AllysonKendal
Forum Replies Created
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I’d love to see the examples you found just to get an idea of what you’re looking for
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I super love your enthusiasm for pole… but some of us pole dancers get reallllllly touchy about people using cheap poles.
I know it might sound or look elitist.
But here is the reasoning behind it…. if the pole breaks, or falls, and something bad happens the narrative ends up “girl paralyzed while pole dancing” and it makes us all look bad, and sends ripples through our community. We all strive to keep our sport safe and keep its reputation as good as possible. There are lots of blogs and articles written on the matter.
It’s not like “well I bought a knockoff dress” its a matter of safety. If you pole is sprayed to look like metal I’m pretty concerned about what its actually made of! Even cheaper/fake metal poles have pieces internally that are plastic, or the bearings may not be rated to support your weight.
I felt the same way as you do about spending big bucks on my first pole… so what I did was I educated myself on what a real Xpole looked like (there are so many fakes out there) and I took to craigslist. My first pole was an Xpole Sport 45mm Chrome pole… and I got it for $110, but occasionally I see them come up for less.
Again, there are plenty of fakes on CL… usually you can ask the right questions and tell from the pic. Be wary of someone selling them without actual pictures of the pole. If you see it set up in their house, or a pic of it in the bag on their floor thats a better sign then someone who just took the stock photo off Xpoles website. Look at the Dome, look at the rubber on the base, and look at the Xjoints. Those will give you hints to the authenticity.
I don’t see as many fake Lil Mynx poles, and those show up on CL all the time. Usually at a great rate.
Thats where I would look! Yup I just looked in my area and saw one Lil Mynx for $74 and one for $50!
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So my “maintenance” is really just checking the x-joints.
I have had my Xpole shift when it was too loose… but thats all it did was shift… thats why the dome is so great. I mean no one wants their pole to shift cause thats scary… but it was never a huge shift.
Not tooooo long ago I ended up loosening it actually because its hot and I think things expanded and it was spinning so crappily.
So I loosed it.. then tropicalvertical posted the thing about her pole moving and I did get a little paranoid because loosening it never seems like a good idea.. but I gave it a big shake and everything seemed stable and it’s been fine thus far.
Not sure if any of that helped or made sense. 🙂
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I think its easier to rig a single point in low places 🙂
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I’m so sorry to hear what you’re going through. 🙁
What category are you competing in USPDF? I’ll be there as a spectator but they sold the tickets separately… So I only bought the amateur/pro qualifier tickets.
My friend who is training for it… She has also been through so many injuries and ups and downs so I know how frustrating it can be, because I’ve seen it first hand.
I think you’re right… Just venting and expressing your frustrations here can be helpful. I wish you the best of luck and hopefully I get to see your performance 💕
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I’ve also avoided it for a long time for fear of injuring myself. Mainly I was worried more about my wrists than my shoulders. My shoulders are/were tight not hypermobile, therefore all the twisting is/was done in my wrist.
Now, my shoulders are more flexible and I use it limitedly.
The reason I feel ok about it is… because I can split grip ayesha and split grip handspring.
I think being strong enough to do those things, and my body understand the engagement and balance, makes me feel like I can use twisted grip when I need to for a combo.
Having said that… I still find it more difficult to handspring in TG! Maybe just because I’m not used to it?! I like having the pull of my upper bicep in SG and I find it pretty stable! But I also do not not swing the legs when I handspring… I do more of a little “pop” with my chest facing the ceiling… (https://www.studioveena.com/videos/view/563e7d6f-eaf4-4be5-a5e4-1253ac110089 thats a pretty old video from very low, but you get the point) I feel like this is a lot less strenuous and jerky on the body (especially if you “fail”), and helps me in working towards a deadlift.
I will say I have found a lot of what you found.. a lot of puzzled looks and confusion when I would say I don’t use TG?!? Like saying… “oh I don’t believe in outside leg hangs”… It seemed so fundamental to most people that it seems insane that I wouldn’t do it?!?
Sigh. I guess I kind of gave into peer pressure.
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Thanks guys! I broke down and took some corticosteroids. On day 2 and they have me about 75% better. I was even able to pole a little today!
I’m super bummed because that grip seemed like such a great performance solution! But it’s absolutely not worth it since my body hates it!
Hopefully I’ll be 100% better by the end of the week. 😬😬😬
I just kept thinking about Veena and her chickenpox as I was itching away… And I felt so bad!!!
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Totally hijacking your thread here 🙂 Haha
Anyway… one of the girls at the show I performed at does Lyra… It’s really fun to watch her perform!
I actually am kind of slippery myself, but for performances I REALLY grip up.
Why size hoop did you get, and how tall are you? I am tall 5’8″ and I got a 36″… I measured and that seem about right and also thats what they have at the venue I performed, in case I want to do a lyra performance… One day…
Like I said I can’t just dance or flow usually.. thats when I get confused about my hands and my lines and stuff. But when I play a character… i can be a little cute or goofy it’s a lot easier for me. My first performance was a halloween one, then my second was christmas themed. Having a theme reallllly helped me create something.
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You’re so sweet. I actually just ordered a hoop! I’m excited to start learning it.. but yeah, I think hoop flow is pretty difficult.
Actually I just did 2 songs at a performance tonight. I always get very costumey… I have trouble just being myself on stage. I get really nervous. I feel like I flow better alone or even when no one is looking in the studio.
Thats my goal though. To one day just dance as myself…. it’s more vulnerable.
I’m trying to upload the videos here now but i’m doing it inefficiently (transferring from phone to computer, then the site… instead of just phone to site) so I’m not sure if they will both make it up tonight… but you’ll see what I mean about being a character 🙂
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Also although its tempting to buy V-front tops because they are cute and cheap, I pretty much won’t buy them anymore…. the halter design pulls on my neck, its not bad for an hour, but longer than that i get a serious hunch going.
Now I spring for the pricer tops…. but I love love love the brazil bottoms
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I pretty much live in Bad Kitty these days. Basically everything I wear on my instagram is BK Pole Fit. (https://www.instagram.com/akpoles/ if you want to get an idea)
I’m a size small. which is pretty true to size. I’d buy size Small leggings and sports bras from Target or Lulu Lemon 🙂
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I just want to add to what Veena was saying “There are good and bad customers in every industry”… its so true.
People ask me all the time, as a dentist, how I get over looking at peoples “gross” mouths. I see people with gum disease, bad breath, rotting teeth, I’ve pulled week old chicken from between someones teeth… but it’s my job, and I’m used to it. I know I’m doing a service for people, and helping to provide for my family. It’s amazing how fast you become desensitized to it. I imagine it’s the same with anything.
(I also felt this way in anatomy lab at first, and somehow you just get used to being around body parts)
When I worked at the Gap in high school, people would leave used tampons in the dressing room, or booger filled tissues, or dirty diapers. There are gross people in ever age group and gender!
Babysitters have to clean up some pretty gross messes. Same with people who work with animals. There are gross aspect to every job.
A family member of mine has a job deals with abused children… I think I’d take “gross” over sad any day!
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Oh and I know about the squirrels! It’s unreal!!!! This little guy tried to bite my cell phone thinking it was food!
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That thread looks like it is from 2009… and the xpoles have changed over the years… maybe its no longer possible?! Maybe it depends on your model?!
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Hahahha the STD thing had me cracking up 🙂 Going with my husband… but I’ll be sure to worn him too.
We are pretty avid hikers so we are absolutely looking forward to it. But this is our first time doing any real hiking outside the US.
Oh and our son is coming with us. (Yeah, so sex is doubly off the table, haha) He does hike with us almost every weekend so I think he should be ok. We did some pretty amazing hikes in Montana last year without him, but we did think he would have been ok on them.
Thanks for the tips. I’m going to make sure we have plenty of bandaids! Good reminder! Last year I got a nail through my hiking shoes 😮 my goodness that sucked.
But massages sound great!!! Have you gone to the hot springs? They look cool, but kind of like pools, I was hoping they would be more rustic 😛
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I did 2 Halloween performances last year…
Here are the songs:
The Zombie Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPNqub966Tw
Love Me Dead: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XH3oMNKApIThis month I’m doing a performance to Crazy by Gnarles Barkley… and I start off in a straight jacket. Which is kind of spooky too 🙂
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Xpole actually sells powder coated now Rune 🙂 I’ve been wanting to try one myself. They come in Black and Pink I think.
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PS- thats not me, i just found it on google 🙂
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I know pegasus as this move… Where top hand/elbow is holding the back leg, and your move open in a front split than the other pic 🙂
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This was a not so great video of my entry from brass monkey which i found a lot more gentle on the shoulder/body… 🙂 http://www.instagram.com/p/BGZtbA9jLAk
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I am confused… by deadlift, you mean… essentially an aerial/no momentum handspring, correct? I know there are so many confusing terms in pole. This is what I consider a “deadlift” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9Z3m9Bz89Y Anyway, I don’t think it would possible to do that without being able to handspring. But again, we may be on different pages.
Anyway… I always like to read the descriptions before I sign up for a class or workshop… There may be mandatory prereqs…. if not they may give you tips and tricks and things you can work on… or it might be a total waste of time and money. There are times I took things above my level and I felt inspired and there are times I took things above my level and felt defeated and sad.
Also I took a handspring workshop and I felt like it was too much for me. (I can handspring now, I couldn’t then) but essentially it was an hour of the SAME thing, or working towards the same thing… its really hard on your shoulders. By the end I felt like I couldn’t get anywhere close because I was exhausted and I felt pretty defeated. I much prefer a mixed tricks class. But that is personal preference.
🙂 Just something to think about.
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I haven’t seen any tutorials for it but I have worked on it in class.
I have tried a bunch of times from Scorpio but personally I find the entry from brass monkey a lot easier. I do like the look from inside leg hang so I am going to keep working on it…
I do think Veena could probably come up with some good tips 🙂
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Hey sorry I didn’t get a chance to read everything… but I just want to let you know you’re a very healthy weight! Pole takes times, it uses different muscles than most other activities. Like you could be an awesome runner, and wouldn’t expect to be a wiz on skiis, Right? Be patient with yourself. It will come, and probably pretty quickly since you are athletic..
I just wanted to point you in the direction of two very tall and athletic ladies who amaze me constantly. Kyra Johannesen is a co-owner of Body & Pole so strong and beautiful. She seems to be choreographing a lot lately so her instagram is a lot of other people and not as much her, but it’s still worth checking out… https://www.instagram.com/kyrajohannesen/
And Kasia an instructor at Body & Pole… https://www.instagram.com/nemoschaospheres/
I’m just pointing out two women who sound like they are of a similar build to you… but trust me there are many many more. And many more who weigh more… Pole is for everyone. Every body type and every gender. The more you do it, the more you’ll be able to find happiness in your own journey. I know I have.
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Yeah, I also drive almost an hour each way to the studio so I kind of feel like I need to maximize my schedule.
The other day the girls were learning front and back hook spins. And that’s fine, I also like to review the basics… But I can’t do that all class. Because I’m not slowly walking into it, or fumbling through it like I did the first time I tried it, I can easily do 2-3x as many spins as some of the beginner girls! And I’m sorry, doing static spins for an hour is rough on the hands and shoulders! So yeah I’ll give it a few goes, then kinda do my own thing.
I do try and be respectful though 😬
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Ha. I’m probably one of those annoying girls! I go to a beginner class on Wednesday…. It’s titled a beginner class but does end up mixed level!
I know it’s not the nicest thing… But they only have 2 morning classes a week… And I pay for an unlimited membership.
I try and do 2 things to be curtious…. 1 is be encouraging and humble. Cheer other girls on and remind them I was there once too, and often tell them how much faster they are getting it than I did. And 2 try not to take up a lot of the instructors time.
Really I go for the warm up and beautiful tall poles and lots of leg room 😬😬😬
Then Friday is a true mixed level class… So that one I get more instruction.
Part of me does feel bad at times but personally the only time I was upset by a more advanced poler being in my class is when the teachers seem to favor them and spend more time with them…
If it is like my case, it may be a schedule thing. Maybe the advanced girls need more options at different times?!?
