Expectations on progress?

AmyLyn started this discussion · 5/16/2012

Hi everyone! I have been taking pole classes occasional over the last 9 months or so and love it! I ordered my pole and expect it to be here Friday, so excited! I was just wondering, and I know it's different for everyone, how long it took everyone to get to inverts and some of the more advanced moves I see posted on this site. I have no dance background unfortunately, so I am clumsy and have to work on my flexibility, but was just wondering what kind of goals others have set and the best way to achieve them. Also, how do you pick you "style", for lack of a better term? I will most likely never perform in public but I know having a blank stare and making faces when you mess up is not attractive... How did you ladies overcome feeling self-conscious? Any advice will be appreciated : )

19 replies

Danielle Tillie · 5/16/2012
Hey AmyLyn! I'm glad you're enjoying pole! I had no gymnastic or dance background either, and my flexibility was next to nothing. I got myself inverted after about 6 months of taking two classes a week. To be honest though, I wasn't inverting with control to start out... not at all. So I probably should've taken a little more time. Luckily, I knew not to flop back down out of an invert and to slide down instead, so I did not hurt myself in my early attempts. My advice in this is to listen to what your instructor says about your strength level and whether you should try inverting or not. Everyone progresses at differing rates so comparing yourself to anyone else is kind of useless. If you are regularly working on gaining the strength to invert, then it will happen! Flexibility, on the other hand, took a lot longer for me than the strength. I wasn't dilligent with stretching at all in my early poling months. It wasn't until I had been poling for a year that I really got into flexibility training. Simple stretches post-pole practice increased my flexibility slightly in the first year, but it was when I dedicated myself to flexibility that I really started seeing results. It's taken over two years for me to get my splits, and I still only get them after I am extremely warm and have done many preparatory stretches. I am still being patient and stretching regularly (though not as often as I would like...). I believe that I will truly "have my splits" some day but these things take time. My "style" changes according to the song that I'm dancing to. I would say I have a pretty lyrical style. I like to flow and be as graceful as possible. Again, not having any dance background or training at all has made this a difficult thing to achieve. But it was what I pictured when I saw myself pole dancing in my head, and I wanted to look like that, so I practiced it! I would suggest first picking out the music you want to dance to. When you listen to it, do you picture pole dance? What would a pole dancer look like dancing to that song? Then put the song on repeat and just dance. Don't think so hard about it, just move in the way the song makes you feel. (This is so much easier to do with a pole at home! Much more comfortable. You'll enjoy having that pole when it shows up for sure!) Try to video record yourself as well. I would still be making all sorts of silly mistakes and quirky movements if I wasn't able to view myself after a practice so I can (gently) critique myself. Be patient, practice regularly, and video record. That's my advice! Happy poling! :)
NinaPoles · 5/16/2012
I had no dance/fitness background before I started doing pole in August last year, and I started off doing 1-2 classes a week for the first four months, then stepped it up to 3-4, and now I'm doing 5-8 classes a week. I got my first invert in February, after seven months, but it's taken me until now to get it effortlessly every time I try it :) Of course everyone learns at a very different pace, so don't feel rushed by how anyone else is doing - take your time until you can do an invert safely!
Jovial · 5/16/2012
Hi, I too had no experience in dance too, not flexible at all. It took me about 4 months to be able to invert, but it was messy and it took me about a year to chopper, I think that's what girls here call it and a further 4 months after that to be able to do a chopper aerially. It took me a longer time than normal as I had no background, not even when I was little. I did my first pole performance at the school I learn about a year and a half after starting, with "style" I'm drawn to rock music. I think the key to dancing especially when starting out is finding the music you feel more comfortable with, that way the song you dance too doesn't feel like a chore, if you like it and are drawn to it you can losen up more. I did find personally that the first year was the hardest for me as I was building strength, so a year after that I started on flexibily as I could tell this was gonna be a longish journey. It took me 6 months to get left split, one year to overspilt it, it took my other leg two years to split, took longer as I have sciatic nerve pain on that side, I'm still working on over splitting that side. After two years of poling I personally have found that most trick where easier to learn as I had strength and flexibilty. I'm at 3 years now and still learning loads and really enjoying the journey. I only recently found this place, I wish I found it sooner:) I think the most important thing is to not give up and take your time and practice! practice! Practice! It can only get easier with practice :) at the moment I'm working in aerial handsprings, it took me 8 months to get one from the ground, probably take me a further 8 months to get it in the air lol oh well c'est la vie :)
glitterhips · 5/16/2012
I am a slow learner and have a body that doesn't belong to your typical pole dancer so I have finally stopped comparing myself to the girls that are 5'9 and 120 lbs. In high school i couldn't run the mile because I was too chubby, I am now a pole dance instructor, performer, and competitor with a third place title, so that is good enough for me even though I can't do an iron x and probably never will! My 'style' is I pick out any song I want to and do whatever routine I want and if people don't like it they don't have to watch, I perform/compete so I can entertain my audience, not even because of the pole! haaa. now you all know why I barely do tricks ;) you will find your own groove though. I have been poling and a member of this site for almost five years now and still can't do an aerial shoulder mount. but i have had the time of my life at pole related events and made some awesome friends along the way!!!
AmyLyn · 5/16/2012
Thanks everyone for the great advice, looks like patience and persistence will be the only way to learn and grow!
AmyLyn · 5/16/2012
Thanks everyone for the great advice, looks like patience and persistence will be the only way to learn and grow!
AmyLyn · 5/16/2012
Thanks everyone for the great advice, looks like patience and persistence will be the only way to learn and grow!
hookedonpole · 5/16/2012
Welcome to this site and pole journey. As others have said, take your time, practice and don't compare. Everyone develops strength for different thing ad different pace. It took me couple of years to manage shoulder mount (which was NEVER on my to-do list) and it's STILL hit and miss depending on my body and brain. Aerial invert is also still a work in progress, although getting better. Taking it slow and letting strength develop is important. I start out at baby steps and don't attempt the full move right away. Also, in the beginning I wanted to attempt as many things as I could or saw, then realized working on what I've already learned to improve and get stronger was more fun and not discouraging. Then other things come a long. There are still things I want to learn, but have plenty to work on now. As for style, I have tried to "dance" and find a style. I'm just too funky at it for me. I pole for fitness, exercise, etc. so if I dance, fine..if not, better LOL I do try to use flow and keep moving, but not as much. I have more fun when I'm just practicing and getting a good workout. By the way, I recently watched some of my earlier videos and realized I still constantly look down towards the floor AND my free arm still hangs limply not doing anything, too funny!!! Flexibility is a big down-fall for me, especially since I don't work on it much. It hinders some of what I would like to learn, but that's me :) Have fun, take your time and you'll be getting things when you least expect it.
JeHanne · 5/16/2012
Hi there! Home pole on the way, how cool is that? You will LOVE your pole. Take your time and enjoy the journey! Focus on some general goals that you want to work towards and sure enough you will get there! Pole is very difficult for most of us while we build strength, flexibility and flow. My style... I love really sexy, sultry style. I appreciate and admire everyone's style. Pole is just the apparatus, how we use it is where our individual personalities shine through. I have much more flexibility than strength, I work on both. I've had teachers say people tend favor being strong or flexible... some are gifted with both. Some of us fight tooth and nail for it. Regardless of where we start we can always grow our skills and improve. Our styles can change too, this is your unique pole experience, personalize and enjoy it. Don't worry about messing up and blank stares or tripping or whatever. Enjoy yourself and even if you do something you wish you hadn't, or it wasn't smooth or what not... keep doing it until you feel better about it and grow confidence. Skills are practiced and refined. I was thrilled when I got my first invert but I rememeber it taking a while. I spend most of my time focusing on flexibility, flow and strenthening. I'm in no rush, I have a lifetime to enjoy this wonderful sport. This is an amazing community of pole lovers, welcome to SV.
Tali Kat · 5/17/2012
Wow I'm impressed at the people who have their first invert in the first few months!! :O I've been poling since the start of this year but unfortunately I've only been having about 2-3 hours a week at most the last few months (even though I own a pole) and I'm nowhere near an invert. However as you shouldn't compare I am proud of my progess so far as I couldn't even do a girlie push up at the start and now I can do about 10 in a row so thats a huge achievement for me :D At the end of June it's going to be uni break for a month and I can't wait to put in a lot more work. I really want to build my upper body strength so I can improve my lifts and move closer towards inverting!!! @ AmyLyn are you keeping a diary/blog/record of your progress? I haven't been but I'm thinking I will start. It'd be interesting to look back at it and see how you've improved :3
Kyrsten · 5/17/2012
I think I got my first invert after 8-10 weeks of class once, sometimes twice a week. A smooth, deadlift invert/chopper took me almost 4 months though. My pole progress went up exponentially when I got my own pole, about 3 months into dancing. I see girls who walk in and can invert on the first try, no problem, and then others who take many months or even years. It all depends on the person. Your style will come to you in time... try not to overthink it :)
Jovial · 5/17/2012
@tali Kat Oops I should have explained better, I'm still getting to know the veena terminology. I only pretty much hooked my leg with momentum.. after 4 months, which I know is really bad. I did a proper invert with straight legs a year after starting. Because of my poor technique initially I threw my back out which took a few months to recover. In a way getting an injury early on was a blessing in disguise as it showed me I had to slow down and learn proper technique, I took this same approach with shoulder mounts. I should also add I only started hand springing a little less than a year ago (after having poled for 2 years) and had to really work on proper technique with TG as I suffer from de quervain's tenosynovitis. Ps I managed to get it from watching Dakota fox's tutorial on YouTube like 10 times, she's very thorough :) Sorry for the side track, I just wanted to add that as theres so many TG threads popping up and to be honest her YouTube clip helped me the most :)
polergirl · 5/17/2012
I first inverted about 8 months after starting to dance--I was at a studio that was very cautious about inversions, which in the end worked out well for me. We did a LOT of conditioning before we were allowed to get those feet above our heads. 🙂 As far as style, I started watching dancers whose style I admired, and tried to break down what it was, specifically, that I liked. Then I tried to emulate--not completely imitate--and bit by bit I developed a style of my own. I blogged about it a while back: http://ginadances.wordpress.com/2011/09/08/developing-your-style/ Sidenote: I recently did a dance that is about as far from "my" style as it gets, and it has been far and away the most well-received dance I've done, across the board. https://www.studioveena.com/videos/view/4fb14475-7268-485b-b0e3-4d380ac37250
Veena · 5/17/2012
Hi there, Don't rush into anything. Work on moves that will focus on building strength first. Add some conditioning and stretching into your pole sessions. NOT ALL MOVES ARE RIGHT FOR EVERYBODY! Listen to your body, its not important to know every trick in the book. If you're looking for some guidance you could try the lessons. I have everything placed in order, allowing for proper progression and strength building. There are "getting started" lessons for each lesson section. This explains how to use the lessons and how often to pole or perform an exercise. it's your pole journey, the best thing you can do is to focus on improving YOU. Try not to worry about what others have done in the same amount of time.
CreativityBySteffie · 5/17/2012
Hi Veena. I know this wasn't written to me, but you said the right thing, I needed to hear that. Been real disappointed at my skills this past week.
dancing in the gray · 5/17/2012
Thanks Veena! I have been really disappointed in myself the past few weeks as well. It's so easy to forget the progress we've made, even though it may not be as quick as everyone else.
Lyme Lyte · 5/17/2012
There will always be people who learn faster and those that learn slower. I started about the same time as Platinum Ani, and if I comapred myslef to her, I would be devistated! Be aware of your own accomplishements and a great way to do that is by taking video. Whether you chose to post them or not doesn't matter, but save to your computer. You will be amazed what a month or two will do when you look back at where you were!
Charley · 5/18/2012
I've been pole dancing for 5 years now...it's been a very long, long journey full of tears and happiness. I watch youtube now and just think to myself...wow! this has grown into something that I might never be able to achieve, the levels of tricks and dance have evolved so quickly and gotten just so advanced! I'm a very slow learner, there are still so many things that I can't do. Without having a dance background or a gymnastics background I personally have felt very hindered by this particularly when I see pro's with much less time on the pole than me. Which brings me to today where I realize that I'll probably never be a world championship level dancer but none the less I have achieved quite a lot. I'm not a contortionist or a ballerina but I can fall into my dance and express myself, I can see my body changing ever so slowly over time, I can see the difference in my confidence levels, so that's what matters. How does pole dancing make you FEEL not what can you DO, what can you BE? :)
ORGANIC ANGEL · 5/18/2012
OMG Charley, I was just thinking about how far you have come a few days ago. I was watching Alethea's USPDF admission and thinking of when I went to the 2010 USPDF show where you competed in! I remember you posting here in SV about it and then watching vids afterwards of your progress! You could do the world championships if you wanted! Alethea, Jessylnn and many others have just even put in for pro USPDF submissions, something I never thought I'd see from either of them! I think of them as World winners of pole. To see them come back into the program again just inspires me! I am so very excited for all of us pole dancers. I was thinking of submitting but have recently gotten stage fright!!! I all of a sudden can't even perform for my husband! After 6 yrs of pole where it has been "fluid" for me, I all of a sudden develop this fear! OH MY, something to work through. I honestly was stronger before I had my baby, but I am submitting some submissions anyway...because you have to START somewhere. None of us could run before we walked and none of us could ride a bike w/o our training wheels ya feel me?! Don't worry about your "progress". The one thing that I learned is that we are our very own WORST critic! I am not going to beat myself up or be my own enemy...hope you realize how much potential you DO have and start building yourself up:)