carriej started this discussion ·
So, I know there are a lot of posts on SM but one more question. I can get one foot to touch the pole and I can stay there for a second. What next? I mean I think that I'm supposed to get my feet around it like a crucifix. Any further last minute tips for me?
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There could be a bunch of tips depending on how you get that foot to that point. If you can video your progress so far it would help a lot. Not really knowing what you're doing, a few common tips to keep in mind: 1. When you are first doing the SM, curl up bringing your knees in to your chest rather than lifting with extended legs. This brings your center of gravity in closer to the pole so that your lift is easier and you should be able to get both legs onto the pole with less struggle 2. One common error is when people finally get upside down and hook both legs on the opposite side of the pole. Make certain your legs are placed one in front and one in back - sort of like an upside down fireman position for your legs. 3. You will now be facing the pole and if your leg position feels secure you can loosen your hand grip slightly and lengthen your body down the pole into the crucifix position. * make certain to use a crash mat and spotter until you are secure.
carriej ·
I've gotten much further and think this might be the next big move that I get. I can do the lift in a really great V and can wrap both legs (one on front and one on back). So, I think I've almost got it. The problem is I'm not sure how to get a good grip with my legs before my hands start to feel unsecure. The more upside down I get to secure my legs, the less secure my hands feel and then I just quit and roll down cause I'm afraid my hands will slip before my legs are tight. I'm using the cupped grip, which feels the best for me. I probably just need to keep playing with it and it will come but can anyone put into words any extra tips on it?
amy ·
the mistake that i made (which i've seen a lot of people do) is: after my legs get up in the air, and i'm past the halfway point (you know, where you can feel that you've done all the heavy lifting), i would stop engaging my arms and just throw my legs on the pole. to stay secure the entire time, you really need to keep using your arms and shoulders the same way you do when you're lifting your legs off the ground. i dont know if this is the same problem you're having-- but a good way to practice is to get your shouldermount, get your legs up in the air, and you're in the inverted V position, and just HOLD IT. then-- it doesn't matter what you do with your legs, because your upper body is working the entire time to keep you on the pole.
LittleC ·
Amy's suggestion to hang out before hooking is a good one that will build strength. For me, I practiced my shouldermount from the floor first to get comfy with it - once I got my legs to the pole it's like, what now? But from the ground you don't have the height fears to contend with and you can figure out the leg placement. Good luck - that was the hardest point to get to for me! You are almost there, you have the strength - the rest is just gravy. 😉
Hi Carrie. I think that Empyrean's comments were excellent, and I don't have too much to add, but I wanted to chime in on this because I had this very same problem for a long time, and to such a degree, that I eliminated the shoulder mount from my collection of moves entirely for a long period. Once I got to the top of the shoulder mount position I would begin to feel unstable, scared, and not know what to do next. So once the anxiety settled in at the top of the shoulder mount, I would ferociously grab for the pole with my legs in order to avoid the feeling like I was falling. I've recognised a few reasons why this was so. The first one is that I was afraid of the pain that would be caused by rolling over my collar bone to finish the inversion, and I didn't know how to perform this mount without doing that yet. I didn't know that once I had my legs on the pole, I could tilt my hips toward the pole and push away from it with my arms, so that my collar bone wouldn't have to support the weight of my entire body for that moment. The second reason had to do with my grips. Sometimes I would be using momentum to perform this inversion, which meant that once the momentum became inert, I was relying on my hand grip no matter what position I was in, even if it wasn't prepared. In other cases, I relied on my body weight counterbalanced against my palms on the pole, so that once I had come out the upside of the Shoulder Mount there was less weight on my palms and therefore less friction, so my grip did not feel safe anymore. In this situation, I would do the same as before, grab desperately with the legs in a way that was ugly, uncontrolled, and not really even efficient in terms of balance or safety. Additionally, when I would do this, I would put both of my legs on the opposite side of the pole in exactly the way Empyrean wisely cautions us not to do! Last, I really didn't have good ideas about transitions from the shoulder mount. Even though I knew how to use some inverted positions, I didn't know how to get into them from the shoulder mount. If only I had so much nice guidance when I was learning this and other moves... *sigh*. The smart solution in both cases was a stalled hold at the top of the shoulder mount, where my torso would be about 45 degrees of the pole and my legs would form a V parallel the floor. From that stalled point, which is exactly the one you described earlier with the V legs, I found that for myself the best way to finish the inversion is to put my legs on the pole in exactly the way that you and Empyrean describe. Then I can tilt my hips forward/upward some more, without rolling my torso up any further, to secure my leg grip; and then I can push myself off of the pole with my arms and arch my back so that I don't roll over my collar bone. I have also found that shoulder mounting directly into a Tammy (inverted thigh hold) is just as easy and comfortable as using the inverted crucifix; and that for myself, it is easier to get from a Tammy into whatever other position I would like to use than it is to transition out of a crucifix hold. Technically it is also possible to shoulder mount directly into a Gemini, Scorpio, or a Brass Monkey, but these can be very awkward feeling if you're not already comfortable with the regular shoulder mount into inverted crucifix or Tammy. I only shoulder mount to inverted crucifix if I plan to caterpillar right away, otherwise I shoulder mount directly to Tammy because it is easier for me to get into other positions from the Tammy leg position than from the crucifix leg position. Just recently, also, I have begun shoulder mounting with the thumb of my right hand turned upward! This was very hard to get used to, but the coolest thing about this is that now that I'm a little more accustomed to it than before, I can shoulder mount directly into the twisted grip Aysha or straight edge, just by dropping my lower bracket (left hand for me) after I get my legs on the pole! I know it sounds like such a minor modification, but right now I'm really excited about what such a tiny modification has enabled me to do. But mind you, if I don't plan to Aysha right away, I still prefer to shoulder mount with both thumbs down. You could use the figurehead move to experiment with hand grips. Quite honestly I think the figurehead is a beautiful and underused move anyway and I love doing variations and exaggerations of that move. Its a great way to prep for a shoulder mount if you're strong enough to do the mount after holding that position for a few moments.
carriej ·
Steller, you wrote: "In other cases, I relied on my body weight counterbalanced against my palms on the pole, so that once I had come out the upside of the Shoulder Mount there was less weight on my palms and therefore less friction, so my grip did not feel safe anymore. In this situation, I would do the same as before, grab desperately with the legs in a way that was ugly, uncontrolled, and not really even efficient in terms of balance or safety." This is exactly my problem. I've got such a great counterbalance on the way up and then when my legs go for the pole, I can't get them wrapped on without feeling that I'm going to slip with the hands due to less pressure on them. What do you mean "Then I can tilt my hips forward/upward some more, without rolling my torso up any further, to secure my leg grip." Can you describe it for me another way or can you link me to a video? I understand you to say that you don't just keep rolling your torso up and up and up until you're flat on the pole but that instead you are doing something with your hips but I'm not sure I'm following what it is. Are you saying to put my hips closer to or farther from the pole?
blueeyes ·
Hey there, it sounds like you got it - you just need to keep practicing. I found it helpful to do reverse shoulder mounts (get into an inverted crucifix & curl your body up placing your shoulder onto the pole, allowing your shoulder to support your body weight & slowly let yourself down off the pole). Those helped me immensely. Practice holding the V position once you get there. If youre comfortable with an inverted crucifix, then you just have to remember that your legs WILL support you once you get up there. There is definitely a split second where youre grip isnt good, but thats when your legs should be enough on the pole to support you once you let go. It's a toughy, you probably just need to get rid of the fear, i think you can do it 🙂
Hi Carrie, The way I finish a shoulder mount is to basically do a pelvic lift. I pull my hips closer to the pole, so that I can get my legs further on it, without changing the position of the rest of my torso, until my legs are at least partly in place. I agree with what blueeyes said. There is a moment where your legs are just on the pole enough to help hold you, even though they're not totally secure, and this coincides with the moment that the hand grip is not totally secure. There is a fear barrier to get over and it has to do with trusting your pole and your body enough to be willing to take the little risk and show yourself its possible. Use a spotter or some cushions if it helps you feel safer. You'll have this in no time. (Although I still haven't got a forward roll! Any pointers blueeyes?)
carriej ·
I GOT IT! I took a couple of days off, wrote a list of exactly how many attempts of each new move I wanted to try in tonight's practice session, and played some hardcore music and guess what...I GOT THE SHOULDER MOUNT ON MY FIRST TRY. Then later in the practice, I was going to work on a forearm or elbow aysha ten times AND I GOT THE ELBOW GRIP AYSHA! I thought I was still far away from getting the aysha! This had to be the most productive practice session ever. My shoulders and back muscles are killing me (in a good way). Stellar, your post for the SM about tilting your hips to grab the pole with your legs instead of just continuing to lift your torso along with everyone else's post that it's scary but just to trust my legs is what helped me to finally get it. Thank you everyone. With the fine tuning of everything that is required to finally accomplish each move, it's a good thing that we have each other for input, ideas, suggestions and encouragement.
That's great! I'm so glad you got it! And the elbow grip Ayasha too! Wow!
carriej ·
Yeah, I can't believe it myself! I had to wait til my husband got home and show him just to prove to myself that it actually happened.
