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Need encouragement and advice with strength!!
Having got a pole in March only to have to move out of our flat into my boyfriend's parents a few weeks later I've finally moved and got my pole up and decided to start training properly a couple of weeks ago but now I'm looking at what everyone else can do and thinking will I ever achieve that?! It makes it worse because I've officially been poling for 2 years but only actually started properly training – but that doesn't stop me thinking, oh I should have mastered that by now like so many of you seem to have managed!!
I basically picked up inverts in the first 10 attempts (hours) and then gemini quite quickly back in March when I got my pole, then…..nothing new really since I moved!! I think I'm struggling with strength and I look at people with all their strength and wonder if they were always like that or can I learn?!
So basically thought I'd see how long it took people to progress to certain moves and whether they could lift their own bodyweight much before they started or they just got strong when they started pole and is there any other thing they can measure it against like pull ups unassisted or how easy they can do Veena's strength lessons now?!
To give an idea, I can do about 1 pull up unassisted but 4 sets of 6 on 22 pounds assistance at the gym. I can only manage about 4 pole pull knee up where I grip pole on the side and raise my knees up to chest (though not sure if that it my grip strength because it doesn't actually hurt, I just seem to slip). I was strong and could do lots of pull ups once – when I was 16 though so think I'm dreaming to think I could regain that quickly!
And do people think it's best to continue to work on things like caterpillar each time till I get it whilst concentrating lots on strength or just focus solely on strength (Veena's routine seems very pole orientated and I figure it will help a lot) and just enjoy dancing to the moves I can do and then come back to harder moves later when I have a measurable difference i strength?
Sorry for the ramble, I just feel a bit lost as to how to progress!!
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8 Replies
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Hi aisha-
There is a lot to go over here.
First of all-caterpiller isn't a newbie move but yes if you practice it, you will continue to gain strength. Second, if you get a pull up bar and do it at home-do it a few times a week. I was not able to do even one when I started and after two years of doing it, I can do 20(but I stopped a few months ago b/c I am pregnant and I could feel it at the top of my rib cage). I tried to do three sets of 10-15 of them 3x a week.
For reps with weights, I do a few sets of 10-14. 6 is only to begin and you should be progressing. Machines I do 3-4 sets of 12. Weights is 3-5 sets depending on the excercise.
You will gain strength in TIME. Everyone wants to be a Felix in six months, but that is not reasonable. It took us YEARS to tone our bodies to do what they do now.I have been poling since 2006 and only in the last two have I really aquired the skill that I have.
You can invert all day,but if you don't transition well or look fluid on the pole, you are probably not training yourself correctly. The tricks are great, but other aspects of pole are just as important. You should be playing on the pole to get comfy. Start with one song and then two and sometimes even an entire CD or playlist. Don't incorporate tricks at first, just dancing and basic spins. Your strength will come when you are able to do all of these things together.
Don't worry about what Suzy or Sally is doing in regards to tricks or progressing. Just keep at it and you will also advance!
Happy poling!
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Hi Aisha,
I can’t give you much advice in the way of strength because if you can do 1 pull up, you are already better than I am! I’ve been taking pole classes for almost 2 years, and have never been able to do a push up in the 46 years of my life! BUT…I will say that I’ve been able to do things that I never thought I’d be able to do. When I first started I never thought I’d be able to invert or climb (gracefully) 15 ft up a pole, but know it’s one of my favorite things to do. You can’t compare yourself to other people…it will hold ou back every time. When I started, it was for the workout. I hated the dancing because everyone in my class had a dance background, so i not only struggled strengthwise, but i struggled with the dancing as well. I was totally discouraged because I couldn’t master the strength moves as fast as everyone else, and I couldn’t dance either. Once I made up my mind to stop comparing mysel to everyone else I started to flourish. I started inverting and climbing without struggling and now I love the dancing and “performance” even more than throwing tricks. Hang in there, you will get this!! Just be proud of your sexy self and what you’ve already accomplished! Think of all the people out there who CAN’T do what you can do and are too afraid to try…they don’t know what their missing!!!!! -
Thanks for the replies-i think you’ve both hit the nail on the heading terms of not comparing and enjoying the performance -i think I’ve backed away from that because it’s a weakness but it’s the ones who dance as well as perform on pole that move me! Glad to see you’re loving it now jastml!!
And thanks for the training tips organic sngel-def going to her a pull up bar and keep going like you did. It’s encouraging to see you can get to that many with training. And you look in great shape for 4 months into pregnancy!!
Think I may just have to yru October’s challenge and focus on dance-and maybe do my first non trunk dance for my boyfriend!!
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Thanks aisha-I am now 7 mo pregnant (29 weeks:))and I get a giggle when I am on the pole because of my baby belly:)(I will post some with my "bump" later:)
I think my baby took my protein! My arms are usually more "cut" but oh well. I guess baby is gonna be a Ms, OIympia coming out:)
It took a while to build up the pull ups but I did them at least 3x a week.It took months of doing 1 and then 2 and so on. They will get easy for you, I promise-it just takes time. Give yourself a break. You are doing such new things and that takes time to adapt. You just getting up on that pole does a lot more than many gym routines you could do(that is why I cut back from the gym-just upper body and some cardio).
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Hi Aisha reid, https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_smile.gif It sounds like your taking the lessons so I'll explain how to use them. Since you have been poling off and on I think you would benefit from starting at the beginning. If you watch the very first lesson, it explains how to progress through them to build strength. You can add in the stretching lessons to the end of your pole sessions to remind the muscles to relax. If you want to work on gaining flexibility then this should also be done after a workout, or later in the day…… Watching all of the "getting started" lessons for each section will explain everything. https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_flower.gif
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Congrats on getting your pole set up! I know it can be very frustrating having to stop poling and then getting back on and not being able to do much. This happen to me very recently. I go to a studio and I was one of the most advanced students, then I had to stop doing any kind of exercise for a little over 2 months and then when I got back on the pole (last week) I couldn't do half of the intermediate/advanced things I could before. Frustrating to say the least. I just went back to the studio this week and I see all the students at the studio that have progressed so much and now I don't have the strength to do what was a regular trick for me. So after one class of trying to pick up where I left off… I got to thinking. I gained the strength to do those tricks by going through a progression of tricks that also helped me understand the balance I needed. I then decided that I would do the same thing. I would go through the same progression but on the other side. That way I will still be learning something new and build up my strength. I am not going to think about others being more advanced than I am, I will just enjoy the challenge of learning things on my "bad side." When I learned the spins I did learn everything with both hands, but once I started inverting, I just stuck to my "good" side. I could invert and do a scorpio and that was about it. The good thing is that tricks come a little easier the second time around 🙂
So don't be afraid to re-learn the moves you already know, the progression will help you gain the strength… and like others have said, don't just learn tricks, learn tricks then put them in small combos!
Good luck!
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I'll be starting at the beginning again Veena- and most certainly concentrating on the transition moves. I just tried to freestyle dance and felt like such an idiot – which is odd, I love dancing when I am out and generally feel like an ok dancer and I can do choreoagraphed dance but just can't seem to freesytel around the pole! And I'd love to get a routine up in a month which won't happen if I can only walk around the pole inbetween!!
And I cheated to start with – I never learnt on my "bad side" to balance the strength so I'll be doing the same as you cristinaap! At least that way I know I won't have one toned arm and one flabby one!
But either way – I don't think I've ever been so motivated at the gym and hoem on strenght and getting fit – it motivates me so much more when it's not about losing weight but trying to acheive a different goal.
And love the baby bump Organic Angel on the new pic- though you still look so slim at 7 months!
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Good luck on your new start, and we’ll be here for you if you need us! 🙂
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