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The no-twisty club?
When I first really got into pole dancing, I was convinced there was no pole move I wouldn’t want to learn how to do. However, now that I’m getting into handsprings, I think I’ve finally found something I’d rather just leave altogether: twisted grip. Anything twisted grip.
I know myself. I get confused pretty easily and am often clumsy. It seems to me that twisted grip is something you have to be very careful with to avoid injury – and sometimes even then you can’t avoid it – and I know I would mess it up somewhere, at some point, and probably pay a hefty price for it. It also just feels icky to my body and kind of freaks me out. I’d much rather build the strength to do something like cup grip (which I’ve been doing on an off for a month or so now), which takes more strength but honestly seems technically easier and simpler for me to understand. It just feels like too much of a risk for me to dedicate myself to learning twisted grip, and for what end? To learn something I don’t even like all that much anyways and probably get injured from it somewhere along the line? Eeehhh, I’d rather not even go there. I’m honestly to the point where even the reverse grab spin (which I used to love) feels a bit icky to me because of its similarity to twisted grip, although that might be going too far.
I know a lot of people here at StudioVeena agree with me, but the studio I go to doesn’t seem to have the same attitude. Pretty much everyone I know there who is at a point where they could use twisted grip IS using it in some way, and my acro-pole teacher works with it extensively. Is there a graceful way to opt out of this method in my studio classes? Maybe talking to my teacher one-on-one and just practicing something else from class when he starts to teach something with twisted grip? I don’t want to be conspicuous or hurt anyone’s feelings, I just know my body and know this isn’t going to be good for me.
Anyone else in the no-twisty club? I know you’re out there =P
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6 Replies
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I’m in the same club. I don’t feel that I have the flexibility to perform twisted grip safely, so I don’t do it. Even if I did have the flexibility, I’m not sure I, personally, would feel it’s worth the risk–like you I’d rather just build the extra strength to use other grips.
As far as handling it, I think talking to your instructor about it outside of class is a good option. I would make sure to ask if it is an okay time to talk about something for a few minutes, maybe even email the instructor in advance. Be honest about your feelings and your concerns about *your* body (i.e. you’re not making a judgement about other people’s use of twisted grips). Ask if you can work on the same moves with other grips, or if there is something else s/he would recommend working on when the class is doing twisted grip moves. As long as you aren’t disruptive to the class, I would think that many instructors would try to work with you on this, and probably also be glad you’re respecting your body. If it is not something that can be worked around, that might not be the class for you.
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Many instructors don’t understand that the twisted grip can be harmful. Sometimes it’s immediate injury like if the student isn’t flexible or strong enough and they are kicking into this grip. Sometimes it’s injury that creeps up over time with heavy use.
I RARLY use it and ONLY if I’ve been poling consistently, my shoulders thank me for that! The rare time I use it I’m inverted or for single arm handstands and I’m transitioning to something else. It’s less taxing on the shoulder if you are closer to the pole and inverted. Reaching overhead while twisted or moving far away from the pole in some transitions using TG can be risky! Even when using regular ol split grip we need to be careful not to over do it and watch both the upper and lower shoulders!
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I am a part of the twisted grip club however, it’s not all that I train but personally I feel that for my body it is ok. But I don’t think that every move is right for everyone and that should be respected. I would talk to your teacher…I used to take private classes at my studio because I could say I don’t want to spend time learning something (ie. I dislike teddy) but I’m at a level where it makes more sense to be in a class and learn one off things. My instructor and I had a chat about me going into regular classes and we came to an agreement if they were doing something I didn’t want to participate in, I’d politely do my own thing. The only thing they asked was that I didn’t try new stuff during that time so they could keep instructing.
If I were an instructor I would respect you bringing that forward. 🙂
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I don’t/cant do twisty grip stuff either… One handed spins are out of the picture for me as well. I have nerve damage and may never be able to do one handed spins. Also, my shoulders dislocate easily. This pretty much limits me from doing many spins. I agree with Wcox, just talk to your instructor and maybe you two can come to an agreement that you will just try a variation on those tricks and not use twisted grip. Like Veena mentioned, I will use it for single arm handstands or for transitioning and that seems to be okay for me. just tell your instructor what’s going on and I’m sure you can work out a way for you to do an alternative.
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I rarely use twisted grip; being a veener I’ve learned the dangers, and while it’s easy for me, I prefer to work on alternative grips whenever possible. I don’t frequent studios, but other than foundation moves, if I don’t personally think a trick is pretty, I don’t waste time on it. Sometimes I’ll start to like one I previously didn’t care for, or a variation of it, and that’s when I’ll take the time and put in the effort. Stick to your convictions, if you don’t want to do TG, don’t. It’s your body and no instructor knows it better than you do!
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Thanks for the replies and the encouragement everyone! There’s two classes I attend on the day I go to lessons, the first is a novice-level class and there’s a 15-minute break between that and the acro-pole class. I’ll probably talk to him (or her – my main instructor travels a lot and there’s a woman who fills in for him when he does) in the 15-minute window between classes. I imagine he’ll respond pretty well and accommodate me, since it’s technically a beginner acro-pole class (although we do often do more advanced things depending on the strength/flexibility of the students present that day) and not everyone is at a point where they could really use twisted grip much. I hope so; my schedule doesn’t really allow for me to take many different classes right now and I’ve settled into a weekly routine that’s comfortable for me, so it would be hard for me to take a different class right now.
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