[LabCobra]

I think you already got a reasonable answer. How long have you been practicing? Based on the spins you mentioned I suspect you might actually be quite new to the pole. Keep in mind that learning pole dancing takes time. If you feel you’re not progressing enough and have been at it for a while you can carefully try to actively grip the pole less tightly – after all, with basic spins the worst thing that could happen is to land on your feet faster than expected. There’s really not a lot of magic behind it though – it’s just that practice makes perfect. Typically as people get more comfortable on the pole their grip adjusts automatically.

[LabCobra]

Queenofwands: If you want to I’m sure we can make it work on weekends. 🙂

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Zurich. Guess you might be quite close. 🙂

[LabCobra]

The fact that you don’t experience any pain in your everyday life to me strongly suggests that this is a muscular issue, presumably some sort of inflammatory reaction. I’m so sorry to hear about your negative experience with doctors – I’ve been through that and know how frustrating it can be. If you’re truly doing something wrong a video would certainly be helpful – personally I’m rather crappy at spotting mistakes but maybe someone else here is good at that. It’s worth a shot!
Oh, and the fact that you’re rather strong over all imho does not contradict the theory at all. It’s enough if one muscle (group) you should use in an invert is weak. This could either lead to that weak muscle being injured or a strong muscle being strained because it has to take over for the weak one. When you go through technique make sure to be very aware of correct shoulder placement.

[LabCobra]

Did the pain not subside at all after your break or is it just not entirely gone? You mentioned that inverting on the other side doesn’t make a big difference – does that mean you still experience the exact same pain when switching sides? Or is the other side painful when you switch?

It might be helpful to lay off inverting a little longer and focus on strengthening the involved muscles in the meantime. It’s also possible you’re making some technical mistake when inverting but without ever having seen you do it I can obviously not comment on that – Veena’s lessons might be helpful for both of those things.
If you’re in a lot of pain (and it does sound like you are!) and the issue does not resolve itself in spite of a rather long break you may want to start thinking about seeing a physician, physiotherapist or the like about the issue.

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Thank you for sharing your stories and for the encouragement, it really lifted my spirit! I will just need to get over my frustration and try to find a capable doctor or therapist while I keep pushing to improve my strength and posture. If you managed to then there’s no reason I can’t too. 🙂

[LabCobra]

Is there really nobody with any kind of advice? I can hardly believe I’m such a medical wonder that no one here has made any similar experiences. I would really greatly appreciate any suggestions or ideas, no matter how small!

[LabCobra]

Hi Wennajo,
Congrats on getting ready for your first performance! Sounds really exciting.
I don’t have any performance experience myself so I can’t give much insight about that aspect, just the training itself. First of, the rest days in Veenas programs come with little videos which typically state that you should only relax or foam roll etc – thus aligning the programs accordingly would be advisable.
Concerning the switch from 50mm to 45mm poles you’re right that this might be tricky at first but you will really only have to squeeze a little tighter to get a good grip on the smaller diameter pole. That’s something you could actively try to practice on the 50mm pole as well.
Regarding the performance I would suggest not worrying about learning too many new tricks, rather polishing the ones you know and working on combinations. I don’t know what the crowd is going to be like but to non pole dancers even very basic tricks already look really impressive, especially if executed well.
Good luck for your performance! I’m sure you’ll do great.

[LabCobra]

It’s hard to diagnose the issue from afar so if you really want to find out you will probably need to see a physician about the issue. Generally speaking if the pain only lasts a day and is entirely gone after that it’s probably nothing too serious – but beware as it might turn into that!
The two most likely causes are intense muscle soreness of some kind of inflammatory process like tendinitis (but only a very early stage or it would not disappear this quickly). Either way it is probably advisable to reduce the training intensity. Practicing the strenuous moves once a week sounds completely fine but maybe you’re working on them too intensely during that practice. What do those sessions look like? Also, how often and what do you train besides that? I’m asking because even if the main issue should be split grip tricks other exercise of course still is relevant when trying to figure out whether or not you are overtraining. You could try to work on split grip twice a week rather than once but only half the amount of time per session. Another thing that might be helpful is to take extra care of your forearms in warm up. Warming up the wrists really well can help reduce or prevent issues like this.
Outside of your training you may find that self massage or foam rollers help bring relief. If sore muscles are the root of the problem arnica containing cremes or lotions can also help. You could try doing exercises to strengthen the forearms but not when you’re in pain and only separately, not in the sessions that already overstrain those muscles.
If you don’t find those adjustments help you within a few weeks I would advise you stay off the pole for a while, meanwhile strengthening the muscles of the forearms and if necessary consulting a doctor. But let’s hope that won’t be necessary.

[LabCobra]

Personally I don’t think you necessarily need to be inverted to run the risk of injury. Even when you’re just doing some basic spin the pole falling over combined with your momentum could easily lead you to crash into walls or furniture. But since you seem to be fairly adamant about being able to avoid risk to yourself I’ll bring up some other things you should consider.
– The pole falling over is not only a risk to yourself but also your environment – how are you planning to explain broken furniture, in the worst case maybe even a broken window, to your parents?
– If money is tight you should consider that you’re actually losing money by investing in the cheap pole even though you’re already planning on getting a high quality pole in the long run. Getting the high quality pole is likely not going to get cheaper so the money you invest in the cheap pole actually is money you waste. If the manufacturer is truly willing to send you the spare part for free this point obviously is mute.
– You wrote that for now you just need the pole “to be sturdy and not get stuck” yet the cheap one apparently did get stuck and got damaged quite easily when you tried to take it down, i.e. is not sturdy. How is that not an issue even though it goes against what you yourself wrote you want/need? Can you really be sure that setting it up looser will avoid the issue?
– Tightening the pole less obviously increases the risk of it falling! Therefore by (possibly) eliminating one problem you might cause a new one.

I’m not dead set on stopping you from using that pole because I get that high quality poles are expensive and that it’s hard not to be able to do something you obviously have a passion for. Should you really decide to use the pole there are some things you can do to make it less dangerous.
– Take great care in putting it up and should you be able to leave it up for a longer time check if it’s still secure before using it.
– If the pole makes a weird sound (like something breaking or moving) stop using it and thoroughly examine the issue. Don’t allow yourself to think that it was “probably nothing”! Wasting time by checking one time too often is much better than having the pole crumbling beneath you.
– Be careful when doing spins. They are taught in beginner classes but the momentum you create really tests the pole! If it’s not too big a restriction spin only with reduced momentum or avoid spins completely.

And some points that apply no matter what pole you use:
– Try to move potentially dangerous objects (like furniture with sharp edges) as far away as possible.
– If you can use a crash mat. But be careful not to use anything that might slide away easily when you step or crash on it as this could be a risk in itself.
– Have someone available should something go wrong! I get that this is difficult since your parents apparently must not know but maybe you have a sibling you can confide in or a friend that might train with you or help you out. The idea of you secretly poling all alone on an insecure pole makes me uneasy. This is a very bad combination!

[LabCobra]

I’m so sorry to hear about your troubles! Did you hurt your back in some sort of accident or did the pain start gradually? It sounds like a real bummer and reminds me a lot of the way I felt in the year after my accident (except there were no days off). I even had a matching injured shoulder! It’s frustrating when injuries pile up like that – as if one wasn’t enough! I have no clue how this is handled in Canada but where I live chances of someone just throwing in an additional shoulder MRI would be pretty much nil. But even if they don’t, just getting imaging of the back surely would be most helpful already. I’m not quite sure how bad the issue with your shoulder is but if you can still move it to some extent without pain take a look at Veenas lessons for scapula control and external/internal rotation! Those are classic exercises you would get in physical therapy and they are most helpful with many shoulder issues.

I got an X-ray of the entire back in multiple positions but as you suggested this was only of limited help. The (supposedly harmless) slipped disk was then confirmed in an MRI of the lumbar spine. Other than that unfortunately they couldn’t find much – but obviously all imaging techniques have their limitations. Now I’m wondering if a CT might show something that remains hidden in an MRI. Maybe I’ll ask for a CT when I can muster up the energy to go to yet another physician.

[LabCobra]

I typically check my pole every session but would recommend doing it at the very least after considerable temperature changes, after putting it up, after extended sessions on spinning mode and otherwise at regular intervals. I just move around the pole at 90 degree angles, pulling in each direction rather forcefully with my body weight. If I feel the pole moves at this point obviously I tighten it, otherwise proceed the test by doing some rather energetic but simple spins (any spin will do, just chose one you’re very comfortable with and feel certain you could get out of quickly should the pole fall). Now you didn’t actually mention whether you have a pole with spinning mode. If you do then as others have pointed out if the pole is spinning smoothly the pole is not over tightened however I would also beware of over tightening static poles as it can cause bend to the x-joints or even the pole itself which can be very bothersome when you want to take it down.
I believe the official instruction is to tighten the pole as much as possible with one hand… however I am not sure if this accurately takes into account the amazing strength pole dancers build. 😉

[LabCobra]

I’m so sorry you broke your pole but glad it happened this way rather than while you were on it. I agree with the feedback you got from the others that cheap poles unfortunately tend to be dangerous. However considering how much longer they last the high quality poles really are not that expensive in my opinion. Also at least for my X-Pole I can assure you that assembly and disassembly are remarkably quick, which would surely help you. I’ve heard similar things about some other brands but can’t vouch for those as I have no experience with them. Good luck on your pole journey and stay save on the way.

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@dustbunny: I’ve mostly been to orthopedists but also sports medicine specialists, chiropractors and osteopaths. It gets tiring to hear you’re fine when you’re clearly not so I’ve given up on going to doctors for a while now. Might give it another try. Anyhow, thanks for the encouraging words!