the after meal nibbles.
Having met Ani Phyo in San Francisco while working for Veg News, Meli Chan is a huge fan of Ani’s recipes (and so are we!!) The raw cookie dough was irresistible and so simple to make. Meli Chan fashion these sweet cookies into heart shapes and put them in the fridge to cool.
- Peach and Fig Green Smoothie
As a huge smoothie fan I couldn’t resist whipping up a Summery elixir in Tink’s kitchen. We had a cooling combination of peaches, figs, red lettuce, banana and icy water to accompany our cookie time.
The verdict? A huge thumbs up from all the hoopers. We were stuffed beyond capacity and spent the rest of the afternoon laying around in Tink’s living room basking in the afternoon sun, enjoying the cool breeze and massaging our tsubo (pressure points) Aaahhhhhh the life of a raw hooper 
An observation shared by all of us was that while our digestive systems were working over time due to the amount of food we consumed, our brain did not have that cooked food fogginess that often comes with over eating. Raw delight.
Question of the day: What raw food recipes have you tried and loved? Care to share?
Action of the day: (this may take longer than a day but you can start planning now) Have a raw food pot luck. Invite your friends over for a healthy dinner, lunch or breakfast and enjoy the benefits of soaking up raw nutrients. Get colorful and creative.
Affirmation: I know that life always supports me.
Inspiration: “Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.” Albert Einstein
Some added raw juiciness for you…
Give It To Me Raw
Raw Model
Sunfood
The Garden Diet
We Like It Raw
Today we have a vibrant and glowing post from Tokyo’s raw sisters Andi and Angi. Much love to them for their constant inspiration and congratulations on their outstanding success.
The raw food movement has taken off like wildfire in the past several years all around the world!!
With its roots in NYC and LA raw vegan restaurants such as Quitessence and Alive, healthy eating has been proven to be delicious, accessible, and filling! Many celebrities such as Demi Moore, Madonna, and Alicia Silverstone are known to follow a raw vegan diet.
In Japan, raw food interest has skyrocketed in the past several months, which is evident by the speed that raw food blogs and interest groups have grown. Raw food blogs on blog mura in Japan doubled since March from 46 to over 90.
A diet high in raw vegan foods provides the body with countless benefits because all the vitamins, minerals, and enzymes in the food are alive and able to be used by the body. When food is cooked, not only are valuable nutrients lost, but the food chemistry changes and causes disease-causing compounds to form.
The process of digesting cooked animal products and processed foods is the most energy-draining process for the human body…that’s why it makes you so tired and depressed!!
When plant foods and fruits are introduced, the body is given a chance to rest and the body quickly begins to detoxify, or clean out unwanted inner filth. The primary cause of disease is accumulated inner waste which has not been given the chance to evacuate properly. So detoxifying this inner mess allows more more energy, health, joy, bliss, vibration and love to fill your body and life!!
Therefore, those who consume more raw foods have a cleaner body, look younger, and see a noticeable improvement in their energy levels, overall health, and vitality! “
I hope you learned something new and are inspired to add more fresh, watery, flavorful fruits and veggies into your diet! Even once a week is better than never!!
For delicious and healthy raw food treats, smoothies, desserts and more come to MANNA in Yoyogi-Koen—for indulgences that make your taste buds water without the guilt of hurting your body!!
Love,
Angi and Andi
-creators of Lucina (Tokyo raw vegan company)
-co-owners/chefs of Manna (Raw Vegan Restaurant in Yoyogi-Koen)
Manna’s website
Lucina’s website
Lucina’s blog
Video of the Day:
Ani’s Raspberry Ganache Fudge Cake
Action of the Day: Educate and activate. Add a yummy raw bit of goodness to your day, then try again tomorrow, and the next day, the next day and the next day….
Affirmation: I know discover how wonderful I am.
Inspiration: “Let your food be your medicine, and your medicine be your food.” Hippocrates
As I sit here typing I have a pretty mega bruise on my knee that I am
quite proud of. Ah the joys of leg hooping.
One of the biggest obstacles for many hoopers is knee hooping and leg hooping, so I am going to let the experts show you how it’s done.
Hoop Lover’s Leg Hooping Tip: Work on your balance first 
Ground yourself.
So sit back, relax, soak up the leg/knee hooping juice and then off you go! Good luck and be sure to report back.
Leg Hooping Tutorial
One Leg Hooping
Knees to Hips
heel stretch & standing bow (leg hooping)
Question of the day: How do you stay balanced?
Action of the day: Chest up, chin up, don’t look down and rock your leg hooping with power and style.
Affirmation: I am balanced and flexible.
Inspiration: “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving” Albert Einstein
“Remember, skin is our largest organ, and one of our greatest protectors. One square inch of your skin has about 650 sweat glands and those tiny glands are an extremely important mechanism for your body to release toxins—among them, the kind that we inhale and absorb just walking around a city street. They should be free and clear to get on with their important jobs, not bombarded from the outside with more stressful toxins! As if we don’t put enough stress on ourselves… why rub it in? (Literally.)” Sarma on Feeding Your Face
If you haven’t already guessed today is going to be a luscious link a thon to all of the glorious concoctions we can slap on our skin sans the long named chemicals.
Top 10 Home Made Facial Masks (some of these use animal products)
Home-Made Beauty & Skin-Care Recipes (some of these are interesting)
Video of the day:
Question of the day: What is your skin care routine?
Action of the day: Hydrate! Hydrate! Hydrate! Your skin will love you for it (and so will the rest of your body!)
Affirmation: I feel safe to be me.
Inspiration: “When the heart is at ease, the body is healthy” Chinese Proverb
Hey Hoopers Happy Day 15 we are half way there so let’s just sit around and watch videos all day!! Are you with me??!
Here are all my old favorites…
send me your favorite videos!
Enjoy!
Today we bring you an interview bubbling with hoopalicious inspiration. My mentor, my friend, my sister, my hoop goddess Bunny Hoop Star has a few words to say about being an all round glitter clad super hooper star.
dd: Hi Bunny Hoop Star thank you so much for being your brilliantly talented self and agreeing to answer a few questions for the Hoop Boot Camp crew.
As you know Hoop Boot Camp is all about a journey of self-transformation. As an international hooper star can you offer some words of wisdom to hoopers heading down the path to hoop enlightenment?
Bunny: Well dd, I guess I need to add that I am also an Intergalactic HoopStar so transformations come in many shapes and forms through the hoop and beyond but always within the context of the circular and spiral dynamics that the hoop has to offer. The hoop represents change with movement. Move your body move your mind transcend both and move into a state of connectedness and cosmic bliss. It’s an opportunity to go beyond repetitive rotations and start spiraling into your own personal evolution.
dd: You appear to be on an extended journey of self-transformation with your looks, costumes and style; ever evolving and morphing into new dimensions of glam. What tips do you have for us hoopers wanting to embrace our inner bling?
Bunny: Get busy. Invoke crafternoon. Be prepared to take risks. Start with one item – it could be your favourite platform boots, jazz sneakers, furries, hot pants, earings, lashes or underwear… pick just one and work your theme from there. Regarding glitter – more is definitely more and high grade.
dd: While your rock star name obviously alludes to your stellar hoop talent I also know for a fact that you are astronomically versed in the art of astrology. Do you feel that one’s astrological status or place on the Chinese horoscope impacts on their hooping style, tendencies, dedication etc ?
Bunny: Astrohooping? Absolutely. It’s important information that I use to guide my students and to collaborate with other performers and humankind in general. I’ve noticed that Dragons with a Western fire sign tend to have the most ease in taking on the challenge of the hoop – they are ferocious in their learning path and are ready for anything really. Rats and Monkeys get all high on hoops too. Don’t mind watching those surreal Pisceans bust their moves – ultra unique. Stay tuned for an upcoming astro hoop column @ my blog
dd: So it is time to let the Bunny out of the bag. Just between you and us how do you keep your hoop star glow? Are there other elements in your life that help you maintain your condition, focus and flow?
Bunny: Yoga. It’s my main life anchor. I adore practicing yoga! Meditation is increasingly creeping in – I look forward to more time in the void always, just need to make more gaps for it. Stargazing is a pretty important part of my life too – it keeps everything in perspective, fine tunes my intergalactic antennae. I crave desert skies constantly but accept and worship the smattering of stunners we see here in Sydney. A healthy vegetarian diet is a must as is regular massages and acupuncture. Also, reminding myself that EVERYTHING is positive is an essential daily mantra. Lots of water.
dd: I know that you are a big fan of juicing and smoothies. Do you have any favorite recipes you would like to share with us?
Bunny: Big fan of brocoli juice dd. Add spinach, lemon, orange / apple, celery, beetroot, ginger and garlic and you have one of my trusty immune boosting cellular rechargers. Yum! My favourite smoothie has rice milk, banana, blueberries, honey, cashews, bok choy, maca and a power green powder.
dd: You are a busy Bunny that is for sure; hoop workshops and lessons, teacher training, performances, hoop making, art direction, costume crafting, wig plumping, bling adding, video editing…the list goes on. How do you maintain balance and stay on track with so much to do in each day?
Bunny: Yoga. Writing helps me witness, rather than getting too caught up in it all. I love to blog and am forever trying to make more time for it but it’s always something I need time and space for – rare commodities in my life! Big list writer and stars and tagging in Google mail – couldn’t live without it. Living by the ocean keeps me centered – I’m pretty uncompromising in making this my mainframe reality. When I can gaze out at the ocean and see the horizon, not to mention the sun and moon rise and set, nothing seems to matter but being in what I believe is called The Beauty Way… still reading up more on that particular philosophy / life technique. AND the mantra “A wizard is never late or early but arrives exactly when it intends to…” Golden.
dd: Excited to hear that you are one of the instructors at this year’s Spin Matsuri in Japan. I know that you have been to Japan before but what are you looking forward to most on this trip?
Bunny: I love Kamakura! All those temples. I’m keen to tune into anything ancient, sacred and beautiful. Kyoto? I’m told to go there
dd: And finally, we have been running many discussions on the Hoop Boot Camp forums. Two powerful ones in particular relate to gratitude and fear. We have been keeping journals and thought you might like to add to them by completing the following.
If I wasn’t afraid I would …… have no fear.
Today I am grateful for…. the deliciousness of life.
dd: Thank you for sharing your sparkling wisdom with us. Sending lots of hoop love from the Hoop Boot Camp circle.
xx
Video of the Day:
HoopStar – Portrait of a Hooper
Question of the Day: What is your hoop star persona?
Action of the Day: You heard the girl, grab your favorite pair of undies, best boots, pink wig what ever it is and BLING it!! We want photo proof…I can feel a super hoop star photo shoot coming on!!
Affirmation: I connect with my radiant inner child. I am playful.
Inspiration: “To be a star, you must shine your own light, follow your own path, and don’t worry about the darkness, for that is when the stars shine brightest”
In star dust we trust,
xx
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ABOUT HOOPLOVERS
Hoop Lovers was created out of a love for a life filled with joy, strength and passion. Inspired by hoopers worldwide and individuals in search of greater awareness and body consciousness, Hoop Lovers provides the inspiration to move more, laugh longer and love the life that you live.
Hoop Lovers is a hoop dance community that offers hoop dance classes, interactive entertainment, hoop performances, hoops and dance accessories. Hoop Lovers is a space in which we share life experiences, celebration of spirit, hoop dance resources and dance like the Universe is watching (because it totally is and loves every funky move we make!)-
ABOUT DEANNE
Tokyo-based hooper Deanne fell in love with the art of Hoop Dance many moons ago and has not spent a day without her hoops since.
Early in 2008 she took her hoops on a magical journey down under to meet with mentor and hoop idol Bunny Hoop Star. Together in Sydney they shared the Hoop Love, Bunny imparted her wealth of circus hoop and hoop dance knowledge culminating the teacher training with a divine LED and Fire Hoop jam on the shores of Bondi Beach. Deanne soaked up all the hoop juju and returned to Tokyo to share the love and passion for hoop dance with the movers and groovers of the illuminated city.
Now a qualified Hoop Dance instructor Deanne can be seen lighting up dance floors in Tokyo clubs with her LED hoop light shows. When she is not burning up the dance floor she can be spotted sharing the tricks of the hoop trade in parks and dance studios across Tokyo, teaching young hoopers in after school clubs and helping new hoopers explore their limitless bodies and get their groove on.
Deanne recently returned from California where she spent two weeks hooping, connecting, dancing and sharing with other hoopers from around the world at Hoop Camp and Harbin Hoop Jam. Filled with new hoop passion and inspiration Deanne continues to connect the Tokyo hoop scene with the global hoop community.
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