EVERY now and then, along comes a new fitness regime, which may, or may not, be a good one to get into. Like skateboard pilates. How good is your balance now, and how well do you ride a skateboard these days anyway? You could safely give this one a miss I think, if you’re experiencing any concerns about bruises or broken bones. I don’t know how long skateboard pilates has been vying for a fitness spot to be honest, because until now I’d never heard of it, but I have recently heard about another called weighted hula hoops. Hula hoops were a craze when I was in primary school and the majority of us could keep them up around our waists without too much gyrating, but how I’d go with one now is anyone’s guess. I haven’t even thought of them in years, let alone used one. Our hula hoops weren’t weighted either. But as a fitness tool, do they fall into the same category as weighted skipping ropes? These were designed to not only make your skipping experience more sensory, possibly the result if you had a skipping glitch and it hit you in the face, but were alleged to aid greater fitness levels being achieved more quickly. But just skipping with a standard rope, a real rope that is, not the way-too-light nylon version, will tone you up just as nicely, I’m sure. So I’m guessing the weighted hula hoop also claims to do whatever it does faster than the standard one. Which now comes back to how well you managed to keep that standard one up around your waist in the first place. If you were one of the minority who just couldn’t, then how do you think you might go with a weighted one? Okay, so it will definitely have some sort of benefit if you consider all that jiggling around to try and keep it up and circling your middle, and then there’s all the bending down and up again as you retrieve it repeatedly from the floor. At least you’re moving. But do you really need fitness-specific items to up your routine? If the item is labelled fitness-specific it will have the price tag to match. After all, anything “fitness” is part of an industry and you will pay for that. On the other hand, you can take up walking. If you’re already doing that and want to increase your activeness, walk a bit further than usual. Or hop up from the couch and do some simple aerobics while watching the telly. Follow up your lounge room routine with some isometrics and you’ll soon be wondering why you even bothered to check out the price of those pilates skateboards, weighted skipping ropes and their cousins, the weighted hula hoops, because hey, you have already lost some kilos and are looking nicely toned. And if your lounge room is your gym, you won’t need to shell out on the pricey active-wear either. Well, you don’t have to anyway even if you’re walking circuits of your local park or jogging around the block. If people want to judge your comfy old trackies, let that be their problem. Doesn’t matter what what you wear. Labels won’t make you fitter. Weighted hula hoops may. Then again, maybe not.
