about betty

Creator of the Dance Hoop & 4 Rhythm Workout  •  4X Guinness Book World Record Holder  •  Zen Hoop Dancer  •

Betty Shurin a.k.a. Betty Hoops is considered to be one of the most sought after teachers and trainers of Hoop Dance. She has been pioneering the larger, heavier hoop as an effective tool for weight loss and mind, body therapy since 1998. Turning Americas’ favorite past time into a fun sport, she continues set the industry standard for safe and effective hoops and programs.

“My passion is to educate and inspire others to feel great in their body and soul. Discovering one’s own potential is empowering. I teach people to teach themselves. Whether through Yoga or Hoop Dance, I focus on techniques that make sense. Dancing has moved me through life’s challenges. It makes me feel sexy, strong and connected to others. To be able to share that with others is exciting.”

The Hoop Dance 101™ program is based in Body Mechanics, Body Energetics, Sport Training, Aerobics, Dance and three forms of Yoga.

Hoop Warriors™ was born in 2001 following Betty’s move to NY, one month after 9/11. This children’s fitness ed. program has been effective in a number of schools throughout the country. The program is adaptable to any curriculum. It is used for creative movement, dance, physical education and release from post traumatic stress.

Betty offers training programs and workshops for schools, personal trainers, group exercise instructors and through corporate fitness and yoga clubs nationally.

Her performances are very unique. Her mission to bring out the child in everyone is contagious. After her show, she comes into the audience to teach others how to hoop. “I love coaching people on how to show off to friends and guests. You can’t imagine the cheers and excitement that come from watching someone learning to hoop in front of a few hundred people at a cocktail party.”
Betty has also created 2 cross sports; Hoop Running and Hoop Snowboarding. She has set the World Record for distance and speed Hoop Running and broken it by over 30 minutes. Featured in the 2008 Guinness Book of World Records, she continues to Hoop Run the same race every year, fundraising for different charities. Her winter sport is Hoop Boarding on all level ski runs.
She was signed with Gaiam, a leading yoga company, to design and produce the “4 Rhythm Hoop Dance Workout” DVD and the Collapsible Dance Hoop. Together they produced what thousands are saying is the best collapsible hoop in America.

Her spiritual approach to Hoop Dance has earned her the nickname “The Zen Hoop Master.” Betty drew upon her years of experience as a yoga teacher, massage therapist and a Reiki practitioner to create a variety of courses. Her belief is that every hoop is a prayer wheel. She uses the hoops’ vortex as a transformational tool for mind and body healing. In July of 2008, during a seminar in Aspen, CO Betty presented His Holiness the Dalai Lama, with her collapsible Dance Hoop. She wrote the Heart Sutra in Sanskrit gold ink around the outside thus turning her hoop into a prayer in which can spin around the waist.

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