Is pole alone enough to lose weight?

Miracub1995 started this discussion · 1/14/2018

Hi so just wondering if I do pole long enough will I actually lose weight, well I probably shouldnt say weight, I couldnt care less about what the scale says but I would like to lose more body fat and gain muscle. But after about a month of poling I see a lot of muscle gains but not much fat loss. Do I have to add another cardio exercise along with pole? Anyone here lost a significant amount of fat doing pole? If so I'm curious how much and how long. :) Thanks

15 replies

Estef Martinez · 1/19/2018
I haven't seen any fat loss (or hardly any) from poling. To lose fat, why don't you try dancing at a fast pace? Maybe some twerk if you're into that, or wanna, or something that really brings your heart beat up. And very importantly, cut down on your calories. You won't lose fat unless you do. I'm starting to see little fat loss because I'm dancing more but not enough to be satisfied because I have such a sweet tooth! Use My fitness pal app to see how many calories you're eating and it should help you. But no, poling alone will not help you lose a lot of fat.
Allison Erin · 1/19/2018
Yeah I second the My Fitness Pal app. It's awesome! I started using it when I started taking poling seriously, because I knew I needed to eat more protein to gain strength. Well, I accidentally calculated my daily calories a little on the low side, and since I was eating so much protein I didn't notice because I felt sated all the time... accidentally lost 5 lbs in the first week!! Then freaked out, ate a lot more and gained them back in the next week cause I didn't want to lose weight, haha. So I guess my tip is eat a lot of protein! No exercise is enough to lose weight--it always depends on what you're eating.
Allison Erin · 1/19/2018
Also, Estef, I feel you on the sweet tooth! I used to be a pastry cook and literally ate dessert all day every day, probably more than real food. It was SOOOOO hard to break that habit!
Veena · 1/19/2018
You wont see much change in fat loss if you just work on tricks. Working through routines, or dancing is what will raise your heart rate and can help. As mentioned, eat well. There's no magic diet that works for everyone and don't waist too much time on fade diets of don't eat this only eat that, don't skip meals or starve yourself. I enjoy sweets and save it for the evening as a reward of making through the day! Otherwise I try and watch my sugar....NO SODA, and most drinks have tons of sugar so don't forget to check that. Sports drinks are mostly just sugar too so good old water is GREAT!
Miracub1995 · 1/20/2018
Thanks for all ur advice. I dont count calories cause for me personally counting calories puts a lot of stress on me and I start to get an eating disorder so I just try to eat healthy and in moderation and that seems to work a lot better for me. But one question to gain strength and muscles don't u have to eat more too? I'll cut calories to lose fat but I don't want to lose my muscles too I need that for pole lol.
Miracub1995 · 1/20/2018
And I have a sweet tooth too, the cravings hit hard especially after dinner in the evenings, and it's hard to give up/cut back sugar so now I'm trying to make sure I always have fruit in the house so in the evenings I just eat a small bowl of fruit.
Veena · 1/20/2018
Multiple studies find that sugar is one of the worst things for us. That doesn't mean you have to go for 0 sugar but it's really helpful to watch that number! In the US there is a lot of sugar put in our packaged foods so be on the lookout for that. Things like Ketchup and bread have added sugars...so dumb! I wouldn't stress about counting calories unless it motivates you, which it sounds like it doesn't. You don't have to eat more to gain muscle, you just need to eat well so your body can recover after workout. Food literally is fuel for us. Protein is needed for muscle growth, but you also need carbs as well. It's about balance. I talk about this in the lessons...and easy rule to follow for eating is: Eat a colorful plate and watch your portion sizes. Move more.
Allison Erin · 1/20/2018
It's great that you know what works for you and what doesn't! And OMG, as a fully-recovered sugar addict I can talk forever about how to stop eating sugar. What you're doing with the fruit is awesome. I had to rid my house of all candy/cookies/etc because I couldn't control myself and always wanted the sweetest thing available. Instead I started eating things like fruit, greek yogurt, small amounts of dark chocolate, bread with peanut butter... and the amazing thing is you really do crave it less as time goes on! After a while even an unsweetened cup of coffee could satisfy my sugar craving (probably because of the memory of coffee being a sweet treat), which sounds crazy but feels awesome, haha. It takes a long time and I regress every time a holiday comes around, but it does get so much easier!!! So keep at it. =)
Miracub1995 · 1/20/2018
Thanks Veena! I will definitely follow your tips. :) And yes Allison I feel you, I'm a soda and sugar addict, in fact I made that my new year resolution to cut back on sugar and soda, the soda has actually been pretty easy now that I see all the benefits water is doing to my dry skin lol! So I tend to only drink soda now once or twice a day and even then its diet now. Sugar is a little harder cause I always crave it but I hope with fruit and eating less of it that it will get easier like you said so thanks for the tips, and I'm glad you were able to quit the sugar addiction, congratz! :)
kristenmarina · 1/20/2018
For me, pole has been enough to tone up. I didn't lose weight because I gained muscle where I lost the fat but I look so much better. I started by going to a studio 2 or 3 times a week and then I practiced at home once I got a pole. And I was very dedicated and put my effort into everything and so I sweat a lot. I definitely made pole cardio and strength by combining dancing/freestyling with training for tricks. I don't know how much weight you want to lose but pole can be what you put into it. If you want to lose weight faster then you might want to combine pole with something else but if there's no time limit then pole will change your body by itself. It took me about a year to see dramatic changes. I also suffer from having a sweet tooth and I see a big change in my fat when I stay away from sweets. So I try my best to limit myself. I don't count calories but I do take notice of how many grams of added sugar I'm consuming each day. The recommended amount is no more than 25 grams so I try to stay around that and man do you hit that fast!
Miracub1995 · 1/23/2018
@kristen congrats on your transformation, I hope to just get toned myself with pole,and maybe lose like 20-25lbs I don't have much to lose. So I try to do pole for an hour at least 3-4 times a week and I sweat a lot too so I just have to be patience and see for myself lol
x falcon 3 0 x · 1/24/2018
I did but when I first started but I was in a perfect storm situation. I worked freelance from home. I ate healthy, which for me meant açaí bowls for breakfast, salads for lunch, and a protein and veg for dinner. I poled 4-5 times a week at a studio and most importantly I slept and napped at my own circadian rhythm. I was in the best shape. Now I slave full time, my sleep schedule is not ideal, but I do eat well for me, which is a modified combo of keto and FODMAP since my husband is lactose intolerant. I moved to another state. I'm older. I pole and crosstrain w/ barre to try to stay fit but the struggle to find that perfect storm again is real and I believe that sleep is the biggest obstacle in my case.
yrngrl · 1/25/2018
As someone who has gained and lost many lbs over the years (currently maintaining 100 lb loss for 6 years) I will say this: exercise is important, but you can out eat any workout. It is so much easier to eat 300 calories than to burn it off, so if weight loss is your goal, look at your diet first. Use pole to strengthen and tone. Use cardio to build endurance. Don't expect workouts to take off the weight, people gain training for marathons all the time, I did!
polegramma · 1/25/2018
yrngrl, thanks for mentioning the balance between diet and exercise! That bit about it being easier to eat 300 calories than to burn it off is so true. Believe me, I've really been there. Just look at a serving of regular potato chips. 15 chips is about 160 calories. So if you use around 70-80 calories per mile walking at a brisk pace (that's my calorie expenditure based on my weight), it would take something like 2 miles or more to burn off what's basically a couple of handfuls of chips. Wow!
allisonwonderland · 1/26/2018
As others have mentioned, you can't outrun a bad diet. If you're interested in losing fat you have to be in a caloric deficit. I was a calorie counting junkie for years and lead to way too much yo-yo dieting. Eventually I just shelled out for a registered dietician that taught me portion control and curtailed my nutrition around my sedintary job but very active personal life. I feel a lot healthier now and way more energy and none of the calorie counting guilt. Portion control is huuuge and making the right decisions on food is even bigger. Personally I have not lost any weight or fat from pole alone (Though my upper body is totally jacked now!) It's all come from being mindful of my diet and my body shape representing my good and bad choices lol.