Gym Touts Hula Hoop-Based Fitness

Some may consider the hula-hoop a child’s toy, but the Hudsucker Posse will tell you otherwise. The rhythmic beat of a dozen drums echoes through Bloomington’s Stone Belt gym. The hula-hooping members of the Hudsucker Posse swing their hips and groove to the music.

“Hooping burns 600 calories an hour and it combines a cardio workout with resistance training. If you use a weighted hoop, it combines a weight workout and resistance and cardio, so it’s a total fitness core workout,” said Paula Chambers, co-founder of the Hudsucker Posse.

“After a day of work, I’m totaling dying to get over here and do hooping. I’ve been here every Sunday since,” added Hudsucker Posse newbie, Pam MacLaughlin.

The hula-hoops used by the Hudsucker Posse aren’t your typical store-bought hula-hoops. They’re homemade out of polyethylene tubing wrapped in multicolored tape for decoration.

For the Hudsucker Posse, hooping is more than just exercise. It’s a passion, said Huducker member Jane Griffin.

“When I hoop, it makes me feel like I’m a dancer and I’m participating in the music and I’m doing something creative and that just makes me feel really good.”