questions about different styles...

FridaSiren started this discussion · 6/18/2009

hey everyone! it seems to me that there are two very distinct ways of walking around the pole. it´s the first thing you learn in a class or a dvd. in my first class (and in the couple of instructional dvd´s that i have) i´m told to stand next to the pole, take a small step in and then lean away from the pole. it´s sort of strange in the beginning but once you get into it not hard and you can gain alot of speed and momentum for doing spins. so i´ve just started doing veena´s lessons (which are awsome btw!) and the walking is completely different. completely upright, more relaxed. i´d never noticed this before (i think because i´m so in awe of the tricks that i wasn´t paying close attention to the walking) but now looking at vids see that some people do it one way and some the other. so my questions are: is one way better than the other? is it just a different style (like maybe american vs. european)? does anyone know anyting more about this? big hug to everyone! 🌸 frida 🌸

7 replies

perrylilac · 6/18/2009
I'm brand new at all this so I can't give you a solid answer, but my thinking would be that everyone has a different style of dance. Everyone feels and moves to the music differently. Maybe that's where the different walks come from 🤔 Just thought I'd throw it out there!
SissyBuns · 6/19/2009
I'm still new too but I know that in the classes that I take the instructor says one thing "Walk it out" and each lady seems to do her own thing. We all have our own styles. We were all kind of taught to walk in a slinky seductive way but nobody does it the same. When I'm in "sex" mode I drag my toe and walk slowly with that free hands tracing my body...when I'm in fun flirty mode I bounce more and turn and twist more depending on the music. One thing that is consistent though is that I stand upright always. shoulders back boobies out...Perky! Perky!
Ritalin · 6/19/2009
I think I know what you mean, Frida. The first style you describe sounds like you're leaning out & away from the pole, and sortof hanging on your arm. you're right, it's easy to build up speed and momentum this way. However, when I teach I try to discourage people from walking around the pole this way. You're not in control of your centre of balance if you're leaning out from the pole like that - you're relying on gravity and momentum, and if your hand slips, you'll fall over! 🙂 I also think it may limit your movement and the amount of 'sass' you can put into your walk. I tend to walk around the pole with my shoulders over my hips - just as if I were walking normally. I keep my top hand on the pole, but I'm not taking any weight on that hand, and I could take it off any time I like - run it through my hair, down my body, add a flourish to a dance move, whatever. From here you can do anything you like to inject your own personal style and sass into the way you move - eg. swing your hips, drag your toe sensually, lift your knees up & strut, flick your ankles up behind you cutely... you can play with it and be as sexy or as sassy as you'd like. 🙂 Hope this helps!
FridaSiren · 6/28/2009
for a minute i thought noone had understood what i was talking about! i wasn´t talking about freestyle sexy walking, but actually about 2 very different tecniques of walking around the pole. i was hoping to get more feedback on this like if they have different names or like where did the leaning off the pole thing came from, but oh well. thanks ritalin for your reply, you got what i meant. it is way more difficult to put some sass into the walking if you´re leaning off the the pole. now i understand why i was having so much trouble with that. i´ve never actually fallen but i do lose my balance alot. i think i´m going to mix it up and use the normal walk most of the time so i can do the sexy stuff and use the leaning off tecnique when i relly need some momentum for a spin. big hugs and thanks for the imput ladies! 🌸 frida 🌸
SissyBuns · 6/28/2009
for a minute i thought noone had understood what i was talking about! i wasn´t talking about freestyle sexy walking, but actually about 2 very different tecniques of walking around the pole. i was hoping to get more feedback on this like if they have different names or like where did the leaning off the pole thing came from, but oh well. thanks ritalin for your reply, you got what i meant. it is way more difficult to put some sass into the walking if you´re leaning off the the pole. now i understand why i was having so much trouble with that. i´ve never actually fallen but i do lose my balance alot. i think i´m going to mix it up and use the normal walk most of the time so i can do the sexy stuff and use the leaning off tecnique when i relly need some momentum for a spin. big hugs and thanks for the imput ladies! 🌸 frida 🌸 LOL, sorry I didn't quite get it and couldn't have been more helpful 😉 😀
branquinha · 7/6/2009
Oi Frida, I was also first introduced to walking around the pole in the first way you mentioned: close to the pole, arms extended and sort of hangin from it - and I was also in Europe, so maybe there is a style difference there. Gradually I changed to a 'more stable' shoulders-over hips style. I guess it had more to do with the fact that I started dancing tango and was off the pole for two years, so when I got back to the pole I incorporated some of my tango walking into it and I felt more comfortable at it. A couple of months after starting over I injured my shoulder and now I am gradually getting back to the pole and I tried both walking styles and I think the second actually helps to avoid unecessary strain on arms/shoulders and, to me, seems to allow more focus on my core. Anyway, I'm no expert but this is how I experienced the two styles. Hope all is well. x
Former member · 7/8/2009
i think its a mix of who you learned from and what your style is. i could practice the walk that veena does in her lessons, and it'd be the same walk, but it might look different because we put different aspects of ourselves into the move. i hope im making sense, i might not be lol