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Why Pole Fitness is For You!

Pole fitness is a great way to let loose and have fun while you exercise. Ever get sick of the same routine in the gym day after day? Then this is something you really need to try! They improve flexibility, strength, posture, and help with toning and weight loss. You can improve your confidence while you burn calories and you can do it alongside your girlfriends in a fun and flirty way! Grab your tennis shoes, your heels, some shorts, and head over now to start getting in shape while having fun!

Dance pole fitness : 2 biggest mistakes most newbies make

Mistake number 1, miss this idea and you should just stop now!

At the risk of sounding trite or cliché I will lay it on the line. HAVE FUN! That is what pole dancing is all about. First and foremost you should be doing this for yourself and you should love it. Once you start having fun and letting yourself go and enjoying the endorphins will flow and time will fly. You won’t desireto come off the pole. When you are having so much fun you don’t want to stop that is when calories are burned and bodies are changed.

I don’t say this lightly. I see the people who are just letting go and having a blast come back again and again and practice at home. The ones that get inside their heads and judge themselves or others aren’t enjoying the moment and they end up stopping before any progress is made. Make this your time and have a ball, we all need more fun in our lives.

Mistake number 2, Make this mistake and you may have a broken leg…

If you are having a blast pole dancing and getting exercise, and you will then you will want to get a pole for your home. I can’t recommend this enough. For a one time investment you will have an incredible piece of fitness equipment that will last you the rest of your life. What I say to you on this note is invest wisely. Most poles aren’t returnable for hygiene reasons. There are all sorts of poles on the market but there are really only one or two worth investing in. Don’t go cheap on the pole. Just go to YouTube and watch the bloopers video and you will know why it isn’t worth being a cheapskate. I have seen it take place many times. Get the right pole the first time around.

These Tip were by Amanda Richwell from Ezine Article.

Benefits of Pole Dancing

Pole dancing itself is a sport and a skill. It incorporates gymnastic, ballet and modern dance movements around a polished pole. There are endless varieties of tricks that can be performed in a choreographed dance routine. You will be able to learn many of the pole skills through practice. The movements include spins, climbs, static poses and body inverts. The pole dancer may add some floor work and sexy filler moves that complete the dance routine.

There are 3 main styles when it comes to learning the art of pole. These consist of exotic dance, empowerment and pole fitness. People decide to take up pole dance for different reasons. You should try all the different varieties to find out which of the genres you prefer.

Exotic dance is what some people will probably think of when they first hear about pole dancing. This is sometimes the sleazy image that comes to mind but this is not necessarily the case. It does make some women feel ‘sexy’ and they will want to keep some form of exotic dancing involved in their pole dance routine. It has evolved from something performed in a strip related environment but it has developed into a form of art. This type of dancing can be ‘beautiful’ to watch. Some performances have even been likened to a gliding swan.

Many women have experienced empowerment though practising the art of pole. It can provide emotional benefits like an increased feeling of self confidence and provide an all over feeling of well being. It can make you feel stronger, taller and confident.

It is now a recognised form of exercise. It is used as an aerobic workout and for both strength and toning. Participants can expect toning from head to toe and an increase in muscle definition all over especially in the arms, thighs and buttocks. For those interested in statistics, a good session can burn up to 400 calories an hour. That’s the equivalent of two Mars Bars.

It helps by increasing flexibility, improving your posture and overall fitness, whilst enjoying fun dance moves, and all without wondering what you look like. You certainly need strength, flexibility and the ability to express yourself through dance and fitness to get the most from your dancing. The good news is that you do not need to be extremely fit or flexible when you first start, you can gradually build up your skills, strength and flexibility. It is suitable for any figure, of any age or any fitness level.

So go on why not give Pole Dance a whirl!

Article by Tracy Lloyd from Ezine Article

Pole dancing safety tips

Pole dancing can become a strenuous physical activity, so it’s important that you be in reasonably good shape before you even take your first swing around the pole. As always, you may want to consult your doctor before starting any new fitness programs. Pole dancing also has a few other safety considerations you should keep in mind.

1. No Lotions: You should not have any type of lotion or oil on your hands before pole dancing. You need as much friction as possible so as not to fall off the pole. It’s also a good idea to wipe the pole down before beginning.
2. Start with Sneakers: While you may want to build up to wearing high heels while pole dancing, it’s wise to learn new moves in sneakers. Dancing in heels can be dangerous, particularly if you are attempting unfamiliar, athletic moves. If you do decide to switch to heels at some point, don’t start with stilettos or platforms! Weardance heels with a rubber bottom, wide base and ankle strap.
3. Give Yourself Some Room: You’re going to be spinning around on the pole with your legs and arms extended so be sure to give yourself enough clearance. You don’t want to build momentum and go flying into your television set. Keep your pole dancing practice area unobstructed.
4. Check the Pole’s Stability: It’s worth saying again. Check and recheck your pole’s stability. It should be secure and able to take your full body weight.
5. Warm Up: Because pole dancing is an athletic form of dance, you’ll want to be sure your body is warmed up before starting. Your abs, quadriceps and arms deserve special attention.
6. Don’t Jump Up on the Pole: You don’t want to throw your body at or around the pole. You build momentum for spins by walking around the pole and swinging your outside leg towards it. You pull yourself up onto the pole with your arms and abs. At no point should you really be jumping up onto it. You don’t want to bang yourself up.
7. Dress Appropriately: When you’re first starting out, it’s important to wear comfortable clothes you can move in as opposed to constricting, “sexy” garments. If you’re a more advanced student who intends on learning inversions, you will want to expose your arms and legs in order to get more traction on the pole. As a beginner, standard gym attire is perfectly appropriate. Nothing excessively baggy, however. You don’t want your clothing to obstruct your movement.

These tips were provided by Mahalo.com

Olympic sport?

A VERY interesting article from Softpedia.com

A new form of fitness is currently being considered for inclusion among the sports at the Olympic Games. While the routine itself dates from many years ago and comes with connotations that would make some blush to the roots of the hairs, the founder of the Pole Fitness Association, Collette Kakuk, is telling Marie Claire it’s time to cast prejudices aside and welcome the new form of fitness at the Games.

Speaking with the women’s magazine in a new interview, Kakuk stresses that the time when the routine was limited to a certain type of joints and clubs has long gone, since more and more women – and even men – acknowledge the health benefits the sport entails. In all fairness, experts and trainers do admit that pole dancing is one of the most efficient and fun ways of staying in shape since it engages all muscle groups while also defining them better than other routines.

If you look at rhythmic gymnastics and figure skating, so many of the movements are similar to what we do on the pole. We have to shatter the taboo. The pole is just another fitness apparatus, like a vertical balance beam.” Kakuk tells Marie Claire about the purpose behind the petition to include it in the Games. Should this be granted, athletes would appear barefoot and in fitness gear (like runners, for instance) that would allow them to be able to stick to the “fitness apparatus” without slipping. Judges would note athletes based on criteria such as “Leg extension, flexibility, elevation, and control,” Kakuk adds.

As of now, the PFA founder and trainer says, the Olympics Committee has not yet made a decision on the request. What it did do though was let the PFA know the criteria it met so far. One of them is international support, which the new form of fitness has plenty of, being practiced for this purpose in over 50 countries. Still, “we have 110,000 signatures on our petition. But we need to unify the sport. We don’t even have common names for our moves.” Kakuk adds.

If the Committee grants the petition, at first there will only be women’s competitions, since “most guys just offer to be judges anyhow,” as Kakuk puts it. They’re not to expect smiles and come-thither glances though: this is sports. As such, some moves will also be banned from the competition.

Men’s pole fitness

Here’s an article from Examiner.com.

Men’s pole fitness is here, yesterday, today, and even more so tomorrow.

Men on poles aren’t new. Chinese pole dancing, mainly done by men in China and Japan, has long been part of acrobatic acts, done in circus shows. More recently Cirque De Soleil has incorporated a variety of pole acts in there shows. Mainly Chinese pole acts, and swinging poles which are mostly performed by men. Chinese poles are vertical steel poles that are generally between 3 and 9 meters in height and approximately 3 to 4 inches in diameter. They are often covered by rubber to improve grip. Some of the poles are rotating, which allows the performer to spin, while performing. Not an easy task while performing gravity defying moves up in the air. Often times, the men wear special flat thin shoes to help them climb and stay on the poles. This type of pole acrobatics requires extreme upper body and core strength,  and agility, similar to that of an Olympic gymnast, as demonstrated in the videos listed below.

Seeing men on poles doing awe inspiring tricks (ok well some just having fun on the pole) is the wave of the future in the good ole US of A. It will be slow to catch on, compared to Europe, but it is already climbing in our direction. Pole fitness can be an alternative way to lift weights and gain strength, since it requires using ones own body weight to lift oneself up on a pole.

Considering how much strength and agility is needed to perform the largely gymnastics oriented pole tricks similar to what gymnasts do in the Olympics, more men will eventually participate. They already are in the UK, other parts of Europe and in selected studios around  America.  One such studio is this Salt Lake City, studio in Utah (yes, Utah) Studio Soiree. www.utahstories.com/pole_dancing.htm These are every day men who proclaim that pole dancing helps them with rock climbing. Upper body strength certainly lends itself to hanging on to, well, anything really, and definitely helps with endurance.

Not to mention that pole dancing is just pure fun regardless of gender. A shinning example of this is Poledancerfan of youtube. He is a middle aged father, who regularly posts youtube videos of himself attempting and doing different pole tricks, while his wife is upstairs making a pot roast. He often pokes fun at himself, and entertains his audience at the same time as seen by one of his youtube videos pasted below.