home/self taught
race911 started this discussion ·
who here is home /self taught? what are some of the best things you have learned along the way?
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race911 started this discussion ·
who here is home /self taught? what are some of the best things you have learned along the way?
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I'm self taught, but not through choice. I'd love to get to a class at least once in a while, I imagine it would be hugely beneficial! I'm always concerened I'm not using proper technique and I don't have anyone around to correct me.
Jule ·
I'm self thaught cause I didn't liked the studio in my hometown. I think my best tricks at the moment are the Batwing, Flag Invert and Marion Amber and I'm close to nailing the TG-Lift, too.
tacha666 ·
I'm also mainly selftaught. I don't like the studio here. So my friend and I are teaching each other and sometimes attend a workshop. Right now I'm working on caterpillar climb, latest moves mastered are gemini-scorpio-switch, teddy, yogini and butterfly.
tacha666 ·
Forgot to mention the shoulder mount :-)
Mostly self taught with the exception of stopping in studios and weekly play time at a local studio. Best things I have learned along the way is to not rush things as that leads to injury, do not be so hard on yourself and ruts/plateaus happen.
race911 ·
im self taught with the exception of an experienced poler i jam with o weekends during the summer. so far ive learned taking your time is your friend. the bummer is no one around to correct bad technique.
Kobajo84 ·
I started poling 5 years ago- studios were unheard of in my area. About a month of self learning, I discovered studio veena. I joined the site around the time it was first born. 😀 This site & community has come a LONG way since then. Some things I've learned from my own experience of self learning is ALWAYS incorporate a warm up & cool down session-no exceptions! Recording yourself and immediately reviewing your footage can be great ways to teach yourself about proper form. It's great to have a mirror but because of safety reasons you can't always watch your reflection. Do your research- my research from back in the day included youtube videos: dissecting every movement of a dancer's form, posture, hand placement, foot placement, body direction, aerial alignment, etc. thos was very time consuming but making sure you take your time in learning and execution is so important. Learn to utilize stop, pause, & rewind options of video playback over and over again so you can take notes and break down movements piece by piece working on the ground then moving slowly up the pole. Don't be afraid to ask questions and post a video of yourself performing a move when you hit a roadblock. I've been very fortunate to have tips from some of the best known pole artists/instructors from around the world in Pole Chat Friday through web cam conferencing. These sessions have helped me progress in moves that once were far fetched dreams of mine. Also- educate yourself about proper shoulder positioning! I see so many women on the pole with hunchy shoulders and not engaging their proper muscles, it makes me cringe as when you don't have proper shoulder positioning you're setting yourself up for injury which can inevitably become a chronic injury you will spend years struggling with that results in pain and range of motion restrictions. Hope some of these tips help.
mizzli ·
I attend classes but find that the stuff that we do has hit a 'glass ceiling' so I've started to self teach some of the moves I want to learn. I miss having the instructor there for encouragement and support for when I try those moves! I've recently got my phoenix spin, SG lift, knee hold and currently working on batwing and remi sit!
I went to a studio for about five months, or until, as hml888 put it, I "hit a glass ceiling." After that I bought a pole, installed in my living room, and my self-teaching journey began. Along the way, I've learned a lot of great stuff: SG ayesha, CG ayesha, flag lift, rubber ayesha, pencil/iguana planche, sm hops, sm to seat, TG handspring, SG cartwheel, batwing, remi bridge, machine gun split, cheba split, and on and on. Few of those moves is perfect, however. I continue to practice and improve on them. I also agree very much with what Kobajo said about recording yourself. I record and rewatch all my practices and I find it helps a great deal with form. Also, if you're an intermediate-advanced poler poling at home alone, you might want to invest in a crash mat, because accidents DO happen.
Self taught...closest studio for me is 3 hours away......
I'm mostly an 'at home' learner, though I don't consider myself 'self taught', except for the fact that I have no one telling me what/what not to do. This is both good and bad! I do like to note the difference, because I have definitely utilized all the resources I can (lessons here, pole workshops, teacher trainings, etc). I have NOT figured stuff out only on my own!
I started at a studio (which I loved) and then moved away. I miss it a lot and try to drop in whenever I'm visiting my old town (which is sadly not often). I tried a couple of studios close to our new house and didn't really like them. It's hard to explain but it just wasn't what I was looking for. I think our community is a great untapped market for a high quality studio... if only one would open. There is a well known studio about 90 minutes from here, which I have attended for workshops. I like it there, but I just can't commit to 3 hours of rush hour driving for regular classes during the week. So I work out at home with Veena's lessons and it works great for me. I also cross train with yoga. I have to say my form has gotten much better since using Veena's lessons. She is an amazing teacher. I also saw great improvements once I started to take videos of myself. My old studio was a ton of fun but didn't focus very hard on refinement of technique. Being able to see myself and say "hey, that doesn't look like it should" was a big bonus of home poling. I also travel occasionally for business and I like to take pole classes wherever I go. San Francisco is one of my frequent destinations, and there is great pole there.
FeeDen ·
I am self taught, no studios around here. I started poling nearly three years ago with a KT Coates dvd, I accept it takes me awhile to get some tricks, but I look at how far I've come and I'm happy:)
I am also self-driven, as there are no studios around here anymore... and when there were, I didn't have the money to go to them! The main things I've learned is to stick to it, and pace yourself. I tend to throw myself in really hard, and then burn out. It sucks, because one of my 'burnouts' turned into an 8 month hiatus. Not happy! But these days I'm doing my best to stick with it, and keep dancing, no matter how badly I feel, or even if it's been a week. Just keep going.
I'm mostly a home taught poler. Veena's lesson ahve been great for me :) I did attend a studio for a while but found that learning at home was the best option for me. Many of the ladies here have already shared great advice. I find that you have to find a way to push yourself since you wont be getting that from an instructor anymore. Create a poling schedule or set out some goals for what you want to work on in your sessions. Add in some strength trainign or flexibility trianing moves or routines too. Join the friday chats, pole jams or schedule skype pole dates with other polers to help push you.
JenLFG ·
I am self taught :-D except for 2 workshops with Alethea Austin that I attended after poling for 2 years.
I've been poling for 3 years, started off self taught. I've taken a variety of classes and workshops over the years though. The hardest thing about being self taught is that my progress seemed a bit slower, simply because I had to spend the time to figure out the trick. It's much easier to learn with a pair of experienced eyes helping you out, an instructor can spot problems, make adjustments and guide you more quickly. I also agree that filming and watching your practices is very helpful, make notes as you watch too, like "point left toe during hook spin", or "straighten core, exhale on invert lift", etc.. Coolest things I have learned so far? Genie into shoulder mount leg lock, V split on the pole, allegra, twisted grip handspring, no hands cupid. And so many more! I love pole. So much to learn, and so many variations to try!
Self taught
race911 ·
i still havent been to a studio but i did sign up for veenas lessons and i find it so much easier to progress at home with all of the step by step breakdown. i love it! i will say i work much better when i have my friend there to coach me,as my missteps are pointed out more quickly. all in all im enjoying poling from home as i can go at my own pace,and pole when the inspiration strikes :)
You self taughties are allllll so crazy strong! I think one thing about being or doing anything at home is that you have to investigate a move, look at how it's done and try, try, try at home so it forces you to work on it. It looks like you all moved along at even a faster pace than you would have at a studio! Great job on all of your progress! Keep up the hard work🥂 I am going to start to do more @ home. I think it's great.
Self thaught and loving it :D
