Hooping (also called hula hooping or hoop dance) is the
manipulation of and artistic movement or dancing with a
hoop (or hoops). Hoops can be made of
metal
A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...
,
wood
Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...
, or
plastic
Plastics are a wide range of synthetic polymers, synthetic or Semisynthesis, semisynthetic materials composed primarily of Polymer, polymers. Their defining characteristic, Plasticity (physics), plasticity, allows them to be Injection moulding ...
. Hooping combines technical moves and tricks with freestyle or technical
dancing
Dance is an art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire of movements or ...
. Hooping can be practiced to or performed with music. In contrast to the classic toy
hula hoop
A hula hoop is a toy hoop (rhythmic gymnastics), hoop that is twirled around the waist, limbs or neck. It can also be wheeled along the ground like a wheel with careful execution and practice. They have been used by children and adults since ...
, modern hoopers use heavier and larger diameter hoops, and frequently rotate the hoop around parts of the body other than the waist, including the hips, chest, neck, shoulders, thighs, knees, arms, hands, thumbs, feet, and toes. The hoop can also be manipulated and rotated off the body as well. Modern hooping has been influenced by art forms such as
rhythmic gymnastics
Rhythmic gymnastics is a sport in which gymnasts perform individually or in groups on a floor with an apparatus: hoop (rhythmic gymnastics), hoop, ball (rhythmic gymnastics), ball, Clubs (rhythmic gymnastics), clubs, ribbon (rhythmic gymnastics), ...
,
hip-hop
Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...
,
freestyle dance,
fire performance,
twirling
Twirling is a form of object manipulation where an object is twirled by one or two hands, the fingers or by other parts of the body. Twirling practice manipulates the object in circular or near circular patterns. It can also be done indirectly by ...
,
poi, and other dance and movement forms.
Hooping is a physical dexterity activity that has been described as a part of
flow arts, and a form of
object manipulation
Object manipulation is a form of dexterity play or performance in which one or more people physically interact with one or more objects. Many object manipulation skills are recognised circus skills. Other object manipulation skills are linked to ...
. It is sometimes described as a form of
juggling
Juggling is a physical skill, performed by a juggler, involving the manipulation of objects for recreation, entertainment, art or sport. The most recognizable form of juggling is toss juggling. Juggling can be the manipulation of one object o ...
.
In its modern incarnation as an art or dance form, and form of exercise, the practice of manipulating a hoop is referred to either as ''hoop dance'' or simply ''hooping''. Hoop dance artists commonly refer to themselves, and the greater hoop dance community, as ''hoopers''.
The hoop

Hoopers generally use hoops crafted from
polyethylene
Polyethylene or polythene (abbreviated PE; IUPAC name polyethene or poly(methylene)) is the most commonly produced plastic. It is a polymer, primarily used for packaging (plastic bags, plastic films, geomembranes and containers including bott ...
(
HDPE) or
polypropylene
Polypropylene (PP), also known as polypropene, is a thermoplastic polymer used in a wide variety of applications. It is produced via chain-growth polymerization from the monomer Propene, propylene.
Polypropylene belongs to the group of polyolefin ...
(1/2", 5/8", 3/4", 7/8", or 1" diameter) tubing and wrap the hoop with colorful tape, which serves the dual purpose of providing decoration and grip. These modern hoops differ from the water-filled plastic toys commonly available for children. The heavier weight of these hoops allows for more controlled movement around the body; the larger diameter and heavier rotational mass allows for both slower rotation, and ease of learning moves such as "portal" tricks, where the hooper steps through the hoop while it is still rotating. In contrast, children's hoops are typically made of lightweight plastic, have a very small diameter, and are incredibly difficult for most adults to use.
Traditionally,
Circus
A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicy ...
hoopers such as
Elena Lev (of
Cirque du Soleil
Cirque du Soleil (, ; ) is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, Montreal, Saint-Michel, Montreal, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Jun ...
) typically use lightweight hoops made of
aluminium
Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...
, or, in earlier days, wood. Nowadays, however modern circus hoopers like Lisa Lottie will choose lightweight plastics such as Polypropylene.
Typically, an adult will begin with a hoop of approximately 38–44" diameter. While these hoops may seem huge compared to children's hoops, they are typically required for adults to learn the skill quickly. As their skill improves people can use hoops of a smaller diameter. Advanced hoopers typically use a hoop between 30" and 36" diameter. There are however hoops that go all the way down to an 18" diameter and lower, these are mainly used by hoopers of a higher skill level. These hoops are called mini hoops.
Many modern hoopers make their own hoops out of
polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride (alternatively: poly(vinyl chloride), colloquial: vinyl or polyvinyl; abbreviated: PVC) is the world's third-most widely produced synthetic polymer of plastic (after polyethylene and polypropylene). About 40 million tons of ...
,
polyethylene
Polyethylene or polythene (abbreviated PE; IUPAC name polyethene or poly(methylene)) is the most commonly produced plastic. It is a polymer, primarily used for packaging (plastic bags, plastic films, geomembranes and containers including bott ...
,
high-density polyethylene
High-density polyethylene (HDPE) or polyethylene high-density (PEHD) is a thermoplastic polymer produced from the monomer ethylene. It is sometimes called "alkathene" or " polythene" when used for HDPE pipes. With a high strength-to-density rati ...
, or
polypropylene
Polypropylene (PP), also known as polypropene, is a thermoplastic polymer used in a wide variety of applications. It is produced via chain-growth polymerization from the monomer Propene, propylene.
Polypropylene belongs to the group of polyolefin ...
tubing. The size and the weight of the hoop affects style of the hooper. Heavier, larger hoops are more often used for slow hooping and body tricks while lighter, thinner tubing is used for quick hand tricks. These hoops may be covered in a fabric or plastic tape to ease the amount of work in keeping a hoop twirling around the dancer, and can be very colourful. Some use glow-in-the dark, patterned, or sparkling tape, and others are produced with clear tubing and filled with plastic balls, glitter, or even water to produce visual or audio effects when used.
Hoops can be made collapsible for easy transport and versatility: each hoop breaks down into four or more pieces to later be reassembled. Other collapsible hoops are simply twisted down, and folded in half for easy storage.
Other types of hoops are also used by hoopers, including fire hoops and LED or glow hoops.
History
Ancient
The earliest known incidence of hooping was in ancient
Egypt
Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
as early as 1000 BC, where children used large hoops made of
grape vine
''Vitis'' (grapevine) is a genus of 81 accepted species of vining plants in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The genus consists of species predominantly from the Northern Hemisphere. It is economically important as the source of grapes, bot ...
s, which they rolled along the ground propelled by sticks, or swung around their waists a la the modern hoop. In other parts of the ancient world, hoops were made of stiff grasses as opposed to vine.
[Richard P. Knerr and Arthur K. Melin.]
Fascinating facts about the invention of the Hula Hoop
" ''The Great Idea Finder.'' November 22, 2006. Retrieved on December 23, 2007.
Old world
In the 14th century, recreational hooping swept across
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. The records of doctors at the time attribute numerous dislocated backs and heart attacks to "hooping." The word "hula" became associated with the toy in the early 19th century when British sailors visited the
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands () are an archipelago of eight major volcanic islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the Pacific Ocean, North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the Hawaii (island), island of Hawaii in the south to nort ...
and noted the similarity between "hooping" and traditional
hula dancing.
Independently,
Native Americans developed their own traditions surrounding the Hoop Dance.
Native American Hoop Dance
Native American Hoop Dance is one of the individual dances, and it is performed as a show dance in many tribe (Native American), tribes. It features a solo dancer dancing with a dozen or more circle, hoops and using them to form a variety of both ...
focuses on very rapid moves, and the construction of hoop formations around and about the body. Up to 30 hoops may be used in storytelling rituals to create formations such as the butterfly, the eagle, the snake, and the coyote. Native American hoops are typically of very small diameter (1 to 2.5 feet).
The late 1800s and early 1900s saw the introduction of hoop dancing into the world of physical fitness; a Swedish instructor began to incorporate the hoop into his special training system for dancers and musicians.
Twentieth century
In 1957, an Australian company began manufacturing
bamboo
Bamboos are a diverse group of mostly evergreen perennial plant, perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily (biology), subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family, in th ...
hoops for sale in retail stores. This caught the attention of a new
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
-based toy company,
Wham-O, founded by
Richard P. Knerr and
Arthur K. Melin. In 1958, Knerr and Melin traveled to playgrounds across Southern California, where they gave away free hula hoops and performed hooping demonstrations for the children. They sold over 25 million hula hoops in a four-month period.
Today

The annual
Burning Man
Burning Man is a week-long large-scale desert event focused on "community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance" held annually in the Western United States. The event's name comes from its ceremony on the penultimate night of the event: the ...
festival has also served as a melting pot and fertile ground for hoopers from all around the world to share their tricks, techniques, and energy. Ubiquitous grassroots "hoop jams" and "convergences" such as HoopCamp (Watsonville, CA), Hoop Convergence (Efland, NC), SWOOP (Bristol, UK), and Return to Roots Hoop Gathering (Medford, NJ) happen throughout the world almost every month of the year. These meet-ups, as well as various online communities, are the foundations of the hooping
subculture
A subculture is a group of people within a culture, cultural society that differentiates itself from the values of the conservative, standard or dominant culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures ...
.
An international celebration called World Hoop Day began in 2007 and has continued every year since. Hoopers perform in many cities and countries to raise money for charity and donate hoops to people who cannot afford them.
Native American Hoop Dance
Native American Hoop Dance is one of the individual dances, and it is performed as a show dance in many tribe (Native American), tribes. It features a solo dancer dancing with a dozen or more circle, hoops and using them to form a variety of both ...
has been recognized as a cultural heritage. The most popular Native Hoop Dance competition occurs annually at the
Heard Museum
The Heard Museum is a private, not-for-profit museum in Phoenix, Arizona, United States, dedicated to the advancement of American Indian art. It presents the stories of American Indian people from a first-person perspective, as well as exhibitio ...
in
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...
. Recent competitions have drawn as many as 10,000 spectators.
Hooping has recently become more popular as an activity in dance studios, as a circus skill, and through its inclusion in music videos and films.
Hoop busker
A hoop busker is a
street performer who performs artistic movement with one or more hoops in the dance style of hooping.
Performances given by a hoop busker will usually combine hooping with other disciplines including
acrobatics
Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance (ability), balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sports, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most ...
,
contortion,
juggling
Juggling is a physical skill, performed by a juggler, involving the manipulation of objects for recreation, entertainment, art or sport. The most recognizable form of juggling is toss juggling. Juggling can be the manipulation of one object o ...
,
singing
Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define singi ...
, and playing one or more
musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make Music, musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person ...
s. There are many busker festivals around the world that feature one or more hoop buskers including the
World Buskers Festival held annually in
Christchurch
Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...
,
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
.
Fire hooping
Fire hoop wicks attached to spines that keep the wicks away from the user
A
fire
Fire is the rapid oxidation of a fuel in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction Product (chemistry), products.
Flames, the most visible portion of the fire, are produced in the combustion re ...
hoop consists of a hoop with one to six spokes radiating outward. The spokes typically extend 6–8 inches from the connection points on the hoop, and are capped with a roll of cotton and
Kevlar
Kevlar (para-aramid) is a strong, heat-resistant synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed by Stephanie Kwolek at DuPont in 1965, the high-strength material was first used commercially in the early 1970s as ...
wicking, which can then be lit. This design keeps the fire a fair distance from the hooper's body. Any skill where fire is a component risks injury to the person doing it.
The construction and weight of the fire hoop, combined with the fact that it is on fire, limits the possible moves or tricks than those possible with a standard hoop. Some modern fire hoops have been designed to be much lighter, with smaller diameter tubing and with flexible wick spokes. The use of these hoops has enabled hoopers to perform a greater range of tricks than with standard fire hoops.
LED hooping

LED hooping involves the use of a translucent or transparent hoop which has multiple LEDs inside the tube. LED hoops have internal batteries and are lit with
light-emitting diode
A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor device that emits light when current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy in the form of photons. The color of the light (corre ...
s (LEDs).
These hoops are slightly heavier than standard hoops, although typically lighter than fire hoops .
There are a variety of LED hoops that hoopers use including ones with various color LEDs, ones that are programmable through the use of a microchip and ones that are collapsible.
Programmable hoops can be programmed to create patterns due to the
persistence of vision
Persistence of vision is the optical illusion that occurs when the visual perception of an object does not cease for some time after the Light ray, rays of light proceeding from it have ceased to enter the eye.
The illusion has also been descr ...
effect. The quickly changing the color of the LEDs, and the movement of the hoop can create basic pixel images or geometric patterns. Some models incorporate motion sensors to produce more elaborate visual effects in response to the motion of the hoop and the user, as well as wireless interfaces for control and synchronization.
The standard grip tape is not typically used on LED hoops because it would block the lights. Sanded tubing can provide added friction, as can a thin strip of grip tape along the inside of the hoop.
Fitness
In recent years hooping has become popularized as a fitness regimen alongside
kickboxing
Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid Martial arts, martial art and Boxing (disambiguation), boxing type based on punch (combat), punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, norma ...
,
breakdancing
Breakdancing or breaking, also called b-boying (when performed by men) or b-girling (women), is a style of street dance originated by African Americans and Nuyorican, Puerto Ricans in The Bronx borough of New York City.
Breakdancing consist ...
and
bellydancing. Hoop dance classes can now be found in gyms, and is often combined with
Pilates
Pilates (; ) is a type of mind-body exercise developed in the early 20th century by German physical trainer Joseph Pilates, after whom it was named. Pilates called his method "Contrology". Pilates uses a combination of around 50 repetitive e ...
or yoga disciplines, all of which build strength, balance, and flexibility.
Hooping improves cardiovascular health and burns calories, since it is a type of
aerobic exercise
Aerobic exercise, also known as cardio, is physical exercise of low to high intensity that depends primarily on the aerobic energy-generating process. "Aerobic" is defined as "relating to, involving, or requiring oxygen", and refers to the use of ...
. A study by the American Council on Exercise found that a thirty-minute hooping workout burns around 200 calories.
["Effective Hooping - Workout or Child's Play?"](_blank)
By Jordan Holthusen, M.S., John Porcari, Ph.D., Carl Foster, Ph.D., and Scott Doberstein, M.S., with Mark Anders. American Council on Exercise. Alternative link
/ref> A 2015 study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research found that during a six-week trial with weighted hoops, participants lost an average of 1.3 inches (3.3 centimeters) from their waistline and 0.5 inch (1.27 centimeters) from their hips. Hooping works many muscles in the body and has the potential to build core muscle strength while improving flexibility and balance.
World records
Duration
The longest continuous hula hooping record was held for a decade by Aaron Hibbs from Columbus, Ohio
Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...
who kept a hoop spinning for 74 hours and 54 minutes from October 22–25, 2009. In November 2019, Jenny Doan broke that record by hula-hooping for 100 hours at the District Brew Yards in Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, following the Guinness World Record protocol.
Simultaneous twirling
The record for most hula hoops twirled at the same time is 200, by Marawa Ibrahim set on November 25, 2015.
Simultaneous dancing
On February 19, 2013, 4,483 people swung hula hoops to dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded dance musi ...
for seven minutes. They did this without interruption at Thammasat University
Thammasat University (TU; ; , ) is a public university, public research university in Thailand with campuses in the Tha Phra Chan area of Bangkok, Rangsit, Pattaya and Lampang Province. , Thammasat University has over 39,000 students enrolled in ...
stadium in Thailand
Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...
, setting a world record for the most people dancing with hula hoops simultaneously in one place.
Other records
The largest hoop successfully twirled was in diameter, by Ashrita Furman
Ashrita Furman (born Keith Furman, September 16, 1954) is a ''Guinness World Records'' record-breaker. As of 2017, Furman has set more than 600 official Guinness Records and currently holds over 200 records, thus holding the Guinness world record ...
of the United States in September, 2010.
In 2000, Roman Schedler spun a 53-pound tractor tyre for 71 seconds at the 5th Saxonia Record Festival in Bregenz
Bregenz (; ) is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost states of Austria, state of Austria. The city lies on the east and southeast shores of Lake Constance, the third-largest freshwater lake in Central Europe, between Switzerland in the wes ...
, Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
.
In April 2010, 70 hoopers on Team Hooprama hula hooped the Music City Half-Marathon () to raise awareness and funds for Hooping for Hope.
In March 2013, the largest hula hoop workout (407 participants) was achieved at Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility in Scotland by North Lanarkshire Leisure and Powerhoop Fitness.
See also
* Hoop rolling
Hoop or Hoops may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Hoops'' (TV series), an American animated series
Characters
Hoops, a pink cat from Hallmark Media's Hoops & Yoyo Music
* Hoops (band), an American indie pop ...
*'' The Hooping Life''
* Native American Hoop Dance
Native American Hoop Dance is one of the individual dances, and it is performed as a show dance in many tribe (Native American), tribes. It features a solo dancer dancing with a dozen or more circle, hoops and using them to form a variety of both ...
References
External links
Hooping
on the Open Directory Project
DMOZ or DMoz (stylized dmoz in its logo; from ''directory.mozilla.org'', an earlier domain name) was a multilingual open-content directory of World Wide Web links. The site and community who maintained it were also known as the Open Directory P ...
Hooping.org
online hub for the worldwide hooping community since 2003
infinitecircles.org
An online hooping community
{{Authority control
Street performance
Novelty and fad dances
Twirling
Sports culture
Youth culture
Musical subcultures
Native American dances