Hi Rosie. I like your hair in your avi photo, pink rocks!
I'm a fellow big girl, started pole dancing classes at 5'7” and 183 lbs. Can I also mention that I started when I was 37, was not really flexible or strong, and have thunder thighs and cellulite? You're right. It sucks to not be able to move around and do moves like slimmer and/or stronger girls (and in my case younger girls!), because let's face it, you sometimes can't help comparing yourself to others, no matter that you know you shouldn't. In fact, I was so self-conscious that for the first several months of going to class, I refused to wear shorts; I would just roll my sweat pants up! Like you, what kept me going was that I loved pole dancing. The choreo classes made me feel very sexy, alive, and able to achieve. Additionally, the pole dance instructor in that class was bigger than me (taller and weighed more) but she was so graceful and elegant it was an inspiration. But every time I was sore, every time I felt a callus growing, and every time I became bruised, I felt victorious. Because it meant I was getting stronger when I didn't feel like I was getting strength, and it made me see I was progressing, even when I didn't see any progress.
When it came to classes she didn't teach, however, and classes that just focused on tricks and spins, I found myself getting discouraged again, not from lack of trying but from lack of achieving, based on strength or flexibility. What to do about those feelings of disappointment? Well, after a good frustration cry (!), I started attending the pole fitness conditioning classes and doing yoga more regularly, in addition to the pole classes. I set a goal for myself of achieving an invert by the end of summer (2.5 months), did yoga before class, and practiced specific holds every time I went to class (for me it was the reverse grab hold and the pole ab crunches). So basically, I upped the fitness ante and set some specific goals that allowed me time to achieve them, which helped me not feel bad when I couldn't get them as soon as I wanted. By the end of the summer, I had my basic invert and my reverse grab. By the end of 7 months from beginning pole dancing, I had a 25 sec clip of me doing a combination of 3 moves/tricks that let me know my work and efforts paid off. By the end of 8 months, I performed a routine that got me noticed by the studio owner, and now I teach classes as a sub at the studio and host pole parties. So you have to give yourself time and set specific goals (instead of, I want to do EVERTYTHING) but also believe in yourself that you can do it because you are working hard to do it.
As far as the weight loss, I can only speak for myself, but I didn't really lose weight from pole dancing. I became stronger, and had lost inches, but for me pole dancing is only enough to help me maintain my weight. So after a year of pole dancing, I began other exercise routines in the interest of becoming a better pole dancer. I began a high impact cardio 2x/wk (Zumba) and a moderate boot camp 2x/wk, in addition to the pole dancing and yoga. And I modified my diet by not eating out at restaurants as much as well as by reducing my sugar intake. After 4 months of this program, I did lose weight and accelerated my muscle gain. Needless to say, I was quite pleased with how these results improved my pole game. But I don't think I would have been able to start the additional exercise, and stay with it had it not been my deep abiding passion for pole dancing to motivate me.
