Every mover imagines themselves moving in their mind’s eye. Whether it be hooping, dancing, yoga poses, circus skills, etc. Sometimes I find myself imagining myself doing hoop tricks that I can’t do yet. I went through this a lot when I started learning Lyra as well. My brain could see me doing movements but my body hadn’t caught up yet. I saw myself twirling, contorting, lifting. I would lay in bed and imagine epicness! I would dream about myself doing such epicness. Then I would wake up and actually try said epicness but it wouldn’t happen the way I had imagined it in my head.

In the beginning of almost every hoop class I teach, I ask my students what they want to learn that day. Lots of times, no one says anything. Sometimes people speak up and shout out “Chest hooping!” or “Knee hooping!” Those are two of the most requested. I always break them down and then try to encourage everyone to practice these moves at home.

I remember when I first started learning how to knee hoop, keeping it at the knees was definitely a struggle. Once I got that down, I really wanted to figure out how to move it up from my knees to my waist. I practiced A LOT! It took me nearly one whole year of intense practice before I could move the hoop up from my knees. It was something I had imagined myself doing but my body hadn’t caught up yet. Then one day, it did! My mind’s eye and the reality of my body’s ability had become one. Actually doing something you only imagined pulling off is satisfying beyond words.

So as I teach these challenging moves to my students, and I see them seeing themselves doing it even though their bodies haven’t grasped it yet, I realize the empowering nature of hoop dance. Hoop dance shows you that you can do anything! It might take weeks, months or even years but if you want it enough, it will happen! This can be transfered to anything in your life. That is what’s so cool about hooping. Hooping makes you feel like you have super powers and once you realize that you have super powers, what’s the point in stopping at hooping? Might as well transfer those powers to other aspects of your life. Rock out your job, your relationships, your hobbies, your life. Embrace your super-humanness and make anything you want to happen, happen!

There is definitely a fine balance between manifestation or making something happen and letting things happen on their own. I was having a conversation with Bags and I said something about how I make my life. I create it. Design it how I want it to be. He said that there is something to be said for letting things happen on their own as well. I was taken aback by this concept. It never occurred to me that allowing things to unravel on their own was just as important as manifesting them. Then I started to worry. Am I an over-manifester? Am I forcing things? Ah! In the end I do think he’s right, it’s healthy and natural to allow things to unfold on their own. I think a nice balance between that and conscious life-design is probably the best route. Realizing that we have the power to make our lives look how we want them to is definitely important and unfortunately quite rare. Most people go about their daily lives doing what they think they’re supposed to do but not necessarily what they want to do. I think there is something to be said for going against the grain, sticking it to the man and doing what makes you happy, not what society says is right. Thank you Burning Man. 😉
I have to say that I have tried to embrace empowerment through hoop dance to it’s fullest potential. I have allowed my hoop to take me places I had no idea I would go. Both around the world and deep inside of myself. I have learned, laughed, traveled, loved, cried, overcome and grown tremendously with my dear friend, that plastic circle. I can’t wait to see where my hoop will take me next!

Besides being a gateway into aerial arts (I watched aerialists when I first started hooping and thought – ‘I could NEVER do that!’), it was also my gateway into juggling. Juggling has also been one of the most empowering things I have ever learned how to do. It was the thing my mom would do in the kitchen with fruit. I would try, fail, give up and then believe I couldn’t do. So I grew up with my identity incorporating the idea ‘I don’t know how to juggle.’ Then I started hooping, then I met Bags. Then I learned how to juggle! And now I do it as part of my profession. I mean, from believing you can’t do something to making it your job – that sounds like quite a leap! If you’d like to see me do my thang with some other quite amazing San Diego jugglers, click that link!

Why is juggling so empowering? Probably because I grew up as a girl that was terrible at softball and believed I couldn’t throw. Or that I threw ‘like a girl.’ Probably because juggling, in general, is dominated by men. Probably because now I can juggle 8 hoops with Bags and we also juggle 7 hoops back to back (check out the video above). Now I have the reflexes like a cat ninja, when anything falls – I catch that shiz! It feels good. I have shown my old defeatist mindset who’s boss – I’m the juggling ninja kitty of my dreams!

About Valentina Martin

Valentina Orbit is a second generation belly dancer who has received many accolades including People's Choice Belly Dancer of the Universe. She has travelled the world for the last 8+ years performing her distinctive blend of belly dance with hooping, fire and juggling. She is an event producer, hoop fabricator and troupe leader.