Will a weighted hula hoop help you step up your fitness game?

For a lot of people, the humble hula hoop is nothing more than a beloved childhood toy. But if you’re on TikTok, you know that hula hoops are once again a hot commodity—heavy hula hoops, that is. Users claim that regularly using a weighted hula hoop is a great total body workout and can help strengthen core muscles, burn calories, and trim body fat.

Are the weighted hula hoop claims legit, or is this variation of hula hooping nothing more than a 1960s-style fad? We did the research to find out if they, ahem, hold their weight.

What is a weighted hula hoop?

Weighted hula hoops are hula hoops meant for exercising. They look like traditional hula hoops but are filled with water or sand to give them heft. You use them like regular hula hoops, too, but the fact that they are heavier is said to engage your core even more.

You'll also come across “smart” weighted hula hoops. Despite their name, they aren't smart in the sense that they are connected to other pieces of technology like AI-powered workout gear. Instead, they’re made of interlocking plastic pieces that you can adjust to your waist size, and rather than being filled with anything, they have a small weight attached with a cord that swings around the hoop as you move. The makers of this type of hoop (and some users) say the design is more comfortable, especially for beginner hoopers who may have trouble keeping a regular hoop up around their waist and hips.

What are the benefits of using a weighted hula hoop?

One of the best things about hula hooping is that you may enjoy it more than other forms of exercise. And if it gets you up and moving because you like it, that’s a worthwhile workout. Hula hooping is a great option for people who want a low-impact cardio alternative to running or jumping rope. A small study from the American Council on Exercise (ACE) found that participants’ average heart rate during a half-hour hula hoop workout was 151 beats per minute, on par with bootcamp classes, step aerobics, and cardio kickboxing but more accessible to people at any fitness level.

Using a weighted hula hoop adds resistance to the motion of circling your hips, which can, indeed, strengthen your core. “By adding a weighted hula hoop to the mix, you're making the hoop harder to maintain in place and encircling your midsection,” says ACE-certified personal trainer Tami Smith. “This extra resistance forces your muscles to work harder to perform the movement, thereby amplifying the workout and its effectiveness.”

Hula hooping may also help develop your balance and stability. With your hips and core circling but your feet staying planted, your body works to stabilize itself. “Your legs are going to be working to stabilize you throughout the whole movement,” Smith says.

Which weighted hula hoops are good?

A top-rated hoop for a surefire favorite

One popular option is the Gate Fitness weighted hula hoop. At its full diameter of 39 inches it weighs just over 3 pounds, but beginners can form their hoop with one fewer segment to make it smaller at 34 inches and lighter at 2.7 pounds.

This hoop has a 4.2-star rating with over 2,000 reviews. The biggest fans rave about the hoop’s durability and the great workout it offers.

$35 at Amazon

A standard hoop that comes in different weights

The HealthyModelLife weighted hula hoop comes in three weights, 2 pounds, 3 pounds, and 4 pounds, so you can decide for yourself how challenging you want your hoop workout to be.

It has an average 4.2-star rating and almost 1,300 reviews. Reviewers love how easy it is to put together and how comfortable it is to use, thanks to its smooth, foam-coated design.

$22 to $26 at Amazon

A "smart" hula hoop for greater comfort and control

The Infinity Hoop gained popularity on TikTok with rave reviews on its channel on the social media platform. It comes in a regular and a plus size, which means it will fit anyone with a 20-inch to 52-inch waist, and retails for $100.

$100 at Infinity Hoop

If you don’t want to spend influencer money, you’ll find plenty of dupes on Amazon. One well reviewed one is the Opulexx Smart Weighted Fit Hoop, which fits waists from 25 inches to 48 inches for a quarter the cost. It has an average of 4.3 stars from 1,800 reviewers who praise how easy it is to use.$24 at Amazon

What hula hooping claims aren’t true?

Though hula hooping is generally considered a fun and effective aerobic exercise, it won’t necessarily give you a so-called “snatched” waist, as many TikTokers claim. “Spot training,” or the idea that training one part of your body can reduce fat in that targeted area, is a myth.

Hula hooping is also unlikely to help you develop serious strength. “What a weighted hula hoop cannot do is replace the need for traditional strength training equipment,” Smith says. “Even a ‘heavy’ hula hoop is still likely to be less than 10 pounds and if you're trying to build any kind of appreciable muscle, the hula hoop isn't going to get that done for you. I like to recommend weighted hula hoops to my clients as a fun challenge to their routine, but I never suggest that it's going to be any kind of fitness game-changer.”

In other words, the extent to how much hula hoops actually work as a total body workout may be exaggerated on social media. (Shocker.)

How do you use a weighted hula hoop?

To find the right-sized standard hula hoop, hold it vertically while resting one side on the floor. The top of the hoop should come up somewhere between your belly button and mid-chest. Wider-diameter hoops allow you to move more slowly, which is often easier for beginners. As you progress, you can advance to a smaller hoop, which will require you to move more quickly to keep it between your waist and hips. As for "smart" hoops, you'll just need to measure your waist to ensure you'll get one with enough links to fit comfortably without pinching or sliding up or down on your body as you use it.

As with any new exercise, take it slow to avoid straining yourself. Start with five minutes and take breaks as you need them, and work your way up to 10, 15, or 20. One of the great things about hula hooping is that it doesn’t take much space to do it, and you can hoop almost anywhere—even in front of the TV, for anyone who likes to get some movement in as they catch up on their shows.

If you loved hula hooping as a kid, then you’re probably familiar with the movement. But if you never quite got the hang of it, try focusing on using your core strength to move your hips. It’s not really a true hip circle, but more of a front-to-back or side-to-side motion that keeps the hoop moving. And, of course, you can also watch some hula-hooping videos for inspiration.

Are there any risks of hula hooping?

Though rare, bruising can occur from overuse. Many weighted hula hoops are padded to prevent this, but you still have to be careful not to overdo it. Most brands recommend you hoop for no more than 20 minutes daily, and experts recommend adding hula hooping into a pre-existing workout routine, not using it as your sole form of exercise. “If someone picks something too heavy for their body or their capabilities, there’s always a risk, when adding any kind of resistance, of straining a muscle because it’s a little bit too much,” Smith says.

Anyone with a core, hip, or pelvis injury may want to steer clear of hula hooping, says Smith. She specifies the movement might be tough for elderly exercisers or newly postpartum moms.

All in all, using a weighted hula hoop is a fun, low-impact, and low-risk way to exercise. It probably shouldn’t become your only form of exercise, but it's a great way to get your blood pumping and have fun while doing it.