I would also like to mention that I first showed them this trick very briefly in week 1 (at the very end of class), we worked on it a lot in week 2, and spent some time on it again in weeks 3 and 4.

I would discourage you from having students duck. When we duck, we tend to lean forward and we must be standing straight up for this movement to work. Perhaps bend at the knees and drop but don’t duck.

Here's how I teach it. First I show the student the line across the palm of the hand under the pads below the fingers. (In palm reading, this is called the "heart" line.) This is where the hoop needs to lie. Then we practice placing the back of the hand against the small of the back and just hooping, letting the hoop fall cross this area without trying to lift it up. This exercise is to get the hoopers used to feeling it land in this sweet spot again and again.

Next, I instruct students to imagine that they are holding a small cup of tea in that palm behind their back. I encourage them to imagine how they would offer that cup of tea to someone in front of them without bringing the hand under the arm. Another image I use is, "imagine you are carrying a big tray of pizza and you need to get it above your head to carry across a crowded room -- waitress style".

I remind students that the movement is actually a sweeping, cyclone-like movement where the hooper leads first with the elbow, then the wrist, then the hand. If you try to lead with the hand, the elbow is always playing catch up and balance is lost. Think about leading with the elbow.

I also remind them that the orientation of the hoop is going to change on their palm. In slow motion, I demonstrate how at that crucial top of the cycle, the hoop is actually spinning on top of an open palm without any fingers in it at all.

I have them practice this movement many times with an empty palm before they ever try it with a hoop. Lead with the elbow, then wrist, then hand. Remember, if you try to lead with the hand, which is our natural inclination, you'll find that the elbow cannot catch up and the hoop will hit you in the back of the head.

I also remind them to stand up straight (with knees slightly bent) or they will bop themselves.

Hope this helps. Good luck!


Hope this helps.

Since I find the hoop to be my "dance partner" it seemed natch for me to teach "beam me up" my comparing the entire movement with the movement your entire body makes when somebody turns you on the dance floor and you kind of twirl and duck your head down under your arm. Last night I taught 6 first time hoopers using that analogy!!!

Okay, from an EXTREME newbie who may have just learned that move--

I'm not sure if I'm thinking of the right one. This is the one where the open palm lays flat on the back, then the hand scoops up the hoop and brings it over the head, ultimately xferring it from waist to arm?

I learned this trick in a short, very quick class where I tried to pick up as many tricks and pointers as possible, get them just well enough I knew I could recall them to practice later, and then move on to the next one. Since I don't know many hoopers, burners, spinners, or really anyone in this area, that was really important to me at the time.

I could not have conceptualized this trick as quickly had someone tried to explain it to me as it was in this thread, in fact, I think it would have quickly confused and frustrated the living hell out of me. The way I got it was pure body movement (I WAS told to lead with the elbow, by the way, and it was good advice but my elbow had ideas of its own). Recalling that the movement wasn't supposed to be unnatural (basic hooping, unlike poi, doesnt really require muscles to be all that flexible, most movement is REAL natural to what even an out of shape body would want to do anyway) I stood very still and straight, placed my hand properly, grabbed the hoop, and went through it slowly. I found the exact place where I was twisting my arm too much or bring it around too far and trying to decapitate myself with the hoop. I did this motion over and over until I was sure I had it locked in body memory, then I spun. Every time I found myself trying to decapitate myself again, I stopped spinning and did it standing still, reminding my body of the proper movement. I found that doing it this way I had the basics of the trick in very little time at all. After that its all practice.

The biggest problem that I had was as body and hoop spun, when I brought my arm around it naturally wanted to whip that hopp around, but did so at a slightly accelerated speed, and I'd get all twisted up. I also wanted to duck--ducking =bad juju. A squat is okay but really unecessary, but ducking AND spinning makes for body forms of a toad. Taking away the movement let my arm move naturally, and after that it was really easy to learn, and to incorperate with the movement.

Again, I might be thinking of a more basic version of the move, or the wrong move. I could SHOW you some of this stuff, but explain or name it? Yeah right.