where to start?

Raspberry started this discussion · 3/23/2009

Question for everyone. I just bought a pole from pole aerobics + the DVD ( it's not anything expensive as im a complete newbie) and tried it for the first time. The person in the DVD made it look so simple spinning on the pole. My legs cant even extend straight. I felt so lame, thinking it would be easy..boy it's not! Wondering how does it take for one to do a simple spin and and obtain arm strength..any tips for a person that has no clue? Emily

8 replies

RoxyPink · 3/23/2009
Practice practice practice! That is the best tip I can give. It's definitly not as easy as it looks. I remember when I got my pole last year thinking that I would be able to do all this stuff and boy was I wrong. The more you try a move...the easier it will get. Good luck and PLEASE becareful with that pole!!! If in the future you are looking to become more advanced, save up some money and get a good pole (X-pole, PS). 😀 😀
Lisa · 3/23/2009
Gaining strength and flexibility is such a personal and unique journey that I can't really give you a time frame. When I first started, I had no problems with upper body strength, but that's because I've spent the last decade controlling thousand pound animals (I'm a horse rider 😉 ) However, my flexibility sucked!!! 😳 So slowly, inch by inch, I'm working to gain flexibility, but it'll probably take at least another year before I can ever do the splits. So it totally depends on your physical background as to how long it'll take you to do certain spins and tricks. I would recommend weight training to help you gain strength faster. I'm pretty sure Veena has some videos of that. I do pushups and crunches every day.... 👍
Veena · 3/23/2009
I do have strength building moves you can do with your pole on my online lesson vids! *toots her own horn* LOL. Pole dancing takes a lot of practice and strength. If your sore from the day before then don't work on spins or moves the next day...you want your muscles to recover....but you could work on flexibility by just dancing around to get your heart rate up a bit and then stretching. 🥂 If you have questions the girls here have some great advice and are always ready to support a fellow poler! One more thing PLEASE be careful with that pole.....its not meant to handle much as far as tricks go. I have heard many stories of this pole falling, bending and damaging the ceiling. Be safe...be gentile with that pole. ☀️ ☀️
lily · 3/23/2009
I took me a loooong time to just hold myself up on the pole - definitely do other strength training. I did alot of push-ups in the beginning, and I also practice being inverted by going upside down against a wall and just try to work on feeling comfortable and using my arms to hold my weight. I also do pole workouts without any dancing, where I just practice pulling myself up on each side to work both sides of my body equally. And yep - just keep on trying and trying, you'll get there! 🙂
Trena · 3/23/2009
Ok the ladies have pretty much said anything I would've said. Practice, practice, practice. And do some strength training. Keep at it! 😀 😀
DeaconJungleCatPoles · 3/23/2009
Yeah the girls pretty much said everything I was gonna say. But don't be discouraged. Your results will be really really REALLY fast!! I've only been poling for one week! Today is my one week anniversary, yay!!! 🥂 haha And I've already made vast significant improvements!! 🙂 The very first day I couldn't even pull myself up off the floor! My spaghetti arms are so weak lol and I'm a male! Then the very next day I pulled myself into an invert! Then the day after that I hung upside down in an invert! Then the fourth day I hung myself upside down in an invert with no hands!!! Albeit, it looked like crap 😂 but I did notice my strength slowly increasing day by day. Your progress will be really fast trust me! Your muscles just have to get use to the new routine. But you can only go up from here! So don't be discouraged. Some days are better than others! Some days my arms feel stronger so I work on spins that day. Some days my legs feel stronger so I work on sits and inverts that day. Some days I don't have any strength in my body at all and I just walk around the pole and focus on stretching that day. You will learn to listen to what your body is telling you. But keep at it! You will see progress, trust me! 👍 Happy poling! Jungle Cat 🐱
Raspberry · 3/25/2009
Thanks all. I will be careful and hopefully when i can pull my body up and do an actual spin, then i'll purchase the X-pole for SURE. It is difficult but will keep pushing at it...looks soooo awesome! Emily
Raspberry · 3/25/2009
I do have strength building moves you can do with your pole on my online lesson vids! *toots her own horn* LOL. Pole dancing takes a lot of practice and strength. If your sore from the day before then don't work on spins or moves the next day...you want your muscles to recover....but you could work on flexibility by just dancing around to get your heart rate up a bit and then stretching. 🥂 If you have questions the girls here have some great advice and are always ready to support a fellow poler! One more thing PLEASE be careful with that pole.....its not meant to handle much as far as tricks go. I have heard many stories of this pole falling, bending and damaging the ceiling. Be safe...be gentile with that pole. ☀️ ☀️ Hi Veena...can you link me to your video or the title of the video...i tried looking on your page but couldnt find it. Thanks a whole bunch! E~