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In a Rut
This spring I quit taking lessons at a studio. The prices went up and I had just quit my job to start my own business at home. I’ve finally got through all the red-tape and have my business going (dog grooming) but, as with any new business, things are a bit slow right now. I don’t have the extra money needed to start back up at the studio.
I have a pole at home and I also purchased the SV lessons and love them. However, during all the “starting my business” stress I wasn’t working on my pole stuff at all. Now, almost 6 months later, I’m devastated at my condition. I was getting so strong and now it’s like starting back at square one. A years worth of work is gone.
I know that you have to do the work to see the results. I knew I’d be taking a few steps back. I just didn’t expect this. So now, I have a hard time getting back to pole. I want to. Every time I walk by my pole I do a spin or a quick simple combo. But, I’m finding, without the structure of a class, I’m just not finding the time to really get in a workout. It’s easy if you have class, you make time to be there. But when you are accountable to yourself only, and your pole is at home, you find other things to do (like laundry…yuck).
So after all that, my question is… How do you do it? Do you have a certain time you workout? Do you pick a certain move to work on? Do you just freestyle? Do you workout other than pole? What helps you keep a routine so you don’t find yourself falling into a non-pole rut?
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9 Replies
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I love practicing pole at home- in fact, I would drop everything and work on pole all day if I could (I can’t)!! It took me some time to find my groove. My warm up consists of 2-3 songs worth of dancing with some stretches built in. I get in some warmup pushups, pole pullups, pole rows, and by the second or third song I throw in some spins. I don’t start inverting until I am fully warmed up. At that point I try to have 2 to 3 specific moves that I want to work on. I play music that inspires me and I record myself and playback and study my movement throughout the whole session, trying to continually improve what I’m working on. I share clips on instagram- sharing really helps me! Taking part in pole challenges also helps me.
I try to have a strength/trick-focused day, a dance-focused day, and a review, anything goes sort of day. I have the time carved out and just commit to it.
I hope that helps!:)
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As someone who has worked from home and had to find time to workout for years now, I’d say the biggest help for me is having a scheduled time! For me it HAS to be morning, if I don’t do my pole session or workout in the AM soon after breakfast I just don’t get around to it.
Some thing else to try. Use the 30 day take off as a guideline to structure your workouts. You can simply replace easier, beginner work with more advanced work. Also try using many of the routines here to get your practice started, then write down a short list of moves you want to work on for that session. Follow it with a stretch.
Also, try starting a thread here with some of the girls to help keep you accountable! Really the biggest issue for me is getting my practice in during the morning…and I am NOT a morning person. lol
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Not a morning person either. I usually get up when my 4 yo son gets up about 7:30. Then it’s all about getting him breakfast and going for the day. I’d have to get up at like 6:00 to get a workout in before he gets up. Which would be doable if I could just force my butt into bed as soon as he goes to bed at 9:00. Trouble is that is when I get the house cleaned up and whatnot.
I saw that there was a “30 day take off” thread going. I haven’t been around on SV as much lately due to my business…blah…blah.
As much as I hate morning, I think that is the only way I’d be able to gain some consistency. Once the family is up the day very rarely goes as planned…
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I don’t clean or do ANYTHING until after I practice. If I start with cleaning or work it doesn’t happen. 🙂
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I’ve spent most of my time doing home-pole, and I’ve had a few setbacks, where I’ve made progress and then been off the pole for several months. I know that I have difficulties sticking with stuff like this, but I’m starting to figure out where the difference lies, for me, between doing something in a class (and being able to have that time), and doing something on your own.
So, first of all, come up with a plan for your workouts- I call it my “I don’t feel like dancing” plan. Because, when you go to class, they always have something for you to work on! It’s not always freestyle. It’s not always even dancing. My experience was mainly dealing with one move at a time while in class, so I’ve tried to work things that way. I alternate core workouts and arm workouts, and I have a couple that I’ve already picked out that are either light, or harder, depending on how motivated to kick my own rear I am that day.
Next, setting time aside. I’m pretty bad for this (in fact, I need to get on the pole today and just procrastinated, playing video games and eating junk food all day!) and sometimes I just “forget,” or I push my dancing aside for other things- hanging out with friends, work, homework, or just lazing around. HOWEVER, I have found that having the time set aside each day, even if that time “moves around” and is at 1pm some days, and 7pm other days, you still have it. You know that you do. It’s important to you!
The last one, which is related to setting time aside, is this: Remind yourself that you WANT to, and that you promised! Having a class is something most people seem to “respect” because it’s time already set aside, that you PAID for, and is fixed due to someone else’s schedule, so they normally won’t interfere with it, and we don’t feel guilty about saying that the time is already booked. However, when it’s our OWN time, that we haven’t paid for and technically have a say in whether we move it around, we feel more guilty, and sometimes there is more pressure to put it aside for other people, other things. However, you WANT to do it and you PROMISED!! You must make your dancing time a priority, or else you just won’t get there.Having a loss of strength is very frustrating, and having gone through that a couple of times, I really do understand how disheartening it can be. However, that strength will return, sometimes much faster than when you originally built it, and you still have the knowledge, which will help you out a lot.
And, as Veena hinted at, I have one dirty trick I use for running (because I actually find running to sometimes be torture and I don’t want to do it, especially in the morning, which is the best time for me to do it), and it’s that I’m not allowed to shower till I’ve had my run! I can barely function in the day without my shower- my hair is a mess, I feel dirty, half-asleep, and gross. My morning shower is a huge part of my routine, so barring that from myself till I go for a run is a pretty big motivator. But, like I said, it’s a dirty trick.
Good luck!
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Something that helps me motivation wise is a keep a list on a wall or somewhere highly visible. Well I guess it’s a couple mini lists. Each category is in a different color: goal spin tricks, goal static tricks, tricks to clean up, old tricks. Once I cycle through all or most of my goal tricks, I make a new list to post up. It kind of gives me a base of stuff to pull from, otherwise I get real scattered. Plus…it’s so satisfying every time you get to put a new list up! 😳 I also have a little calendar and whenever I learn a new trick I put it on the calendar so then when I’m feeling frustrated I can flip back and see progress I’ve made, and that there’s been good times and bad times but that it all cycles through eventually ☺ï¸
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Structure wise the best thing for me/saw the most progress was cycling through veenas conditioning programs 3 days a week (there’s three of them!) to warm up, as well as one song of warm up dance, then work on whatever tricks are in the list (the new ones if I’m feeling good, old ones if I’m tired or blah), then end with stretching
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something ive started doing recently and found really helps keep me motivated is keeping a pole diary after every session; listing all the things ive tried and how they went, with different wee stars and colour-coding for trying things for the very first time / first time i felt i performed a move WELL / tips for the next time, what grip aids i needed etc. Doing it straight after the session is best while its all fresh in your head, or do it while watching your video back if you film =) So then next session i have a flick through the last few pages to pick up where i left off, and its an ready reminder of my progress for an instant pick-me-up on bad pole days ! i also have a page at the back where i jot down new moves/combos i have seen and want to try, so i have some instant inspiration to hand =)
i also keep a general ‘fitness calendar’ where i jot down what ive done each day be it pole, lunchtime gym class, some home workout, a run, taking the stairs in work etc – you feel really proud looking back over it when you have a nice full calendar, and u soon notice if the blank days start piling up !! =p -
Ohhh I like the combo page! We have very similar pole habits!
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