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What???
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i remember watching that video when i first started doing pole and thinking man i am not good as a beginner lol. after almost a year i am still working on my invert but everything takes practice. lol
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Not everyone can afford cyber or studio lessons. I don’t think people who try to learn with Youtube are saying it’s easy at all…and if they think it is, they will learn otherwise within the first hour of trying. lol
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You are correct Christina not everyone trying to learn from YouTube has that mind set. I should have said that I am referring to specific people I personally know who had that mindset. And I was thinking of them when I said that. I think some people don’t respect how challenging pole is because the people who are good make it look so effortless. Please forgive my statement I didn’t mean to generalize all people learning by YouTube, not at all. I don’t want to put down people who have no other choice at all. I have much respect for those who are trying to learn even though they can’t afford lessons. I have been there myself at one time and I understand. 🙂
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Sorry for the novel of a post, I just have a lot of thoughts on this.
I actually found this exact video 8-9 months ago, before I had gotten back into classes at my local studio. I didn’t know much of anything about pole back then, only that I loved it and wanted to learn more, and I had heard girls say they had learned or wanted to learn from YouTube videos so that’s where I went. I have to admit I didn’t read the description or the comments, I just saw that the video was titled “beginner” and marked it in my phone as “moves I should work on.” This was a little before I had my basic invert, so it definitely made me feel bad about myself that I couldn’t do most of these tricks that were apparently “beginner tricks.” I also feel like that was part of the reason I started working on my aerial invert WAY too soon after I got my basic invert from the ground, which meant I was kicking into it. It’s still kind of a habit for me to kick into aerial inverts, even though I know it’s bad and that I’m strong enough to lift myself into it.
The description does make it a bit better, but it’s still incredibly misleading when the common understanding of “beginner” is very different from how she’s using it. It also bothers me that she says almost every trick begins with an invert. I can think of quite a few advanced tricks that begin with a CAR/CKR, a witch sit, etc. There’s also quite a few beginner (or slightly past beginner but not quite intermediate, at my studio it’s classified as novice level) things that can be done aerially that don’t require an invert. I was recently thinking about how much happier I would have been if I had gone back into classes sooner, since I would have been less focused (and miserable) with trying to get my basic invert and having more fun learning the other stuff that WAS within my ability. If I had read the description, I would have been incredibly discouraged to see her say that. I also can’t believe she says that you’re at beginner level until you have your full front and middle splits. Bodies are so different and flexibility training takes so much time, it just kind of boggles my mind to see someone say that. There’s a ton of advanced stuff I’ve been working on that doesn’t require full splits in any direction, and I think it would have made me feel incredibly hopeless if I had read that, say, a year ago.
I don’t want to be too negative about this, though. I think I see what she was trying to do – I agree with Phoenix, I think she was trying to show how challenging pole dance is by saying in the description that the fundamentals/basics take months or years to learn and take lots of conditioning to be able to do. I give her credit for that, I just think she didn’t communicate that very well in some ways.
I agree with Phoenix that I’ve definitely seen that kind of dismissive “I’ll learn it on YouTube” attitude, and it really bothers me because it’s clear those people aren’t taking it seriously as an art/sport. Obviously not everyone who uses YouTube as a tool for learning pole dance are treating it that way – I saw a video interview with Nicole “The Pole” where she said she primarily learned off of YouTube – but I just can’t shake the feeling that it needs to be approached very carefully. There’s so much on YouTube – and so much crap on YouTube, like the videos that Veena mentioned saying beginners should be able to do XY and Z – that I feel like you have to know something going in to not get lost, hopeless, or injured. I’ve definitely used YouTube videos at times, but I felt like it was the most useful when I had the basics of a move down already and wanted to learn variations. I also feel like even decent tutorials aren’t anywhere near as detailed as a lesson really should be. I know not everyone can afford studio lessons, but it just feels really dangerous to use YouTube to learn a ton of new stuff, since a 3-4 minute video can only tell you so much, and it would be easy to miss something and get injured.
That said, I am so so happy that SV exists as a resource for those who want to learn online 🙂 I don’t have the lessons mainly because I don’t have a home pole and I am NOT comfortable trying new things at work (the poles are a bad width for me, are rarely cleaned, there’s dangly light fixtures on the ceiling above the stage, the floors are plexiglass or something, there’s pressure to get everything perfect on the first try when you’re on stage). If I had a pole at home, though, I would get them in a heartbeat. It’s awesome to see such a detailed resource and such a dedicated woman putting it all out there 🙂
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I too feel that the headline is a bad choice of words. I do get the Point though. She demonstrates very good form, and I totally agree that everyone should work on these things until you can do them pretty before moving on. I’ve seen so many people who want that one trick, that is currently the rage, no matter what it takes and how to get into it, just to get that one photo to post on social media. I wish they would just get back and practise pretty climbing and inverting.
To me, the hardest trick is bs if you can’t get in and out safely and with good form. -
tacha666 – That’s totally true, I wasn’t even thinking about that… people charging ahead and trying to get the “cool” fad tricks before they even have basics down is definitely a problem. Also the whole idea of “fad tricks” seems like BS to me, not every trick is right for every body and every dance style, it is so much more important to have good basics. I see the point now too, I wasn’t even considering that.
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Honestly, though, I must admit I thought learning pole would be easier than it is. I thought I would learn it all from YouTube, but I was wrong. I plan on saving up for lessons…and spending plenty of time in these forums. ^_^
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I’m so happy my lessons have helps so many!!! For those reading this who are new to SV, I feel this might be a good thread to mention why I charge for my lessons….
1. I have many free options for everyone on YT, it’s not about the money for me.
2. The website is not free to run by any means, hosting video and everything else that goes along with studioveena does cost a significant amount each month.
3. I don’t travel and do workshops to make money, this is my only job so it is also payment for my time spent here helping. Which I LOVE to do!
4. I feel I have the easiest method for learning and have spent years of my life working on this. If I won a million dollars and could provide this website for free I would!
5. I do not sell anything other than lessons, anything I share, or recommend like poles or clothing are done because I like the product. I am not payed by anyone, I just like to help!
6. We have to pay for advertising. Our followers on FB will not see what I post if we don’t pay money. The only way they would is through shares but shares are hard to come by if you are not posting crazy pole tricks.
7. I feel we have the best value and many people would drop 20 dollars on eating out or buying things they don’t need without over thinking it. Yet because there are sooooo many free tutorials out there it causes many to assume my lessons are no different than whats free. They are!
When you purchase lessons you are not only getting the best online instruction you’re also supporting the site as a whole. xoxoxo
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I agree 100%.
And I think it is totally legitimate that you have to pay in order to get something of value.Honestly, I wouldn’t be where I am if I didn’t find this site. I learned so much here, and it was an awesome preparation to become a teacher myself.
I had a discussion about the whole money issue with a friend who also runs her own studio. We came to the conclusion, that of course it is nice to offer something for free or very few money, but then People don’t see it’s value. She actually had to raise her prices and guess what: she has now more students than before. Because they believe that paying a higher price means they get something superior.
Also from personal observation, I noticed that if something doesn’t cost anything, it seems not worth anything either to many people. If you have to work hard in order to get something (lessons, car, house, …) you treat and view it differently than you would if you could constantly have everything for free or without any effort. -
Honestly, Veena, I was thinking that your prices are an absolute steal for what you offer. I spend more at my studio in a month than you charge for a year of unlimited lessons, especially considering how many sales you run. Makes me wish I had room for a home pole! You are an incredibly dedicated woman and I am so glad SV exists 🙂
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I’m in agreement that it was a poor choice of words, and I agree her intent was not to teach and she did demo good form… This to me isn’t so bad. The most dangerous are the videos instructing newbies to kick up wildly!
I have to say, as much as I don’t feel like beginner is a great choice of words…. I do think there are plenty of well respected and safe studios that require you to be able to invert and leg hang really solidly before moving to the intermediate class. (Granted aerial inverting is maybe a bit more advanced). These places usually have “intro” level classes before the beginner levels. But I guess in the end it’s really just a choice of words, i think its misleading cause it seems imply a length of time someone has been doing it, but I do that think that was her intent. 😜
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