[aliceBheartless]

Any apparatus maker can fabricate, or a welder. Not sure how expensive shipping is, but Brett Copes with Fight or Flight Entertainment out of Las Vegas builds a sectional pole, so it can ship/travel in multiple pieces (I have seen models with 3′ sections or 4′ sections). I have played on one, and it was awesome. One thing about it though, it’s not made of highly polished mirror finished metal. So it doesn’t feel like an xpole, LM or PS pole. But it was really cool because he has different options for the bottom. Can have a wood platform, or a T-bar, or really, anything you want to connect. One of the first ones he made was connected to a carousel pony!

[aliceBheartless]

I really like ashtanga yoga. With it, I can build heat internally, versus hot yoga. I have tried both, but prefer ashtanga. Though getting a good sweat on almost always feels great to me, no matter what I am doing. Ashtanga is also done in series, so the sequence of postures (asana) is the same for every primary series class you can take anywhere and the series progress from primary through 6th series. Also, if bikram ends up being too hot for you, there are also other yoga options where the room is heated, but not to the level of bikram. So that might be an option as well, if it’s available where you live.

Yoga generally will not be particularly lively. In many ways, even if it’s not strictly for meditation, the postures generally require a lot of internal focus to maintain alignment, etc. (For me, usually to keep myself from falling over)

[aliceBheartless]

I love watching Tanya, she is a fantastic aerialist, performer, and teacher. I actually got to see her perform this piece in a different venue this last fall. Seems like invented apparatus have always been around, but generally the aerial world has been getting more and more visible to mainstream in the last 5-10 years or so. I think the bouncing look has more to do with the rigging than it does with the apparatus, maybe? Sometimes it definitely looks like it is, and others not at all.

[aliceBheartless]

I liked your blog polergirl! Another post along the same lines that I just dug up again here: http://reembody.me/2013/09/10/the-6-most-shockingly-irresponsible-fitspiration-photos/

Sums it up really well for me. I don’t like fitspo. I understand that people look for inspiration and we are always told to “shoot for the stars” as it were, but I feel fitspo usually entirely misses the mark.

And I liked the article that is linked in the beginning from the massage therapist: http://dalefavier.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/what-people-really-look-like.html
How cool is that?

[aliceBheartless]

I would probably be careful with wrist conditioning while your wrist is sore and swollen, but here is a link to a blog post with video about 5 wrist conditioning push up exercises that I have found useful in strengthening my wrists for an adult gymnastics class.

http://www.samsrawtruth.com/2011/01/wrist-conditioning-pushup-series.html?m=1

This exercise series comes from Coach Sommer of Gymnastic Bodies. Here are a couple of links to his forum which also provide some good information on technique for these exercises, to make them harder, to make them easier, etc.

https://www.gymnasticbodies.com/forum/topic/54-wrists-endurance-including-wrist-pushups-pt1/
https://www.gymnasticbodies.com/forum/topic/543-question-about-wrist-pain-incl-wrist-pushups-pt-2/

[aliceBheartless]

Thank you all! Happy new year!!

[aliceBheartless]

Thank you!! 🙂

[aliceBheartless]

That’s the gist of it! I suppose depending on the texture of your hair, the second conditioning could be regular conditioner again, and you could rinse again. I just don’t do that because regular conditioner weighs my hair down too much. Initially the article I read did not have the second leave-in conditioning step, but I felt like my hair needed it. So I added the treatment, the brand based on a good stylist’s suggestion. That is definitely something to play with whatever you need for your texture. I do not know how long it took me to see results, but definitely give it time. It’s not a quick fix, especially with long hair, but in the long run, I have definitely seen results in my hair. I pull my hair into a pony everyday, and I have seen less breakage for sure, so not just at the ends.

[aliceBheartless]

I was initially skeptical as well. I think I read this advice in a yahoo beauty article or something. But I thought, well, it’s worth a try. And it works for me. My sister also started doing it and it works for her too. If breakage is the issue, it should help, especially with growing out long hair.

I don’t use any particular shampoo/conditioner products, I am a drugstore brands girl. I do only use Infusium 23 leave-in treatment no. 3 for the leave in treatment. I put it mostly in the same place I put the conditioner, focusing on the ends, but I get some throughout. This method has also helped bc my hair is kind of fine, and the shampoo helps keep the heavy conditioner from weighing down my hair. The shampoo will take a lot of the conditioner with it, so a little leave in treatment at the end helps keep it soft.

[aliceBheartless]

I also had noticed a lot of breakage in my hair at one point. I used to not be able grow my hair past a few inches below my collar bone because it would break and thin and look horrible. I found that switching the order of my shampoo and conditioner radically changed everything. My hair is now almost waist length, with very little breakage. I basically hop in the shower, wet my hands, put a bunch of conditioner on my hair from pony tail down (pretty much dry, I run damp hands through it to help smooth it out) and work it in. Then I wet the top of my head and shampoo the roots really well and then rinse everything out. I finish my hair with a leave in conditioning formula after it has dried to the point of being damp and no longer really wet. I have so much less breakage washing my hair this way, mostly because my hair doesn’t get as stripped of natural oils on the ends which seems to keep the cuticle more intact. However, I also don’t wash my hair daily, and almost never use heat styling on it, so that may also help.

[aliceBheartless]

@eatvegancookies, I love that band!

[aliceBheartless]

Can also make Turmeric tea! Turmeric also contained curcumin, and I really like it. Not sure how much one would need to drink to get specific amounts of curcumin though. I mostly just like drinking it, so the fact that it might help with inflammation is just a side bonus.

http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/turmeric-tea-recipe.html

[aliceBheartless]

A video would be helpful, even if only you watch it. Often, I found that I think I am doing something a very specific way, only to find that when I see myself on video that my mental picture differs from reality. Being square is really important with these stretches. And definitely listen to your body!

So, I realized after I typed up my response that I used the cue of back arching/back neutral. This is a poor cue on my part because it’s the rotation of the hips that will help you find a psoas stretch. It works for me because back position is often dictated by the position of the hips. However, I feel like the hips are ground zero in this case. If the hips are tilted forward, the back is naturally in an arched position and there will be minimal stretching on the psoas. The rotation of the hips back (posterior tilt) is a good way to find a psoas stretch, so maybe think about the hip rotation more than you think about back position. In a kneeling lunge with 90 degree angles on both legs, I can get a pretty intense psoas stretch by adjusting my hip rotation from neutral to tucking tailbone under, similar to Pilates imprint position if you are familiar with that. Once in this position, try just pushing the hips forward to deepen the stretch. If you have a tight psoas, you will feel it with almost no forward movement, assuming the tail bone is tucked under and the hips are square. Definitely pad the knee on the floor! If you can find the stretch in this basic move, it will be easier to transition the same principles of hip rotation to other stretches. It’s that same pulling of the hip forward that Veena mentioned, but thinking about it as a rotation instead.

Intense stretching for the psoas is not going to be relaxing. By relaxing other parts of your body, you could be cheating your stretching efforts, usually by allowing improper alignment of the rest of your body. It’s a big strong muscle, potentially with adhesions/trigger points if you already know it’s tight, so I wouldn’t expect to get huge results with relaxed stretching of the psoas.

[aliceBheartless]

Pigeon pose does not stretch psoas on the front bent leg. If positioned properly with square hips, you might get a stretch on the psoas of the back leg, along with the stretch on the outer hip, more so if the front leg is at a 90 degree angle at the knee. As with lunges, taking the hips out of a square position will take the intensity of the stretch out of the psoas. Another issue I notice is allowing the abs to relax and back to arch. This also takes the stretch out of the psoas. Keep your abs tight, and shoulders stacked over the hips with back in a neutral position. In the correct position, you can drop your eyes (not your whole head) to look down and you can see your belly button (varies I would suppose depending large your boobs are ;)). You don’t want your back arched or to be folded forward if you are trying to work psoas. Keeping that alignment will help bring the stretch back to the psoas, whether in pigeon or a lunge. Also, consider rotating legs inward from the hips when in splits or lunges. That can really help get the psoas stretched, especially with a neutral back position.

[aliceBheartless]

Seems silly to be possessive over a song, unless you created that song yourself. Otherwise, a person is just taking ownership of something they don’t own. To me, that makes no sense. I know people can be nasty about song choice, but to me it seems unjustified.

[aliceBheartless]

I wouldn’t think that getting help with choreography is a problem. To me, creating choreography is a completely separate skill from performing. Similar to the difference in musical composition and musical performance. I used to play piano “competitively” through festivals, syllabus, etc. Classical piano is not about creating your own music, its about interpreting music and skillfully rendering it. In other forms of dance, competition pieces are commonly choreographed by people other than the performer, and in classical dance like ballet, choreography still exists from a long long time ago, still being performed and interpreted by dancers today.

Finding the total package of performer and good choreographer is tough, because good choreography is much more difficult and rare than most people think. It’t not as easy as stringing together moves and setting those moves to counts/music.

I know it’s possible to get feedback about a video from WeFly (Rebecca Star, Michelle Stanek, Tracee Kafer, Natasha Wang, and Steven Retchless). Not sure how the process exactly works, but you can find out from their website. http://www.weflypole.com/

[aliceBheartless]

I have also noted in my quest for back stretching not to overlook the shoulders and psoas in the warm up. Both open shoulders and psoas play a big role in achieving a good back bend and really working to your full potential along the entire length of your spine. I know in a lot of warm ups, those areas get touched on by the nature of warm up, especially if a hot shower/bath are part of the warm up, but I try to focus on them in addition to the back, and when I do, I get better results.

[aliceBheartless]

http://www.dollhousebettie.com/

While I haven’t bought from this site, I love looking through it! One day 🙂

[aliceBheartless]

Also forgot to mention, voting closes October 1st.

[aliceBheartless]

Haha Rev 22:20. Whoops!

[aliceBheartless]

I messed  up my SI joint running a marathon. I didn't feel it during the race, but once it was over, o boy. Generally, working through shooting or stabbing pain is not a good idea, but I defer to your chiro for sure. I continued running through it, because it didn't hurt when I ran. I did that for months afterwards, and ultimately, it began to affect me almost constantly, and even during my work. I couldn't climb a ladder without stopping, taking a few breaths, etc, due to the pain. Because I was a building inspector at the time, I climbed a lot of ladders.

You're doing the right thing by getting it checked out. Do not do what I did, which was ignore and work through the pain blindly. It still gets irritated occasionally (injury was in 2008), especially since dancers tend to have issues with SI joint, and I noticed stretching for splits really irritated mine. However, after going to the physiotherapist and actually doing the exercises (ab work and stretching psoas) it has never been as bad as after the marathon. It just occasionally gets stuck.

[aliceBheartless]

Kate92, you basically said exactly what I was thinking. 

To me, gymnastic pole can be sexy… if I am not prescribing to a typical definition of the word "sexy".  To me, I would call a piece sexy if it's sexually suggestive (lots of booty, or grazing, body rolls, incredibly slinky, or even just the attitude, etc). I would not in any way consider Crystal's piece suggestive, so I wouldn't call it a sexy pole piece, even though it was amazing and mind-blowing. To me, sexy = strong, sexy= smart, etc but I don't tend to use those definitions when describing things other than humans. I don't tend to use it for things like dances, dresses, films, chemical reactions (I had a prof who did that, hehe) etc. 

At the same time sexy pole can at times be… not exactly something I enjoy watching. It goes both ways, as I would assume it would for everyone, based on individual tastes. Whether I like sexy pole (I do)  or not, when I see an awesome gymnastic or contemporary dance piece, I'm still gonna like it. But it doesn't have to be sexy to be awesome to me.

I don't really think that sexy has gone from pole. It may not be de rigueur for some of the larger competitions now, but it very well may trend back. And I think a big reason it seems like its not the forefront, is because the media doesn't report on the studios empowering women nearly as much as it likes to report pole is attempting to get into the Olympics, or pole dancing for kids (gasp?!), etc. I think because of the Olympic push, a lot of the pole people going to the media tends to be trying to legitimize pole as a sport, which just doesn't include the sexy. 

[aliceBheartless]

Haha! Its totally the same! Whoops! Somehow I missed that! 

[aliceBheartless]

Here's an interesting link I recently saw about the recent evolution of modern gymnastics. 

http://mobile.slate.com/articles/sports/fivering_circus/2012/07/_2012_olympics_gymnastics_female_gymnasts_used_to_be_fantastic_dancers_how_did_the_floor_exercise_get_so_graceless_.single.html

It's kind of a parallel, as I think many people look to gymnastics as a predictor of how pole will evolve on the global competition stage.  If if big moves and clean technique are what score points, why would anyone expect the athletes (who train prodigious amounts of time and sacrifice so much of their daily lives) to spend time on looking artistic? There's no real pay back to do so.

I agree that artistry just cannot be judged objectively, with just a number assigned to it. Which is exactly why some competitions essentially just remove that factor. It makes sense. To me; however, dance will always be just that… art. It's not like basketball, where the whole point of the game is to score points. Dance just seems much more evocative, emotional, etc. in its history and evolution. It's social, spiritual, emotional, etc. etc.

It's not that I don't think people should compete in comps designed to be purely technique based. It's just that it doesn't appeal to me in any way.

 

[aliceBheartless]

Also, let it be known: I am a pessimist. Don't take me too seriously. https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_biggrin.gif