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Some people like 90% better but when I use it for whatever reason I can’t stick to the pole. Maybe it makes my hands/skin dry and slippery – I’m not sure all I know is it doesn’t work well for me. I’ve used 50% also but it doesn’t get off all the grip residue so that’s why I stick with 70%.

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I’m another rubbing alcohol pole cleaner. I use the 70 percent kind to get everything off including itac.

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I know there are some dancers here that will probably give some good answers to you but also http://www.stripperweb.com would have a ton of info you might find helpful.

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Thanks Serzi I love everything you said!

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I always use 70% rubbing alcohol to clean my stainless steel poles. Also I’ve heard with X-pole it’s good to start with a steam clean to remove the factory grease that’s on a brand new pole: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdjeYnLLaBw

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It might not have been a strip club but the DJ encouraged the contestants to take off their clothes and then declared her the winner after her performance and although she continued on once the contest was over management of the venue didn’t ask her to stop. so it doesn’t seem like she broke any rules.

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Same as everyone here.
If I could only choose 1 of the 2 I’d take online lessons. I can do them when I want and can advance or spend extra time on a move at my own pace.

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Lol Cantetinza@save it…
@Allyson Don’t feel dumb feel happy you’re not with such a miserable person. You don’t get his “jokes” because you are not a vindictive person who makes comments with the intent to belittle someone else.

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I guess it varies from club to club. At most clubs I’ve seen girls dance one after another and occassionally one will wipe down the pole before she begins her stage show. At one club they had a man wipe the pole each time before the next dancer came out.

Also with passive aggressive types like your friend’s husband I usually calmly tell people like that what I think the true aim of their comment/question is. I make sure to keep it short and simple and stay calm because people like this love to try and rile someone up underhandedly and then play it off as if the other person is being too emotional and overreacting over nothing.

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After I started doing a cradle spin to butterfly regularly it seemed to help build the strength for me to do a handspring.

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I definitely think it’s worth the effort and that you shouldn’t give up.
You might need to change your stretches though. I made a lot of progress with Alethea’s stretching for the splits combined with the splits in 6 weeks program (I took more like 6 months though) also I’ve heard of people having good results with Dara Torres resistance stretching, Valentino brothers DVDs & online classes, and of course Veena’s lessons and I 3rd the advice about checking out PnF stretching.

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I started to always record myself and stopped using a mirror. This made a huge difference, also I like Rhiannan Nichole’s online lessons. She gets into the details of how to move in a flowy under-water looking kind of way.
When you record yourself do a small combo of moves with transitions and when you watch make mental notes (or actual notes!) of what you need to change: point your toes more here or slow down more at a certain point, arch more, stick out the hips, do less of one thing or more of another etc. Then try it again a few times taping it all to see the improvements.

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K I’m still a little mixed up, here is a vid that says true grip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53wFUQ_R568
and this vid says cup grip https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jx7j2JjQAY but watching from 1:01 it looks the same to me.

Does anyone have any vid examples that show the difference?

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I thought a true grip and a cup grip were the same thing. Can someone please clarify for me? Thanks

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For myself cushions and grip aids are my best friends when learning something new. Once you get more experienced you will get the feel for if you are solid in a move or not. The first thing I ever fell out of was a CAR. I thought it was fear holding me back and causing me to feel shaky when doing it but it turns out I wasn’t gripping properly. I learned a new grip tip once I started Veena’s lessons and have been secure in it since (spinning and static). The other move I’ve fallen out of was a holly drop – not too bad because my leg slowed me down but now I can do them easily and safely and I can tell when I have the proper grip and positioning to go for it and when I don’t. Handstands are another move I didn’t have confidence with. I didn’t feel strong and had a fear that my arms would buckle. I’ve recently started working on them again now that I’ve gotten my cartwheel mount and am getting closer to mastering other core moves and I noticed now I can kick up against the wall easily unlike before. I definitely agree with all the advice here especially with conditioning, prep moves, and learning in moves in order to gain strength but throughout the process all I can say to really help with fear pillows pillows pillows until you execute the move consistently without faltering and gain a better idea of if you are afraid vs not physically ready.