LunaLovely
Forum Replies Created
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If you have the pole in your armpit, you would grab the pole with your free hand and then sneak your shoulder through. That in itself is a figurehead variation, and then you can shouldermount from there. I’m assuming that we are talking about double cup grip here, although you might be able to do princess grip as well? I’m not as familiar with that grip. I also just found this video on Instagram where someone does it from a sit, but it looks like it takes a bit of a twist to get the positioning. https://instagram.com/p/BFy2DDpuXfq/
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Figurehead is a good way. Getting in from superman takes a decent amount of back flexibility, so you may find figurehead a little bit easier. I’m sure there are other ways, but those are the simplest ones I can think of.
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Hi there Mystical, I also struggle with sweaty hands. I’d say my experience with Firm Grip is pretty similar to what what Polarpole is describing. It’s SUPER sticky initially and is perfect for those tricky inverted hand holds (think Ayesha). It’s so sticky that it’s actually tricky to readjust, like you just put your hands on flypaper. After my hands warm up, though, it’s almost like it starts to melt, and then it ends up getting a bit slick. I found myself having to combine it with dry hands. It’s rosin based, so it makes sense that temperature thins it out.
Another good one to try is itac. You can use it on yourself or on the pole, and a little goes a long way. I’ve just starting dabbling with that one, so can’t really give a full review, but I can definitely say that there’s no such thing as too many grip aids.
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If you truly have no athletic background like you say, it’s completely normal to not be able to do much at all after only 5 classes. You’re starting from nothing, so even though you’re really excited, you have to give your body some time to catch up and repair itself. You’re sore for three days after because your body is not used to these exercises. You’ve broken down a lot of muscle, and now the muscle has to mend itself. That is how we build muscle.
When I first started, I couldn’t do much more than a back hook spin. I could not climb AT ALL. I still remember my pole instructor having to give my butt a little push up so I could move my legs up to actually climb because without that, I literally could not do it. No core strength, no upper body strength, nothing. Now a year and a half later this same instructor is teaching me intermediate and advanced tricks and I have the strength to do them myself.
I don’t think you mentioned how often you are taking these classes. When I started, I was taking one class per week, and that’s basically all my body could handle. It would sometimes take a full week for me to stop feeling sore. In between that I would take a yoga class at the gym or do a more leg focused exercise at the gym.
I guess my point is, let your body be your guide. Some people progress really fast. Those are usually the people that have some kind of athletic background, whose bodies are used to intense training. It makes no sense to compare yourself to them or anyone else. Each body is different. If you go to fast for or push too hard your chance of injury will go way up, and you’ll start hating it. Instead of focusing on the things you can’t do, start focusing on all of the things that you can and all of the improvements you’re making, no matter how small.
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Just dish out for the extender. Why do a literal hack job? The way the pole is designed with the x joints, I don’t think that’s even an option. There would be no way to tighten them. Plus, if you move and end up with ceilings of a different height, you’ll be greatful for those extra pieces because you’ll always be able to get the right height.
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It’s probably on spin pole. Spinning for more than a few seconds on static takes a lot of momentum, so if the spin keeps going and going and it looks effortless, chances are it’s spin pole. You’ll eventually start to be able to tell the difference.
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Hi there, I have only ever had a pole set up at home on popcorn ceilings. Just recently moved, and when I took my pole down, there was a faint ring where some of the popcorn had been rubbed off, but if you didn’t know where to look, you wouldn’t even notice it.
When you go to set up, just keep in mind that stud finders won’t work properly on popcorn, so if you need to use a stud finder to locate the beams, you can hold a piece of cardboard over the spot you want to search and THEN use the stud finder on that flat surface to find your studs. Other than that, I have had no problems setting up at either place, nor have I had any instability issues.
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Coming down from an invert can put a lot of strain on your back! When I first started inverting a lot I pulled my lat really bad on the way down and was out of commission for 4 weeks. I would hold off on this kind of movement for a while and work on strengthening the muscles involved. Your core also includes your back! Don’t just work on crunches. Work the opposing muscles–your back muscles–by doing some superman/starfish type exercises. Obviously give your body some time to heal up first though.
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I once pulled my lat from coming out of inverts when I was still pretty new because I hadn’t worked up my back strength to match my ab strength. It sucked. Any kind of twisting or stretching movement was pretty uncomfortable. It took about 4 weeks before I was back to 100%. During those 4 weeks I took ibuprofen to reduce swelling and speed recovery and wrapped my back at night. Sleeping was really the most troublesome part for me since I tend to sleep on my stomach, and that is soooo bad for your back, so had to make great efforts not to do that. Take it easy. Take it very easy. Do not do any inverting until you feel 100%, and even then, do not rush back into all the things you were doing before. Take ibuprofen, do some light stretches. Be patient. If it’s problematic enough and you are able to, see a doctor. Once you’re healed up, make sure to work on strengthening the back to prevent the same injury from happening again. This is just what my experience was like. Everyone is different, so make sure to listen to your body!
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I used to bruise a lot from climbing when I was new too. As your placement and strength improve, and as your body becomes more accustomed to coming in contact with the pole, the bruising will lessen. I remember having to ice my shins after my first few classes.
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Following your passions can be very rewarding but also very uncomfortable. Having inconsistent income is tough on a psychological level. I’ve been there, working as a photographer and in a library. I enjoyed it, but at a certain point it comes down to the kind of lifestyle you want to lead. I wanted a more comfortable lifestyle, so I got a job with a more consistent paycheck. I am risk averse.
I don’t think you’re being crazy. I think you’re trying to figure life out. That’s what we do when we’re young. The secret is, you can never figure life out. You can only figure out what works for you, and a lot of the time you have to figure this out by finding what DOESN’T work for you. That includes taking chances and making mistakes sometimes, not to say that this would be a mistake. If this is where your heart is leading you, now is the time to take the chance, while you’re young and can recover if it doesn’t go the way you had planned. You’ll never know if you don’t try.
And if it doesn’t work out, that’s okay. Being in your 20s is really hard, especially in a terrible economy. I basically spent 3 years after college trying different things. I’m only JUST starting to figure stuff out. Just know that there likely will be times where you ask yourself, “what the hell am I doing with my life?”, but you’ll figure it out, and you are not alone.
Getting some life experience in BEFORE you finish your degree is probably even a good idea. That way, if you realize the degree is not for you, you can literally save yourself thousands of dollars and years of debt, or you can switch to something that might better suit you.
There are dance companies that take on young people for set amounts of time. I would try getting into one of those. I had a friend who travelled with the Young Americans for two years right out of high school, dancing all over the world. She’s now finishing her degree in political science. Her experience has definitely enriched her life, and I cant imagine her having done anything else.
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Yes! You can swap out the B pole for an extension, probably the 750mm. My ceilings are 7 ft 2 in, and this is what I did. You can contact xpole about this, and they can confirm.
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That is absolutely terrible! No one should be treated that way. It’s one thing to say that you shouldn’t invert due to lack of strength but a totally different thing to say not to do it because of your weight. Girls of all shapes and sizes go to my studio, and they are all quite capable of inverting. There are some ignorant people in this world.
Have you reviewed the studio online? The first thing I would do is let the entire internet know that the instructors at this studio are racist fat shamers. Small businesses rely a lot on referrals, including online reviews. If I were searching the web for a local pole studio, this is certainly something I would want to know, and I would NOT want to take my business there. It sounds like they are not deserving of any new business. There’s no need to be spiteful about it. Just say exactly what happened, like you did here. You can write reviews on Google and yelp anonymously. If anyone can think of any other sites, please chime in.
If you would like any help with this, please let me know. It might not get your money back, but it’ll save a lot of people from having similar experiences.
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No, just start now! Pole is such a great workout, and you will find yourself making progress no matter how out of shape you are. You build strength as you go. I couldn’t do pull ups when I started either, and most people can’t when they’re new. That’s totally normal!
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A lot of this depends on your area. I live in Massachusetts and the studio I go to charges $25 for a one-off, one hour class, with a better value if you do punch cards (ex. 10 class punch card for $150.) I go multiple times a week, so I have a one year unlimited membership for $840 and can take as many classes as I want.