Fit for a Pole

Life doesn't always turn out to be your fantasy, so says Carrie Bradshaw.

Perhaps not.

But I believe we can still keep our fantasies alive...making them happen by altering our destiny like a river moving through rocks. Afterall, it's our own call. No matter how deep-seated our fantasy and desire may be, if we want it bad enough, we can make it happen.

That has been the case for me and my pole. You'll never guess the amount of trouble I went through to get it, learn it....yeah like a river moving through rocks.

Now, before I blurp on about my fantasy and obsession with the pole...
If your idea of pole-dancing is akin to nothing more than gyrating hips, cheap 'go-go’ bars and seedy shows you're sadly mistaken. What you think you know is merely preconceived. Perhaps reason enough for anyone to stereotype, sure enough pole-dancing originated from strip bars.

Its crude image generated by the constant association with sex and vulgarity, I think pole-dancing is probably one of the most bruised, abused and misunderstood of all art forms, set off by perceptions from all things sleazy.

But anyway, who cares where pole-dancing came from. We’re not learning to be strippers here, for crying out loud... it’s just a new workout routine! Like how one trains in yoga or pilates to build muscular strength, get toned and sculpted. Yes, your clothes stay on, well, unless YOU CHOOSE otherwise, but then so what...?! Why not? Wanna throw in a Carmen Elektra for fun, why not?

I mean, honestly it’d be wrong to say pole-dancing isn’t erotica. But it’s also wrong to say it is. Because it isn’t just that. Pole-dancing is more athletic, technical and arty than we give it credit for. It IS hard. Very very hard… the hardest sport/dance form I ever have to master. But you see, that’s the best part, because pole-dancing makes one helluva workout.

Wanna look trim, taut and terrific? Pole practice. Madonna couldn't agree more.

How incredulous it is the way a woman could age. Look at her, aging does NOT have to be a frightening truth, does it? Shit, I WANT to look like that and still be doing this when I'm 50! Madonna is a powerful statement that defies all things impossible. I will forever love & respect her for this...

With a bit of will, your ride can be fun. Though I must say, the pole IS quite a piece of work. It looks so freakin' easy when you watch the pros do it, but believe you me, as ambiguous as the art itself, it's not what it seems.

Like any other sport that requires muscular strength when skills are to be learnt, you gotta be fit, flexible and conditioned before attempting any of them tricks. Trust me, there's absolutely no short-cuts to this. You need to work, get stronger and stretch, honey.

Every move involves the use of technique - which is the right form, how to create momentum, where the grip should be etc… Having said that, pole work is therefore science, for there're physical laws acting when you clad that pole. For example, when suspending your entire body upside-down, it is possible to lean away from where your hands are supporting your weight - away from the pole, that is. Amazing stuff.

Or try getting up on a ‘flag pole’ position, it's no-nonsense…and it makes perfect physic-sense. Pivot points that allow a sizeable amount of angular momentum also allow you to fly like a carousel or swirl like a corkscrew. The correct application of this will reward you with great form, body control, balance and incredible core strength.

But not without a price though... I call it blessed suffering. Pain however, has all its privileges in pole-dancing. I remember a Chinese empress once said this :

“Pain does good things. It prepares us for peace.”

Hmmm... do take a moment to soak this in.

So I was warned. Be prepared to take the blows, bumps, bruises and burns. Yeah, alot of pole-dancers I know have suffered from pretty nasty injuries. Well, it's all about adapting I guess.... Your skin needs to get used to the pain.

I'm STILL adapting. Sometimes, I wake up in the morning and I nail it! Fear incapacitates too. Oh yeah, the fear sets in... the fear of slipping, falling, crashing…my fear is almost tangible. Then masochistically, a quiet desperation creeps in - that need to get it right. Meaning, inflicting more pain to myself for how long more, I wish I can tell.

I have to learn to remind myself all the time that it’s pure physics. Positioning. I need to trust the pole. To trust myself and my own strength too. Now that’s the biggest damn beast I have to conquer.

If you’re a perfectionist like me, god help you....You’ll feel like you’re battling a disease every time you learn a hard trick. I suffer not only from fear and physical pains but anger & frustration, disappointment & discouragement, impatience & desperation, love & hate, distraught & exhaustion. Like climbing up a greased pole, really. As it turned out, I become hungrier by the day, week, month. My refusal to be anything less polished than the pole just drove me up the wall! I’m STILL losing sleep over this, it’s incredible. Never knew I’m inexhaustible like that... heh, you learn something about yourself everyday, don’t you. Then, before I knew it, I’m addicted. I’m so hooked on pole practice now it is NOT funny.

But I see all these silly feelings as good things; feelings that are necessary because they're the MEANS to an end. A very very soul-fulfilling end. So, “get over it!”, I tell myself, “…or I'll never get it…” Surely and clearly, no pain no gain.

What a great way to undress my demons.

But how do I feel after all this time?

Sensational.
Indomitable. Totally.

Physically fit like a horse and emotionally strong again, EQUIPPED and achieved. Talk about empowerment...

'Strong, Sexy AND Successful' sums it all.

Don’t forget, we can absolutely make anything happen if we believe in it.

What I've observed with women in beginners’ pole-dance class is, they're quick to feel sexually unashamed… unafraid to look seductive or move their body in ways that aren't considered correct outside the bedroom. For some, probably not, even in the bedroom. But here, nobody needs approval anyway. It’s therefore a revelation for many as they’ve now suddenly become sensuous creatures they never thought they could be! It’s like opening a book with pages and pages of new surprises.

The moral of the story is, it's how pole-dancing eventually makes a woman feel.

Fear of flying no more sisters!