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Feeling stuck
Hi everyone! I’ve been poling for almost a year, and came from a background in dance. The studio I go to just opened when I started, but a lot of people are coming and going. Because of that, I’m the only person at my level, so I haven’t taken class since November because she has a policy that she needs a minimum of 3 people to run a class. I’ve been continuing to learn on my own, but have been feeling stuck. I can learn moves fairly well from watching YouTube, but I’m not learning any technique or transitional movements. I want to continue growing, but I don’t have any guidance.
For people who are self taught, how do you do it? I feel like I’m guessing most of the time, or I can do single tricks with no idea how to string them together.
Also, I did Veena’s lessons, but I really miss the actual human interaction!
Or, does anyone have any studio suggestions in the Baltimore area? It would be about a 45 minute drive, but there’s no where else to go around me! I really like the artsy and graceful side of things, where its like vertical ballet.
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9 Replies
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having a pole jam via skype! i know alot of folks who do,ad it will get you the humn interaction aspect 🙂
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That sounds cool! i'm intrigued about this too…
I've got an issue that I've outgrown my classes, I've tried other classes but find the same issue of the advanced class being too simple.
I've yet to find a way to continue learning or any master/graduate classes and I'm not too keen on learning by myself as the more advanced moves yet, the more dangerous they are. Hence, I would need a spotter but I don't have any pole friends I'm close to to jam together.
I'm curious about how people continue their learning?
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ive only been at it since january and have never been to a class. i learn alot from a friend who is way experienced when we can get together. i also do veenas lessons and know what you mean about the human contact part.youtube has also played a part. since i joined this sight i watch the vids of fellow veeners for inspiration,and guidance
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hey,
im relatively new to pole dancing too, ive done a beginners course which was great!!! I feel that I can do all the things that we were taught unaided now. Do you think im ready to move on to more advanced classes or keep practicing until I have all of that down? I don't want to feel silly in class 🙂
xxx
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im feeling like ive been stuck, its almost 2 years and im so anxious. i feel like i should be doing handsprings by now…and i cant, i see ppl who have been doing it for only a year and are doing amazing stuff idk what it its. i used to attend a studio that is 2 hours away, but…its not worth me traveling so far for the experience that kinda feels like im being intrusive. all the other girls are aquainted with each other and address one another by their name. but its obvious on how much i miss out, events, competitions, showcases, and valuable studio time. it sucks living in the boonies. i can do some advanced moves like teddys or reverse v… but lately ive been so frustrated that i cant do a stupid basic butterfly
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When you're self-taught it can be tough. Trust me, I know. I was completely self-taught for nearly all of the first 2 years of pole dancing. I taught myself to invert, all inverted tricks, aysha, shoulder mount, cartwheel and handspring. Without Studio Veena, I would've quit. This place gave me a reason to record my practices and make videos… it was great motivation. I used Veena's lessons, but I also just did a lot of watching pole videos that I like, as research. I would ask myself what about that dance made me think it was so beautiful, and try to analyze the movements. I also practiced a fair amount of freestyle, making sure to record every little thing, as I was the only critique I had. I went straight from self-taught to instructor and, even though I've taken many workshops since then, I'm still mostly self-taught in all I do. My dancing is a product of my own research and perseverance.
As for getting the next trick… everyone is going to go at a different pace. I cannot stress enough how important it is not to compare your own progress with someone else's timeline. They have a different body, different age and energy level, different training options available, etc. We are not all created equal in pole dance progress, and that's a-ok! Be proud of what you can do right now, because being able to pole dance at all is way more impressive than the average person. Obviously when someone is better than you it can get ya down, I also know that all too well. We are all still human (though maybe slightly super-human? hehe). So when that happens I watch a video of mine that I particularly like, and look for what I love about my own dancing. We all have some strengths to lean on. In the meantime, be consistent about aiming towards improvement, and improvement will come in time. 🙂
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I thought Veena had combinations though?
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Progressing at home alone is tough & it sucks to be beyond your pole studio as well. But I know some things that have helped me & others is pole convention workshops or just attending monthly workshops in there towns. I’ve found that once I got to certain level, I learned alot from workshops. With workshops, you learn several things in a couple hours of time, whereas with pole classes, you learn a few things over several weeks of time.
Also traveling to different studios where they offer pole camps or pole intensive workshops 1-2x a year, I know alot of people find this challenging & beneficial also.
Combos & transitions are my rough spot as well but I’m working on it! I’d recommend SV routines/combos section. Learn all of them & then spend a practice a week, stringing different ones together. And freestyle more & tape it. Also, try listening to a song that really moves you & write down moves & combos that you feel or envision, as you listen to the song, then try executing the moves.
Jamilla Deville has a routines DVD that is pretty good.
Also, check out Josiah Badasses tutorials that he posts on his Facebook page. He posts a new interm to advanced combo every week, most of which are unique to his signature style & moves. HTH!
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@j Harris are there no intermediate level classes at your studio? You shouldn’t jump from beginner to advanced. But sounds like you could be ready for intermediate level. It should go something like beginners, interm, then advanced or level 1&2(beg), level 3&4(interm), level 4+(advanced)
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