Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jan Hoff on June 9, 2011 at 8:17am

Jessica, I don't know if this will help our not but what I typically do is make the facility purchase the class hoops (10 to 12) at a discounted rate of $15 or $20.  Very basic, nothing but gaff tape.  That enables me to 1. not haul hoops.  2. provide hooping to people who may not want to outlay the money & 3.  Upsell the people the fun glam hoops to take home to practice. (Double score as I sell to the facility as well as the students)

 

As for warm up & cool down I recommend leaving it in.  Just experiment with fun ways to move pre & post hooping.  Make it light & fun.  I've waltzed with my hoops, done hoop burlesque, gotten in a big circle & done 'the wave' with all the students.  They enjoy it & I think you need it to prevent injury.

 

I think the pricing is fine.

 

Hope that helps,
Jan.

StudentPermalink Reply by Judy Vanhooren on June 9, 2011 at 8:50am

Jessica, I think the pricing is very reasonable.  I also had the fitness centre purchase the hoops for $15 each just cloth tape, no decorative tape, very reasonable.  Then I offered to sell the hoops to the participants if they wanted one for home to practice on for $20.

I also have a warm up and cool down.  Very basic but I feel it is needed as well.  While I am warming them up, I go over a few of the most important tips on how to keep the hoop up and what to do if it starts to fall.  

Sounds like you are doing very well with your class and congratulations on getting a hoop class going at your facility!

StudentPermalink Reply by Swivel Lass on June 9, 2011 at 9:04am

I teach at a rec center, so the hoops are $20 and count as a "materials fee".  The classes are purchased in sets of 6 or 8 weeks, depending on the center's normal class length (just to keep it comparable to other fitness classes they offer), and it comes to about $7 per class. 

For warm ups we do a session of stretching, but I let each person do their own...I'll show a couple good ones, but we are all tight in different places.  For cool down...I don't really do one.  Our classes are more free-form, so we aren't continually hooping in any real way so as to require a cool down...maybe some more stretching.  My classes are more geared towards teaching beginners a reperatoire of tricks so they can develop their own sense of flow.

StudentPermalink Reply by Sassy Hoops on June 9, 2011 at 2:14pm

I agree with Jan, see if you can sell to the facility nice gaffy hoops. All my demo hoops are covered with the camo gaffer tape. This allows me to "find" them at hoop jams when it's time to go home and they are easy to wipe down to keep them clean.

 

As for warm-ups, I switched mine up. We now waist hoop just one song, and then we stretch. I like deep breathing, plies, forward bends, wide stance walk over to one foot, and then bend that knee, "walking" downward dog to stretch the calves, frog squat for hamstrings, modified cat-cow with hands on the thighs, and arm rotations, and a gentle twist.

 

I do a shorter version of this when we cool down. Good luck and happy you for being roped into teaching!

Permalink Reply by Jessica on June 10, 2011 at 2:40pm

Thanks y'all. My class today was much better than my first one on Monday. I was WAY more relaxed and liked the warmup/cooldown that I decided on. I incorporated some slow, easy hooping and stretches with the hoop...elimnating the 'formal' stretching without using the hoop. I taught the ladies meditation breathing to use when the stretch (and hopefully when hooping too)

I got rave reviews after class. They were surprised what a workout it was! YAY! :)

I had several other ladies peep in the door and check us out. That confirms that I do need some 'house hoops' so I can invite them in to try it...and if they have a good time, they can purchase a hoop.

 

I'm so glad I found this board. I have a feeling I'll be a regular on here!

thanks again,

Jessica

Permalink Reply by Wendy Settle on August 18, 2012 at 11:09pm

I'm starting my first Hoop Fit class this week! In preparation, I've made 15 "rental" hoops of various sizes and weights. They are taped but instead of covering the whole hoop, the black tubing shows in between spirals, and I put gaffer on the inside. For $20 people can choose a class rental hoop and take it home for the period of the 8 week class. After 8 weeks if they want to return it, they get their $15 deposit back, so essentially they've rented it for just $5.00. But, if they want a "pretty" hoop, they can buy a hoop from me that is taped thoroughly and beautifully. 

It didn't take me long to tape up so many hoops, and I'm hoping that if the rental hoops aren't as pretty then people will have an incentive to buy a more attractive hoop. 

But I'd say that $30 for hoops plus free classes is an excellent price. The gym where I teach is charging $10 drop in per class, or $70 if someone pays ahead of time for the 8 classes. Gym members, though, can take the class for free. I think that the drop in price for non-members is outrageous, so I'm not sure if I'll be able to fill the class! 

I know what you mean about the warm up and cool down being serious, so I'm interested in ideas here, too.