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Hey, lots of people need a break from pole once in a while! I burned out pretty bad in February and haven’t done much working out of any kind for…oh like 6-7 weeks, wow. Getting back in, though. Happy to hear pole still makes you happy after your break!

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YIKES I cannot BELIEVE they thought this was ok to do! And that no one in POSA leadership spoke up? And yeah, anything that’s like “I’m sorry you got offended” isn’t a real apology. Honestly, I hope it’s hard for this person to get into any other competitions if they’ll pull shit like this.

[33barbwire]

I haven’t gotten to use this class plan with groups much yet, but here’s roughly what I do:

1. Strength/conditioning warm up for 10-15min
2. 3-ish tricks plus combos you can make with them
3. A couple bonus tricks if the student(s) breeze through the above (for example – if I’m teaching a step around, but the student accidentally does an extended leg spin, I’ll straighten out their step around and teach extended leg as a bonus. I think it’s fun to show them basic tricks are all pretty similar and just changing what you do with your legs.).
4. Cool down stretching for 10-15min and get feedback about how they enjoyed the class – was it tough, too easy, moving too fast, etc.

[33barbwire]

Honestly, what helps me with body awareness is finding new ways to move, and taking video. With video, I can review and realize I’m doing something weird with my hand, or I could angle my hips better, etc. There’s also an instagram called FindingYourFreestyle (or something like that) and they do challenges that restrict movement certain ways so you can explore something you might not usually do.

[33barbwire]

I’ve almost filled up my first journal! The early pages are diagrams of a bunch of tricks, and I’d thought I’d make a catalog of every trick ever…but that was too ambitious lol.

Mine has workouts with notes on how much effort I felt I was exerting. Like, did 3 sets of 3 knee tucks feel hard one week, and 2 sets of 5 felt super hard another week? I’ve got short checklists of tricks I want to nail (though they’ve been taking a while). I also have a lot of notes from listening to interviews on the Pole Parlour podcast!

Since this one’s almost full, it’ll be time for me to pick out a new one soon. 🙂

[33barbwire]

Thank you! I’m practicing with softer footwork, but my worst noise issues are with stepping on the outer edge of the platform. The narrow end will knock the inner rim that it slips under during assembly. (Does this make sense? I hope I’m explaining it ok.) I’ll try some little felt spots on these next time I’m assembling it.

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Ooh, following. 😀

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@Calypso2009 yay! What days of the week work best for you? Holler if you’d like my email or fb/ig and we can take this conversation there.

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I’m still looking for somebody who’s up for pole jams via Skype or Google Hangouts. Hope you find some irl buddies!

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Congrats on starting the studio process! Where are you based?

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When my company was a startup, a lot of my online usernames had my first name in them, including here. After it got acquired by a larger corporation, I changed my username here and on IG. Haven’t had any issues, but maybe I’m lucky. My main IG is linked to my FB, and I’ve been lazy about figuring out how to un-link it, but supposedly it’s possible!

If you’re worried about being recognized by people you’d rather avoid, you can always make a stage name and make your videos with extra makeup you don’t usually wear or even a cool mask. Hop on the Pinterest! 😀 It can be really fun!

I’m about to go through making a new IG myself where I’ll put more polished videos than I have on my main account, which is pretty catch-all.

I’m sorry some of y’all have it so much tougher. But our numbers are growing and it won’t be like this forever. @AerialJoy, I hope what you choose feels good!

[33barbwire]

LyraPole, does your friend want a buddy to do occasional pole jams with at a house? 😀

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When I was looking for stages, there was supposedly one by Platinum Stages, but I couldn’t find anywhere online to buy it! I got my X-Stage Lite almost a year ago, and I’ve been happy with it. 🙂 If you find another good option, I hope you’ll share it.

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If you’ve got a webcam, I’d love to do pole jams via Skype or Google Hangouts! 😀

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Thanks for the suggestions, y’all!