Gumby, I am not.
I’m not flexible. That’s really no secret. I have a hard time with most tricks that require flexibility, and even with some tricks that require ordinary flexibility (i.e. shoulder flexi-ness). I stretch occasionally, but not nearly as often as I ought to. Recently, inspired by some of the polers I follow on Facebook (like www.facebook.com/sparrowhawkaerial), I bought ankle weights to work my middle splits.
Uh. That shit HURTS.
I had my boyfriend take a couple of photos of my stretches tonight, in hopes it can help me track my progress. I also am working on my regular splits, which are varying degrees of meh. My right is bad, but my left has some hope – it’s better than the right, anyway! The warm up that we do in my Monday class with Veronika has opened up my left split a bit more, and it’s definitely made me believe in the possibility of getting that split.
Here’s to deepening splits! Who has great tips for deepened flexibility, splits or otherwise? Would love to hear suggestions!! 
Tulip and Shoulder Mount Bomb
It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything, in part because I’ve been busy with life. In the last two months, I moved out of the apartment I had lived in for 9 and a half years (and in with my boyfriend), donated the car I’d had for almost 10 years (which I drove cross country during my move to LA), and I had a birthday. It’s been a big time of change, which has been great! Things are still evolving, too, so my brain has been all over the place. I haven’t had the funds to go to my home studio, so I’ve been using my stash of groupons to float around to other classes and studios. As such, I’ve gotten a chance to check out three other studios (two of which I had been to before, but it was interesting to visit again), but the change in my routine was a bit disruptive at first. However, I stumbled upon a class that I ended up loving, and since it’s the studio where I had the largest groupon, it’s been great – I’ll have my fourth class next week, and I am super excited about what we might be doing in it. I hope to get some time to write reviews of the different studios, but in the meantime, here are a couple of things I’ve worked on recently:
Tulip
I saw this trick on Instagram (it’s like the secret society of pole dancers – everyone posts photos of tricks and offers advice to other polers on how to do them), popping up on the feeds of some of the people we follow through Poleitical Clothing‘s account. It’s a bold trick in terms of how it looks, but it’s not hard – just takes a little creative manipulation to get into it. I’ll include my description of how I get into it, but first, here’s the photo of me in the trick:
BAM! The Tulip. Subtle, it is not.
So, this is how I get into the Tulip:
- Invert to an outside knee hang (also sometimes called a butterfly hook) and stand up over it – this is how we describe the climb up to the position from where you could go into a superman or a jasmine, or continue to climb to do another invert of some kind. To explain the movement: from the knee hook, you’ll sit up and put your bottom hand on the pole below your knee hook, to push for leverage (I usually put it about parallel to my bottom hip) and put your top hand above the knee hook, to pull up. So, your head should then be above your upper leg, and you can use the front of the lower thigh as a lock by placing it against the pole as a grip.
- Moving on…from the sit up over your knee hook, swing your bottom leg down and place the bottom of your foot on the pole, bottom leg straight and pointing to the floor while keeping your hands and upper knee hook in place. Once this is secure, you can remove the bottom arm to pose in a Cupid (also called a Star in some circles). If you have a super duper strong knee hook, you can remove the top hand, too, and just grip with the knee/stabilize with the bottom foot while keeping your core tight – it takes a lot of strength and balance, so only do it if you’re sure you can handle it, or if you have a spotter.
- So, from the Cupid, I move into what we were calling the Devil’s Point, but I think people are calling it a Genie, too – you’ll reach back down between the legs to grab the pole again (and, if you’ve kept your upper hand on the pole, you’re all set – if not, grab the pole again above the upper knee). Once your hands are secure, and keeping that upper knee locked around the pole, you’ll remove the bottom foot and swing it in front of the pole, securing the pole in your bottom knee pit. Your knees should now be mirror images of each other, both gripping the pole, bottom hand gripping between the knees, upper hand still above the upper knee.
- From the Devil’s Point, you then reach your bottom arm between the pole and your crotch and secure an elbow grip with that arm – your arm will loop around the pole so that your hand is headed toward your face. Once that is locked, and keeping your knee grips solid, remove your upper hand and repeat the same elbow hook for the upper arm.
- Both arms should now be loop around the pole, hands pointed toward your face on the outside/front of the pole. Crossing the arms at the wrists seems to provide extra support. Now, you are ready to extend your legs to complete the trick! Press the backs of your knees against the pole while arching your back – you have to arch and stick your butt out a bit in order to get the extension to work and look pretty! Otherwise, you’ll end up with bent spider legs, especially if you aren’t super bendy.
- Once you extend the legs, you’re in it! Get a picture! To get out, simply re-grip your knees, and you can choose how to come out of it. So far, I’ve mostly been grabbing the pole and swinging the top knee off the pole and kind of just coming out of it, but it’s not pretty, so maybe try to get back into a Cupid – that’s my goal!
This left a whopper of a bruise on the inside of my lower knee, in part because I never use that knee as a grip. Even in Lyra, my right knee is my strong knee, so I do all of my single knee hangs from that side. My left knee was so upset after this trick! The bruise and the swollen bump with the bruise were no fun, so I’m leaving the trick alone for a few days, to allow it to heal.
I think this trick would be great on spinning pole, and that’s on my list of things to try with it!
I brought this trick into my new class from the groupons, and my instructor worked it out quickly from the sample photo, showing me how to get my legs straight. Next thing I knew, my side of the classroom all began trying it, which was neat to see. That’s one of the things I love about pole – the instant inspiration that can happen. In that same class, I also learned what we were calling a Shoulder Mount Bomb, which is a variation of the shoulder mount pose, but with no hands (whuuuuuuut?!). Here’s a video of me playing with it, in the class:
Now, this trick can be done from an actual shoulder mount up into it, or from a regular invert, like I did in the video. I found it to feel more secure from the invert, but that’s just me. From the invert, you push up into a caterpillar, and instead of using your hands to grip the pole as you slide down, you actually bring your chest to the pole and make contact on the front of your usual side for shoulder mounts. As you slide (your hands can still be on the pole, if you aren’t feeling secure – I kept mine on), you begin to crunch and tuck yourself into a ball while keeping your knees gripping the pole – I used my legs, too, because I wanted to control my slide better, since your entire frame slides, not just the torso. As you crunch into the ball, the pole will roll/slide up to the meaty portion on the top of your shoulder. Your grip in your knees should be tight and the pressure on your shoulder should be solid so that you can remove your hands from the pole. It sounds super scary – definitely do it with a spotter at first – but it’s surprisingly solid. If you feel comfortable, you can also extend one leg at the knee WHILE STILL KEEPING YOUR KNEES GRIPPING TOGETHER (you know, so you don’t fall), as I do in the video. Our instructor took both feet behind the pole and kept her knees gripped, but I felt better having one leg still on the pole. You can see it all in the video.
I’m really liking this new class, which is at The Choreography House. I like the instructor, Veronika (she teaches at studios all over LA) – she’s got an incredible warm up, which has me closer to my left side (good side) split than ever before, and she teaches practical combinations and tricks, breaks down instructions well, and is quick to pick up on new tricks, as well as quick to adapt a trick to work for someone who is having trouble. Once my groupon is up, I am hoping to continue in her class, if not at ChoHo, then hopefully at another studio.
I dropped into two consecutive classes at my home studio (The Pole Garage), and it was SO nice to see everyone. I miss my social circle over there, which is one of the hard parts of floating around. I’m naturally reserved/shy with new people/classes, although I usually am just open and excited to see what new thing I’ll be shown that class. Anyway, on Wednesday night’s classes at PG, I got a chance to try two things I’ve wanted to try for a while: the elbow grip ayesha and the cartwheel handspring! I’d tried the ayesha ages ago, once, and fell out of it, so I never tried it again, despite wanting to give it another shot. It’s weird, but I was never in a class where anyone taught it, and I’d always forget to ask. I finally approached one of the rock star students at PG to ask her how to do it, and she talked me through it and spotted me, plus I got a chance to try it with the instructor spotting me later on. I like it! It’s a leap of faith, to be sure, and I need to adjust something to make it less tweaky on my bottom wrist/shoulder, but it felt way more solid than my twisted grip has felt in a while. I had a backslide with that – I never feel that solid in it anymore, for some reason. Anyway, the same rock star student also showed me a cartwheel handspring mount, which I tried a few times – it’s definitely an issue of working out what is going on with my bottom hand, because it hurt my wrist more than a twisted grip handspring. But, I had the right momentum, and I think it’ll be something I could keep trying to work on!
What about all of you? Any fun new tricks you’ve been working on?
Pole Dancing Adventures & BodyBinds Giveaway!
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH! How excited am I that Pole Dancing Adventures has teamed up with BodyBinds for a new giveaway?????????????????????????????
Image from Pole Dancing Adventures by Leen Isabel
Full details are here: http://pole-dancing-adventures.blogspot.com/2013/03/pole-dancing-adventures-bodybinds-harness-costume-giveaway-contest.html
Good luck, everyone! <3
Love for the pole nation!
Whether you are a sexy singleton, or spending today with your special lady/fella, I hope you have a good day!
Artwork courtesy of Leen Isabel’s Pole Dancing Adventures.
Studio Review – Tiger Lily Vertical Fitness & Dance, Geneva, IL (USA)
Last fall, I had the pleasure of stopping by Tiger Lily Vertical Fitness & Dance while on a trip to the Chicago area, for a friend’s wedding. I had run some searches for pole studios in the area, looking for something that was reasonably close to my mom’s house, both for my own convenience AND in case she wanted to finally sign up for classes.
From the Tiger Lily website
Co-owned by Head Instructors Caroline and Sarah, Tiger Lily Vertical Fitness & Dance is located in Geneva, Illinois, which is a western suburb of Chicago. It’s a great location for anyone in the western suburbs – my mom lives about 40 minutes north, but it was an easy trip down one of the main thoroughfares that runs north/south in that area (Randall Road, which is also the road that the studio happens to be on). The studio is set in a storefront in a an upper-middle class area of the suburbs, and as soon as I walked in, I was impressed with the beauty of the set up. The lobby is splashed with color in a way that is both inviting and girlish without being overpowering, which I loved. There’s also a small boutique area, allowing students to conveniently purchase any supplies they might need!
Tiger Lily Boutique – photo from their Facebook page
Behind the privacy wall and curtains, you’ll find large studio area, painted in a deep grey with pink accents (same as the lobby). The space is beautiful, with an intimate feel to it. Mirrors line one wall, with a ballet bar for stretching, and you’ll find 9 permanent 50 mm Platinum Stages poles on which to flip and fly! A door at the back of the studio leads to a small dressing area for changing and storing your items, as well as a kitchenette (snacks and water are available for purchase) and bathroom. All in all, it is a great set up!
The studio offers pole classes of varying levels in session courses, as well as package deals available if you find yourself addicted and wanting to come to class more than once a week! I was lucky enough to get special permission ahead of time to sit in on a mixed level class, which allowed me to get an idea of how the teaching works at the studio. Sarah, the instructor, gave a great warm up that combined some strength and stretching exercises with a healthy dose of dance-inspired movement to raise our heart rates – she added in some fun, flirty accents, too! Sarah was careful to teach for everyone’s level, and when she saw I was more advanced than some of the other students, she gave me more advanced conditioning to do – one of the first things she had me do was start to work inverts on my bad side, as she correctly deduced that it was something I never did (and totally need to work on!). The spins and transitions she taught to all of us were pretty and very useful, no matter what your level. Each of the students was kind and welcoming to me, especially for me being an outsider – I was so impressed by their attitudes! Class wrapped up with a free style dance, allowing us to dance as a group and test out some of the things we’d all been working on. Overall, I really enjoyed it, and I felt like I got a great work out!
Tiger Lily Co-Owners and Head Instructors Sarah (L) and Caroline (R), from their website
Tiger Lily also offers various workshops throughout the year, like a striptease class, as well as specialty classes! The specialty classes include stretching and yoga based classes, including Fly Gym classes! I wish I’d had time to take one while I was there – dying to try it! In addition to their class schedule, Tiger Lily also offers party packages for gals looking to throw the perfect bachelorette or birthday party (or more!). They are also hosting and managing The Windy City Pole Dance Competition on April 13th, 2013, at Pheasant Run in St. Charles, IL!
FlyGym at Tiger Lily – photo from their Facebook page – great view of the studio interior!
With affordable pricing and a lovely set up, Tiger Lily Vertical Fitness & Dance makes a great addition to the Chicago pole studio scene!
You can find Tiger Lily Vertical Fitness at 1749 S. Randall Rd. ~Suite G, Geneva, IL 60134 (located next to Mario Tricoci Salon and Day Spa), and online at http://www.tigerlilyverticalfit.com and on Facebook!
Poleitical Clothing *GIVEAWAY*!!!
I am SO excited to announce a new Poleitical Clothing Giveaway with Pole Dancing Adventures!!!
We will be giving away some of our new merchandise: one Keep Calm and Pole Dance Off-The-Shoulder sweatshirt in pink and one pair of our Keep Calm and Pole Dance Perfect Pole Shorts in red! Open to US and International entries! Sizes small through extra large for the sweatshirts, and sizes extra small through extra large for the shorts (all US Standard). Contest ends 2/18/2013! Multiple ways to enter! You could win $60 worth of free merchandise! Full details, including terms and conditions, are over on the PDA blog. Enter today by going here:
Best of luck, and Happy Poling!
Poleitical Clothing *GIVEAWAY*!!!
I am SO excited to announce a new Poleitical Clothing Giveaway with Pole Dancing Adventures!!!
We will be giving away some of our new merchandise: one Keep Calm and Pole Dance Off-The-Shoulder sweatshirt in pink and one pair of our Keep Calm and Pole Dance Perfect Pole Shorts in red! Open to US and International entries! Sizes small through extra large for the sweatshirts, and sizes extra small through extra large for the shorts (all US Standard). Contest ends 2/18/2013! Multiple ways to enter! You could win $60 worth of free merchandise! Full details, including terms and conditions, are over on the PDA blog. Enter today by going here:
http://pole-dancing-adventures.blogspot.com/2013/02/keep-calm-and-pole-dance-poleitical.html
Best of luck, and Happy Poling!
Poleitical Clothing *GIVEAWAY*!!!
I am SO excited to announce a new Poleitical Clothing Giveaway with Pole Dancing Adventures!!!
We will be giving away some of our new merchandise: one Keep Calm and Pole Dance Off-The-Shoulder sweatshirt in pink and one pair of our Keep Calm and Pole Dance Perfect Pole Shorts in red! Open to US and International entries! Sizes small through extra large for the sweatshirts, and sizes extra small through extra large for the shorts (all US Standard). Contest ends 2/18/2013! Multiple ways to enter! You could win $60 worth of free merchandise! Full details, including terms and conditions, are over on the PDA blog. Enter today by going here:
http://pole-dancing-adventures.blogspot.com/2013/02/keep-calm-and-pole-dance-poleitical.html
Best of luck, and Happy Poling!
New items from Poleitical Clothing!
Pole Show LA was last weekend, and while I promise a post of links soon, I wanted to take a beat to talk about my experience as a vendor at the event!
Poleitical Clothing debuted three new items at the show: our Keep Calm off-the-shoulder sweatshirts in pink and dark grey, and our Keep Calm perfect pole shorts in red! We met so many nice people, and we had some great sales – the sweatshirts in particular were a big hit!
I have included detail photos below of all of our new items. (You can see us modeling the sweatshirts in the header pic.) If you’d like to make a purchase, check us out online at http://www.etsy.com/shop/poleiticalclothing! Worldwide shipping is available!
Also: if you are a studio or store owner interested in carrying our apparel, contact us for Wholesale Opportunities!!
Please note that our BLACK Perfect Pole Shorts are now *very* limited in availability! Once they are sold, we will not have this color in until at least March! So, get your pair today!! Our red shorts are the same style, by the way. 
Vertical Swag Wrist Wraps
If you’ve been reading my blog, you may have noticed that I occasionally talk about my wrist pain from pole dancing. I wanted to take a minute to share one of the things that I believe has helped me lessen the pain! Sometime last year, a pole sister of mine (one of my pole “sponsees” – a gal I got into poling) mentioned that she’d been using wrist wraps while poling to give her wrists added support. I thought it was an interesting idea, but because of my ADD, it pretty much leaked out of my brain five minutes after the conversation. A little while later, I happened to come across a giveaway on Pole Dancing Adventures, offering up the wrist wraps from Vertical Swag. While I was not the winner of the giveaway, I did end up buying a pair of my own. You may have seen me sporting them in various photos:
Titanic from the floor
Learning the Iris
Lyra move (death star??)
Lyra move (death star??) from the side
In all of these photos, I have on my zebra striped Vertical Swag wrist wraps. I do think they’ve helped me stabilize my wrists, especially since I’ve been working to move into more aerial/twisted grip moves. TG is hard on my right wrist, which is my “pull” wrist (the hand that is “up” in all of my TG moves). After taking two weeks off from class because of the holidays and my busy work schedule, all it took was one class filled with twisted grip moves and handspring work for my wrist to be in a ton of pain – and, of course, I had neglected to take the time to put on my wrist wraps before that class, which was not smart – I think it would have helped a lot if I’d put them on! Since then, I’ve been keeping my wrist wrapped a good portion of the time that I am not in class (depends on the day and what I’m up to), and I went back to using my wrist wraps, even in Lyra, which is normally not that bad on my wrist. I think the wraps have helped with the pain!
I do think that some of my wrist pain would be better if I a) was better conditioned in my wrists and forearms b) lost a little bit of weight. Now, don’t think I’m complaining about being fat or something – the simple fact is that less weight on a sensitive wrist would be a good thing. I’m asking my wrists to support 157ish pounds, and while conditioning would CERTAINLY help that, I’m sure my wrists would love me for laying off junk food for a bit.
The wrist wraps, however, are a great, affordable little helper! They add stability, but also keep the joint warm, which is nice. They’re 100% cotton, easily washable, and simple to use. Here’s a great little demo video of how to put them on and secure them:
Vertical Swag offers a number of colors and styles – my zebra print is no longer listed, but there’s a cute teal version! I love that they’re made for pole dancers, BY a pole dancer, so you get to support a fellow poler AND a small business by purchasing them. You can purchase your wraps at http://verticalswag.com/wraps/ – the front page of the site says that there is currently a New Year’s sale going on, so you can save 25% off right now! They also offer other products for polers, like shoe and grip bags. You can check them out online at www.verticalswag.com and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/VerticalSwag
I’ll have some more fun updates again soon! Happy Poling!
MostFit Suspension Strap: An Affordable Conditioning Tool for Pole Dancers!
Like most pole dancers, I’m always looking for a way to be stronger and better conditioned. Unfortunately, as much as I would love to go to class every day, my budget doesn’t always allow for it. I’ve been looking for ways to work out at home, but it all gets old after a while. When I saw an opportunity to try out the new MostFit Suspension Strap, I thought it might be a great solution!
As their website states, the strap, “created by fitness guru and personal trainer Andrew Gavigan, the MostFit™ resistance trainer was designed to be easy-to-use for anyone, anytime, anywhere.” This is totally true! To use it indoors, you simply need a door/door frame to close around the strap as an anchor (ideally a door that locks), and some room to move behind it. The strap has a handy moveable plastic section (the anchor) that prevents the strap from slipping out from between the door and the frame (see this video for directions). You can also anchor the strap on a pull up bar, and if you need to shorten it, you simply wrap the strap around the bar a few times until you get the desired length.
“Getting Started” instructions via MostFit’s website
Working on a pull up variation
The MostFit strap itself allows for a number of strength building exercises by allowing you to use your body weight, resulting in a tougher work out (and better results!). Many of the exercises also require you to engage your abs/core/back more than typical at-home exercises, meaning that you aren’t simply isolating one area, but getting a better overall work out. It’s not easy, but you’ll know you’ve worked hard when you use it!
Since I also wanted to test it specifically for pole and aerial conditioning, I opted to take it outdoors and see what I could do. While you can use a sturdy tree branch as your anchor on which to wrap the strap, I wanted to get a little more height and variety, so I took it down to the aerial equipment playground by the Santa Monica Pier (living in Los Angeles does have perks!). I was able to toss one end of the strap over some of the mid-height bars, wrapping it a few times as necessary, and then play with inverting – I did move the plastic strap anchor off to one side of the strap, in order to get centered in the bars, as they’re fairly narrow. I found that it was pretty good for inverting into an upward pencil position, or a forward pike. I wasn’t quite able to do a straddle invert, as my hands are not big enough to safely grab both handles together, but the other basic inverts are great for working on your back and shoulder stability (and abs, naturally). Because of the nature of the strap, when you do invert, your weight pulls the strap into a taught position – however, you still have to work to stabilize it, therefore working your arms, shoulders, etc. For the inverts I am doing in the photos, we still had the strap fairly low compared to where you might place your hands for a pole invert (and very low compared to a hoop invert), but I was still able to balance into it – a taller bar or tree branch might be a better option for a truer sense of inverting, but I still had to work to remain stable.
Pike Invert
Invert
Pencil Invert
Working on a split stretch
I also tried some aerial stretching up by looping the strap over one of the taller sides of a set of uneven bars and then slipping my feet into the handy foot saddles that are built into the strap (just below the padded handles). While I did need some help navigating it from a friend that came with me, I did find that I was able to work on some split stretches in the air, using the strap and my body weight. I simply had to use my hands and upper body to stabilize the straps, while keeping my core engaged as I lowered up and down. I had the straps reasonably close to the ground, in case I had to bail quickly – also made it easier to step in/out of them.
Working on a pike up from a plank
Taking a cue from a practice video I watched, I also tried doing a plank with my feet in the strap, then piking up. I thought the move was similar to the kind of controlled lift a pole dancer would need while doing a head or hand stand – it was hard, even harder than doing it without the strap! I can see how it’d be an excellent way to strengthen your core/back for stabilization!
Another benefit of the MostFit strap is that it can also function like a yoga strap. I found it to be helpful with stretching, using it just the same way I would with a yoga strap. I was able to do some shoulder stretch rotations, as well as use it to get a deeper leg stretch, and even do a pigeon-style stretch to work on my shoulders, back, and hips.
stretching as if it were a ballet barre
“pigeon” style stretch
Shoulder stretching
The strap itself seems pretty durable – the padded handles and foot straps are a nice touch, and the rubber stopper for door frame use seems pretty solid. The long length is pretty versatile, and the webbing of the strap seems heavy duty. There’s a weight limit of 250lbs, which I found reassuring.
While my strap did not come with an instruction manual for moves, I’m not sure if that was just my box (since I requested a strap for the purpose of reviewing it on this site). There are a variety of videos on YouTube that can help you work out how to create moves and do them safely, but the lack of instructions or basic move guidelines in the box is one of the few cons. Not being a natural fitness person – and not being someone who works out much beyond pole and lyra classes – I wasn’t entirely sure where to start with it, and I think that might be true of other people not used to creating their own workouts. I would bet that it’d be an awesome tool for a personal trainer or anyone who doesn’t need quite as much “start up” guidance. My friend that was testing the strap with me mentioned that she thought it might be helpful if it were adjustable in length, but we got around that by wrapping the strap over and over whatever anchor we were using.
MostFit photos (via their website)
Overall, I thought the MostFit strap was a good buy for a pole dancer or aerialist looking to condition on their own, especially if they’re on a budget. At $29.95, it’s incredibly affordable, and it’s pretty compact, which makes it easier to travel with/throw in the car. As much as I love the idea of using some of the other suspension products on the market that are aimed at yoga buffs and aerialists/polers, the price has kept me from investing in them (as has some of the rigging involved). The price of the MostFit Suspension Strap is great, and you’re getting a lot for it!
You can check them out online at http://www.Most-Fit.com and find them on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/MostFitWorkouts. Additional work out videos and tutorials can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/andrewgaviganfitness
Happy Poling, everyone!
(Special thanks to my Poleitical Clothing partner, Courtney, for helping out with the tests!)
Titanic
I tried to teach myself the Titanic tonight – it might also be called Ship’s Bitch, I really don’t know. I’ve seen it done mid-air, on spinning pole, which is jaw-dropping and gorgeous…but, I tried from the floor, which is also really pretty when I’ve seen it in performances. Since i had no breakdown on which to go on, I worked it out as best I could just from having watched Sergia Louise Anderson‘s stunning USPDF 2012 Amateur Championship performance. Watch the entire video – so worth it, her musicality is amazing, and she’s such a beautiful dancer – but the move (whatever it is called) starts at the 2:28 mark:
This seemed much more reasonable to learn than trying to go whole hog and learn it mid-air, especially since I don’t have a particularly flexible back (like, at all). However, if you’d like to take a look at it mid-air, check out my favorite Marlo video – the move starts around the 3:15 mark, and it blows me away every time I see it:
So, while I do not have the back flexibility or gracefulness of either of these ladies (yet!), I figured it was time to start learning something new, and even if I don’t have it yet, that’s why we train and make goals, right? Here’s my breakdown of how I got into it: standing with my back to the pole, I bent over and put my hands on the floor while backing the pole into my butt, putting my right foot just to the side of the pole – parallel to it, toes facing forward – and then positioned by left leg on the other side of the pole, but using it as the lock by sandwiching the pole between my thighs and crossing the left leg slightly behind the pole. Then, because I don’t quite have the strength or balance yet to sit up without help, I used my right hand as a brace on the pole to pull myself upright. Once I found my balance, I was able to let go and pose, although I can’t yet arch back far enough to get my ear/shoulder close to the pole – I did manage to reach up over my shoulder and snag the pole with my hand once or twice, pulling myself closer, but it wasn’t easy. I don’t have a ton of shoulder or back flexibility, so it ended up being more of a stretching exercise when I did that (and less of a pretty move). I noticed that my anchor foot (right foot on the ground) would scoot back the more that I did the trick, I think partially for balance, but also because I was tired and slipping. I did find that it was easier to balance the trick initially if I kept my anchor foot pointed, rather than flat.
A couple of videos for you
Just a quick post with a couple of videos for you.
First up, a performance from Sarah Scott that blows my mind – she’s SO strong. Like, beast strong. It’s AWESOME. I met her briefly at PoleCon 2012, so it’s neat to finally check out her performance style. She’s got a couple of aerial and shoulder mount sequences that are incredible, and I like some of her other moves – she’s got a shoulder stand floor move that I’d like to breakdown, and I actually brought one of her pole sequences into class late last year – it’s a combo from an odd spin into a series of grip poses, then some planks from the floor to pole. (I’m not explaining it well, but I have no idea what any name of any trick in it would be.)
And, then there’s little ol’ me, trying my best to learn a new sequence at my last Lyra class. I’ve been struggling a bit the last few weeks – more tired than usual, and it could either be that I’ve been sick (especially the last two weeks) and run down, or it could be that the difficulty of the tricks has finally caught up to where my strength level is. Not sure yet. This week was tough on me, though – the sick factor really took more out of me than I realized (which is not a fun thing to discover when you’re in a single knee hang). I’m struggling a bit in this video, but Leigh is walking me through each new move patiently, since I didn’t get a chance to string them together before this moment – I’d tried one of the tricks twice successfully, one of them once successfully, and one of them once rather unsuccessfully, so the entire thing was pretty new to me, except for the knee hang portion and the mermaid. The one I’m working with near the end is called The Dislocater (not sure if that’s just Leigh’s name for it), and it lands into two pretty tricks, but getting into it is awkward as hell (as you can see). Hoping to have it down a bit better next week!
I’m back in class tomorrow and Thursday – hoping my body doesn’t put up too much of a fight – and am tentatively scheduled to finally head out with a pole friend to play with my Most-Fit suspension strap. Between being so sick, it being my busy season with my pet sitting business, and the weather acting up every time I made plans to go outside to use it, I haven’t been able to test it properly yet. Excuse, excuses, I know.
Still no word on whether I’ve got a spot in the PPC 2013 showcase, but I do think I have my song/theme if I get in! Also, we’re working on getting new merchandise ready for Poleitical Clothing – hope to launch it at Pole Show LA, if we end up getting a vendor booth.
Hodgemapodge
Or, I’ve been sick for a week and a half and swamped with holiday work for even longer, so I haven’t been writing or in class…
I may be performing a lyra routine in February – a basic one – which would be both cool and a real challenge, since I definitely have been wanting to strengthen the dance in my work (I feel like it is all very trick-pose-trick right now). I may also be doing the showcase for PPC 2013 – waiting to find out if there is a spot for me or not. Considering using the same song for both routines, because I love it and have ideas for both dances. We’ll see.
Once I am back to full health, I will be back in pole class – I am going to be trying out some new classes, in addition to my usual class, to see if it will help me jump start what I have been working on. But, in honor of the new year, I am going to jump on the Pole Goal bandwagon: twisted grip handspring from the floor, by my birthday (March).
Respect
A couple of weeks ago, my incredible friend Claire of The Pole Story wrote a great entry over at the Bad Kitty Blog about having Respect For Pole Class. I loved what she had to say (despite the fact that I’ve definitely been guilty of being late!), especially in her closing remarks:
“I’m going to say something that is probably controversial (surprise) but that I think it needs to be said: There is an overdeveloped sense of entitlement in parts of the pole world – a kind of low-level narcissism in which things like respect for your teacher, your fellow dancers and a sense of service to the studio is missing. Now, I realize that certain studios may contribute to this attitude by proclaiming that “It’s all about YOU YOU YOU!” and/or by charging exorbitant amounts of money for classes. And I firmly believe that if you pay for a service, you are entitled to a positive experience. But at the end of the day, you are a student. You are there to learn, as is everyone else in the classroom. So show respect for the rules of the studio and for your classmates and teachers.”
Claire’s piece came to mind during my most recent lyra class. Our class has a max of six students – some days, it’s full. Other days, there are maybe three of us in attendance, but we tend to see the same faces. We’ll have new people drop in now and then, or some faces will be absent for a couple of weeks, then back at it (I’ve been in that group, due to travel). I’m getting to know some of the girls a little better, becoming a little friendlier. It’s a mixed level class, and our teacher runs it in a great way: each week, we get on the hoop and run through the sequence of tricks we’ve learned since the beginning as a warm up, then she’ll teach everyone something to add to it – in our final turns, we again run through everything we’ve learned from the beginning. The tricks we learn as add-ons vary depending on how advanced everyone is in the class, but with the mixed levels, she’ll usually break everything up so that the newer gals are learning the same things, while the girls with more experience are trying harder sequences. She’ll challenge the girl with the most experience with harder stuff and make her review things she isn’t yet teaching the rest of us, but she gives everyone something new to do on top of reviewing their previous tricks.
I happen to love this way of teaching – progressive curriculum is great for truly learning the moves, building strength and endurance, and – something I’m finding to be really important – learning how to string the moves together into a sequence for the purposes of a full dance/performance. It might not be for everyone, but it is how the class works. I love getting to see more advanced moves, and while there are times when I think, “Aw, I bet I could do that!”…I also know that I’ll get to it eventually, so I don’t push to do it now.
Which brings me to my story…
In class this week, we had a newer student that I couldn’t remember if I’d seen before. She had been to one class, and it may have been one I missed – there was also a sub for the class, so the teacher hadn’t met her yet, either. The class was made up of one advanced girl, two intermediate gals (including me), and two new gals. Our teacher has us warm up individually (after a group warm up on the floor), starting with the more advanced students and working back to the newer gals. It gives the new students a chance to see what comes with time, since there’s generally just one hoop strung up (occasionally two, but we warm up one at a time – the second hoop is for throwing in some extra practice while others are going through their tricks later in class).
After having the more advanced gals warm up, our teacher went to instruct the two newer students on their initial moves. Now, I can’t quite recall the sequence of events, but throughout the class, one of the newer gals – the one with one prior class under her belt – kept asking to be taught more advanced moves. She would pipe up while watching the rest of us and say, “I’d like to do that.” Each time, firmly but politely, the teacher would say, “No, I’m not going to teach you that today.”
I totally get wanting to learn the hard tricks – believe me. I also get that some gals have that need for validation that drives them to throw themselves into the hardest stuff they can find. But, here’s the thing: if you’re throwing yourself into advanced tricks too quickly, you probably look like shit in them, aren’t doing them correctly, and are more likely to be injured. And, speaking from experience, you probably aren’t really retaining anything you’ve learned.
The thing that bothered me about this girl’s requests was the energy surrounding them – like I said, it’s not that I don’t get why someone would want to learn something advanced sooner than they should. But, the way she requested it was rude. Her tone was demanding. When she was told no, her energy curdled the air around her. She allowed our teacher to continue teaching her the basics, and – not surprisingly – she struggled with those moves. I’m not sure she realized how much she struggled with them, but it was among the most struggling I’ve seen in the class. I don’t say that to be mean, but more to highlight the importance of having respect for your own limits.
This isn’t to say that you should diminish yourself or not believe in yourself. It’s to say that you should know your body. Learn your limits and challenge them in a smart way. Build steadily and safely. You’ll learn how to trust yourself and what you can do, while still also learning when it’s time to challenge yourself. AND, you’ll find that you surprise yourself, too. With a great teacher, you can grow and push your limits safely, retaining what you’ve learned and building on it to be a better dancer and a more well-rounded performer.
Beyond having respect for the limits of your body and abilities/knowledge, there’s also the issue of having respect for the teacher and the rest of the members of your class. This girl was disrespectful to all of us with her requests, particularly because she made them repeatedly and in a tone that implied an overdeveloped sense of entitlement. (And, lest you think it was just me feeling this way…it wasn’t.) Now, this might offend some people or be controversial, but it’s my opinion, and I am sticking to it: I hear about pole classes where they teach people to invert on the first day, and where they throw people into complicated tricks without ensuring that they a) are strong enough/conditioned enough and b) understand the mechanics of the move. I cringe when I hear about those classes. They’re not only irresponsible in regards to safety, but they’re breeding an obnoxious kind of pole dancer. Of course, I can’t say for sure that this student came from one of those classes, but the level of aggression in her desire to progress made me wonder…
The other new girl in the class? She was like most of the new students: a little scared and intimidated, but game to try things, picking it up more as she went along. She looked so happy to get what she got and satisfied with her success. It was a marked difference from her counterpart, who didn’t seem to even take joy in learning the moves she was actually taught. Our teacher doesn’t care how much experience you have in pole or any other sport – she doesn’t care if you’re an Olympic athlete or an out of shape school teacher – everyone starts in the same place in our class. Everyone learns the same few moves on their first day. You’re learning a new apparatus, and while you may bring in a level of strength, flexibility, or athleticism that helps you learn faster, you still are on a new apparatus. And, sometimes taking it back to the beginning is good. You get to discover the joy again. Pole can be so hard when you get further along – the tricks get harder and require more, and the successes seem further and further apart (at least, for me). Why not take the opportunity to enjoy learning something new, instead of pushing so hard to jump ahead right away? Why not take the chance to learn and have it stick, so you can be better overall? These are things I’m going to try to keep in mind as I continue in my pole and lyra classes. Because, let me tell you: class without joy is a waste. You’re less likely to succeed if you aren’t happy.
(My longest dance yet! My arms were like jelly afterward – that’s A LOT of work on my grip – but I’m happy with where it’s all going. I wasn’t able to get the full new trick we learned – unholy pain – but hoping it comes soon. Going to continue working on smoother inverts and transitions, too.)
Video Blitz
I’ve been out of town again, but wanted to update with some recent videos.
First up is one of my new favorite performances, from Marlo Fisken – I seriously keep watching this over and over. She brings so much fluidity to her performances – and she’s a sterling example of what it is to pole DANCE. She’s also a powerhouse. I’m in awe, always. Stunning.
Next is a recent video from USPDF Champ Michelle Stanek – it’s a gorgeous mix of sexy and athletic, proving once again that there is room for both in the pole world. They can co-exist, and the results are beautiful.
This video – damn. This guy is amazing. Incredible strength and moves – he’s got some sick combos and Chinese pole skills. He’s earning some crushes from my fellow pole girls.
I’ve got some new post ideas in the works, and I’m thrilled to share that I’ll soon be reviewing the MostFit Suspension Strap, to see how it helps with conditioning for pole and aerial! Once I receive my test sample, I’ll figure out what kind of exercises to do with it and if I can work out a program for use, based on what they suggest, and I’ll pass along that info on my blog!
I’m looking forward to heading back into Lyra this coming weekend (side note: my mom is coming to a class with me, later in the month – that’ll be fun!) – in our last class, I got to go to the top of the hoop for the first time! I’m excited to keep adding on to what I’ve learned. I have someone tape me in each class, so I can see what I’m doing – how far I’ve come, what tricks are working, what needs to be polished, etc. Right now, I seem to be so focused on tricks and making sure I’m solid that I’m not really minding my musicality, so that’s my next goal. Also, I want to smooth out my inverts. Anyway, here’s the video from my last class!
Inverting to the top of the hoop, in a pike position.
SALE at Poleitical Clothing!
Psst…we’re having a little sale over at Poleitical Clothing!!!
In honor of Small Business Saturday (and all of the other crazy post-Thanksgiving shopping in the US), we are offering 10% off anything in our shop if you use the coupon code SHOP10 at checkout! The sale runs from 12am Friday 11/23/12 until 11:59pm Monday 11/26/12 (all Pacific Standard Time). Not valid on previous purchases or with any other discount. One code per person.
Please remember that if you live internationally, we DO ship outside of the US! Here is a breakdown of how that works:
We do ship internationally! Since we have two options for shipping out of the US, we ask that international customers send us a message through Etsy when they are ready to order, so that we can set up a Reserved Listing specifically for them, with the correct shipping. (You’ll need to have a profile/account on Etsy, but it is super simple and FREE to create a shopper profile.)
To ship outside of the US, we have two options: USPS First Class Parcel mail and USPS Priority Flat Rate mail. First Class is cheaper, probably around $10 USD, but there is no tracking available and it takes a little longer. Priority is around $17 USD and is faster, allows for tracking.
If you would like to order, please write us back with your shipping choice, item(s) you would like to order and size(s), and we will get a Reserved Listing set up especially for you. Once it is set, we will send you a link!
So, stop by our Etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/Poleiticalclothing and support Small Business this weekend!!
A month?
How has it been a month since I last posted? Oh, I was busy, that’s why. :-/ I haven’t been to my usual pole class in a couple of weeks, because of travel and work, but I did hit up lyra this week, and I had a drop in class at a studio in Illinois – which I’ll post about separately. I’m currently debating whether or not I want to compete again next year in PPC. If you haven’t read my post on what my experiences were like when I first competing, I do recommend it – not just because I wrote it, but because I really tried hard to present the experience clearly and to be really honest about what it took to do it. It was exhausting and expensive, and while I ultimately had a good time at the competition itself, I don’t know that I’d do it again.
However, I keep thinking of ideas for routines. I get ideas while I’m driving, I hear songs and think of movement, and I generally find myself still mulling it over. It’s such a commitment, though. The money, the time, the wear and tear on your body…registration opens in December. Maybe I’ll figure it out before then…
Lyra was fun this week – smaller class, so more time up in the hoop. We’re working on stringing little mini routines together, which has been a good challenge. It allows us to build on what we’ve learned already while still cementing it. I had three weeks off from class, so I was happy to see that I remembered everything, even if my grip was exhausted pretty quickly. I wish I could go to lyra twice a week. The bruises are terrible, though, soooo…maybe it’s better that I keep it to once a week! Anyway, here’s a new video from class – I was working on holding each pose for a 2 count and smoothing transitions. I stopped my own spin, unfortunately – Leigh pops in at the start to spin me, but I accidentally stopped it when I did the pump to get momentum to go up into the hoop (that move is allowable for now – it allows me a smoother transition once I’m up, instead of fighting for it right off the bat). The hoop still spins during the routine, but not as much as it could. I have to work out how to transition into other moves that I know, too. We’re focusing on this sequence a lot right now – but, that’s almost 2 minutes, which is great! It didn’t feel like 2 minutes at all while I was doing it!
working on my fake split hang (I don’t have great splits)
I have other stuff I want to post this week – hoping the holiday gives me some free time to do it!
Push?
How is this even possible? My heart rate monitor gave this reading as my calorie burn from tonight’s class. I let it run a little longer, waiting for my heart rate to drop, but still…
Tying it together
At today’s Lyra class, we worked on tying our tricks together and smoothing out our transitions – something important for pole, too! I’m still working on making combos mesh well and smoothing out the moments between tricks so that I get rid of the awkward, “okay, now I’m gonna do a trick” pause.
With Lyra, it feels like I know a lot of tricks for someone who started 2 months ago, but I don’t yet know how to full incorporate all of them. If I mount one way, I can get into this trick and that trick, but I haven’t figured out how to get back around to do these other three tricks, and then if I mount this other way…yeah, it goes on. So, in today’s class, Leigh had us working on transitions within a specific series of tricks off of the Mermaid. We had the option of taping ourselves, so we could learn a little more – video below! – and we also had to work in pairs at the end! She had us pair up to choreograph our movements – again, doing the same specific movements, but we could add more if we both knew how to do them – and then having to sync our movements while performing on different hoops. It was an interesting exercise! We also worked on center straddle mounts – Leigh makes it look so easy and stunning, but damn, it’s hard! I’d venture to say that it’s harder than straight leg inverts on the pole, but that’s also not my strong suit (still tweaks my back a bit). I was able to do the straddle mount better on the shorter hoop, so I ended up practicing more on that one. We did a fair amount of conditioning for that mount, so I am hopeful to get to continue and improve!
Anyway, here’s my video from today’s class – I’ve already launched up to mount the hoop when it starts, but you’ll see Leigh spin me – she wanted us to all work while the hoops were spinning, so she gave us each a spin just after we inverted. It’s such a challenge when spinning, and I had a momentary panic attack about getting dizzy, but the moment I focused very intently on what trick I was doing and where my hands needed to be, I was able to work through the spinning and not get dizzy – I’m still working on that with spinning pole!!!
Also, a couple of videos of Leigh, because she’s awesome:
This is her performance from CPDC 2012, which I loved:
How Many Calories Does Pole Dancing Burn?
Ah, yes. THAT question.
One of the great things about starting a pole dance or pole fitness class are the health benefits – from weight loss to muscle building and toning, pole can have an amazing impact on your body. Add in increased flexibility, endorphins, and even the confidence and connection to oneself that pole can build, and you’ve got an activity that can change your life in many ways.
But, what about the calories?
Let’s face it – calorie burning is just one of those things that a lot of us think about. “Did I work off that donut? Those gummi bears? That extra bit of cheese?” (Okay, maybe not everybody eats as crappy as I do…) A few weeks ago, I posted about my quest to track my calories better. I’ve been keeping up with my food journal via the MyFitnessPal app on my phone, which has been a decent tracker – there are tons of foods already logged into the database, which can make it easier to find and track what you’re eating, but you can also add your own entries if you have a product label handy (there’s also an option to scan product bar codes, but I haven’t tried it). You also have the option of entering your workouts to track calories expended, but the totals are a little suspect – and the options aren’t great. Naturally, there was no option for pole dancing or pole fitness in the database. The results that I found in running online searches weren’t great, either. In general, they quoted about 250 calories, but there was no way to really quantify it. I wanted something that I felt was more accurate for me. Also, since I started tracking calories in an attempt to shed some extra weight, I wanted more accuracy.
After some research, I purchased a Polar Ft40F heart rate monitor to wear during my pole and lyra classes, to try to get an average of calories burned in each class.
Polar FT40F White (Women’s Heart Rate Monitor)
I’ve been wearing it in every class for the last three weeks. The model features a watch band computer that logs and tracks the results, as well as a chest strap and monitor attachment to wear while working out. You have to enter your stats in the computer in order to get proper results, i.e. height, weight, age. So, keep in mind that this data is based on my specific stats!
Here are my results (so far):
Pole Class 1: 561 calories burned, 100 minutes in length
Lyra Class 1: 491 calories burned, 60 minutes in length (private session)
Pole Class 2: 586 calories burned, 90 minutes in length
Lyra Class 2: 423 calories burned, 96 minutes in length (full class)
Pole Class 3: 523 calories burned, 100 minutes in length
Each of my pole classes is scheduled to be 90 minutes in length – I start the monitor as soon as we begin our warm up and keep it on until after our freestyle at the end of class, when I notice my heart rate falling again. My class spends about half an hour on our warm up, which consists of stretching, calisthenics, and some aerobic activity from things like ab sets, planks, leg work, etc. Our warm up is tough and meant to condition for aerial – it’s less about connecting to the music and the flow of dance and expression, and more about getting you to the point of being able to get your butt over your head.
We work on a lot of pole tricks at my level – fewer spins and floor work (although, it is included depending on the lesson for the class), more climbs, inversions, mid-air tricks, lifts, and aerial training. While we’re not constantly moving, when we are moving, it’s usually in larger, more difficult movements. So, there’s a lot of up and down with the exertion – which I’ve heard burns more calories, but I’m not a trainer, so I can’t attest to that for sure. An example of what we worked on in my last class: our warm up, followed by revisiting the junkyard swing so we could attempt it in mid-air, then some work on shoulder mount flips (taking the mount into a pencil, then flipping the legs back down to a pole sit), multiple goes at conditioning our aerial twisted grip pencils and ayeshas, a big Chinese grip full body spin, various inversions, and then our freestyle, which was two songs with everyone dancing (4 students in class that night).
I took two different types of Lyra classes in the last three weeks – an hour long class that ended up being a private (I was the only student registered) and a 90 minute class with six students (and two hoops). I worked harder in the hour class because I was the only student (and boy, did I feel it later), but I still got in a good work out in the 90 minute class. I worked on a variety of tricks in both classes, like splay leg inversions, front balances, and a number of different poses.
Based on my personal data, I burn an average of 557 calories per pole class. I don’t have enough data to do an average for Lyra classes on their own (and I had two different kinds of classes), but when factored in with the pole classes, the average for calories burned doing an aerial arts class is approximately 517. Lyra burns less than pole overall, but a more intense Lyra class (i.e. my one hour long private class) can burn as much as a pole class, even if the Lyra class is shorter in length. All of the pole classes I took were not super packed with students, enabling me to have more opportunities to get on the pole – I also tried to be mindful of staying still for too long, making a point to try to keep busy so I could burn more calories. Obviously, I would get more accurate results by factoring more classes, which is something I intend to do – I want to continue to track my aerial classes from here on out and see what I come up with!
Now, as I said, these results are based on my specific statistics…which, after some consideration, I’ll share in the spirit of full disclosure. But, if anyone asks, I’m totally the weight it says on my driver’s license.
Age: 32, Weight: approximately 156lbs, Height: 5’6″
Also, in the interest of full disclosure: I started tracking calories because I wanted to lose a bit of weight. Yes, I want to slim down for vanity related reasons, but I also wanted to see if it made my transition into aerial easier. I have gained a lot of muscle since starting pole, but I don’t appear to have lost fat. In fact, my weight has fluctuated up and down over the last two years. While I’m definitely stronger and fitter, I’m not any thinner – I’m a size bigger than when I started. Now, this is not to discourage anyone thinking about pole dance or pole fitness as a weight loss exercise – because people DO lose weight doing it. I just really like candy. And bacon.
I hope this helps answer some of the questions surrounding how many calories are burned in a pole dance or pole fitness class! I’ll update again in the future, when I have more results, but in the meantime – Happy Poling!
Jenyne Tumble: An excellent breakdown
I recently posted about my attempt to learn The Jenyne Tumble for the first time, and to my surprise (and delight!), the wonderful Aerial Amy commented on my post with a helpful tip – as it turns out, she has an amazing breakdown of the trick on her blog (which is an incredible source of info for pole dancers!).
Her full breakdown can be found here: http://aerialamy.com/blog/2012/02/21/tuesday-tips-tumble/
I *highly* recommend reading the tips she gives on the page, but here’s the video, too:
She’s awesome, right? (Let me tell you, I maaaay have geeked out a bit when I saw her comment on my post!)
Happy Monday, everyone!
Lyra: secret cross-training
I was back in my regular Lyra class today, and it got me thinking about the benefits of picking up a second aerial art. Pole is hard on the body. It’s a beautiful sport, but it’s not an EASY sport – the bruises, the conditioning required, the knots you get in your shoulders once you start inverting regularly and going aerial…it’s not gentle. So, adding a second form of aerial seems insane. More pain? More bruising? More stiff muscles? And, with Lyra, you add in occasional scrapes from the hoop, plus terrible calluses – it’s on par with when I started using the 45mm pole more often, but almost worse, because your hands are not only callused, but rubbed raw all over.
Now, I don’t tell you this to dissuade you – because I LOVE Lyra. It has given me more than I expected. For one, it renewed my love for pole and my interest in pole. For a while, I felt like I had plateaued in pole – I was working the same tricks over and over, trying to get them solid, but not feeling like I had clear progress from week to week. Was I better than I was a year ago? Yes, for sure. But even six months ago? I wasn’t sure. I wasn’t loving the process of learning anything. I just wanted to get to the next level. I think plateaus are pretty common – it certainly wasn’t my first with pole.
Cut to Lyra. I found myself LOVING the process of learning (which I found carried over to my stretch and flex class, too – the ridiculous smile I have on my face when I’m in there – that is, when I’m not in pain – is hilarious). I loved that the conditioning from pole helped to make me better. I loved that things just made sense to me. I loved the feeling of success that came with it – the feeling of getting a trick again!
All of that happiness while learning was something that I brought back into pole, and I think it has re-energized me. I’m happier in class, I’m more interested in learning new tricks, and I walk away from class with a higher level of satisfaction. I really believe that I owe that to Lyra.
In addition to the mood and outlook changes, Lyra has also helped to cross-condition me. I started the classes while still healing from my dog bite injury from my day job, and it accelerated my ability to use my left hand in the old ways. I still have some lingering pain or weakness, but overall, it’s great. The grip required for Lyra is different from pole, and there is often less direct pressure placed on the hand, but the strength of grip is better – because the hoop is smaller than the pole, the grip required causes my hand to contract in a way that strengthened it faster. It’s been great.
Lyra has also really helped improve my back and shoulder strength. Prior to the classes, I had a lot of issues with straight leg inverts – my back would tweak whenever I did certain tricks, and I would abort the mission for fear of hurting myself. Since starting Lyra – and getting a pull up bar to do Lyra shoulder shrug conditioning at home – my back is A LOT better. I try to do shoulder shrugs every night, to help with it. The added strength has helped me with going aerial. I’m still not 100% solid, but I’m noticeably better than I was two months ago.
I look forward to seeing what else it holds for me. If I can muster my discipline (oh, to have it…it’s not my strong suit) and be diligent about working on my flexibility, I hope it’ll help me advance in both pole and Lyra. In the meantime, I’ll keep happily trying new tricks – and, of course, taking photos whenever possible.
In these photos, I’m wearing the sexy tank from our Poleitical Clothing collection – it was great for the class! It stayed in place well, even during inversions, and the length kept my tummy covered for photos.
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- stag
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- bent leg split
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- working on front balance
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- working on front balance – it’s tough!
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- figuring something out
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- Weeee! I don’t know what this move is called, but my legs are wrapped around one side of the hoop, with my feet anchoring.
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- Hella bruising – this is the back of my right knee. The bright bruise is from Lyra – single leg hangs – the faint bruise at the upper right side of the photo is from learning the Jenyne Tumble (which didn’t help the lower bruise)
