Things I Wish I knew Before I Started Pole

You will bruise.

Ahhh, bruising. Something that you thought you said goodbye to when you outgrew swinging around on play equipment a little bit too quickly. But now that you've grown up and swapped play equipment for a pole (even though they're technically the same thing), you can welcome bruises right back into your life. Yeah, ALL of them - 

We'll be straight-forward with you - basically every time you do a move that involves medium-to-firm contact with the pole, you will bruise. Don't freak out though - pole bruises aren't always born from painful moves! Buuuut you will likely wake up the next morning after a technique class to a small forray of bruises (culprit spots are the shins, inner thighs and under arms). Just look at them as proof that you’re a determined poler! That's what we do ;)

Wear those battle scars with pride, girl!

You don't need to be strong to start

Ahhh!

Don’t panic! we know. 

A quick insta-search of 'pole dancing' will lead you to a montage of people holding their entire body weight upside down by what seems to be only their armpit grip.

Whilst totally inspiring (hats off to those absolute bosses!) - it can be intimidating to say the least! 

Fret not though, these individuals have been training for AGES to get to the condition they are today. You absolutely do NOT need to be strong to start pole, your strength will improve as time goes on!

You might be doubting your arm strength. We see you zooming in on that pole dancer’s biceps to compare them to yours!
Funnily enough, even those with great arm muscles from prior training still struggle with pole dancing at the start since pole dancing itself is a skill and uses a kind of strength that is only truly built from practising with a pole.

P.S. that's not to say that it will take you ages to get strong. THAT’s the beauty of pole, YOU control your pace and improvement! The more you pole, the more quickly your strength will come to you! Plus, as a workout this rewarding, pole dancing takes away the emphasis on working out to get 'skinnier' to working out to get 'stronger' and better at your craft. 

I mean, don't you think finally nailing a lay-back with perfect form (https://www.instagram.com/reel/CLpsKU2BA2k/) is way more satisfying (and brag-worthy) than dropping a KG or two?

Don't take time off if you can help it

Let's firstly state that recovery periods are important. Your muscles literally grow stronger as you sleep. Plus, if you've been feeling fatigued, restless or that you can't quite nail your pole goals as easily as before, it might just be your body letting you know it’s ready to take a break. So make sure you get some well-earned beauty sleep and give your body and brain some time off every now and again.

According to the stats, it takes around two months of inactivity to completely lose the gains you've made, so don’t worry over a couple of days missed. 

However, polers would know that even just a short couple weeks off can be long enough to set you back and lose some of that momentum gained when you’re pole dancing on the regular. 

To avoid extended periods of rest that may offset your gains, try scheduling regular rest breaks so that you don't need to take lengthy time off and mess up your routine too often. If other commitments are getting in the way, try organising your pole sessions in advance and making it a priority.

Starting training flexibility ASAP

Wait! Before you go all 'whyyyyy', and tap out -

You DON'T need to be flexible to start pole dancing - your flexibility will improve as your pole dancing journey progresses! 

But those who have a solid flexibility regime in place before they start pole dancing (whether it's 10 minutes a day or 1 hour stretch sessions, five times a week - yes those people exist) WILL have an advantage over those who don't!

Check out our easy splits tutorial here: https://lunalae.com/blogs/news/9_stretches_splits.

You will develop a shoe addiction

If you’ve never worn a pair of pleasers in your life, boy, do we have news for you. There’s nothing quite like dancing in them. Once you master wearing them, you’ll find they make you feel like you’re on top of the world (or at least several inches off the ground).

Plus, there’s probably something in science to back up the bond you feel with the pair of shoes you perfect your favourite tricks in.
To top it off, there are so many options to choose from, all the different colours, not to mention all the shimmers and shine! They’re the cherry on top to a perfected routine (or so we reason with ourselves as we ‘add to cart’) so trust us, it’s a worthwhile investment to clear some wardrobe space for your collection now!

You will make amazing friends 

Turns out, there's a good reason why people say to pick up hobbies to make new friends. Some of the strongest friendships we have were formed through pole dancing. Having friends who pole dance is so great because they totally understand the #polelifestruggles.

You’re bound to see each other fall off the pole and have a good laugh at yourselves together, whilst also cheering each other on!