Forum Replies Created

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  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 6, 2010 at 11:51 pm in reply to: Rodney James Burlesque Workshops Aug/USA

    There are at least half a dozen:
    I’ve been going DL Fitness Studios in Worcester, and in Boston there’s also SuperShag (who hosted a showcase for the local studios headlined by Pantera Blacksmith) and Gypsy Rose Dancing, there’s another on the South Shore, I think there’s one in RI, and theGirlSpot (jayjay here is one of the owners) in CT.

    VERY curious about the "Cougar Dance" — what is it? I’m almost old enough to be one, although I was planning to limit myself to younger men only. https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_wink.gif

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 6, 2010 at 12:15 am in reply to: Rodney James Burlesque Workshops Aug/USA

    Will you be coming to New England this year?
    and what is a Cougar Dance? (inquiring kitties want to know …)

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 5, 2010 at 3:37 pm in reply to: 2010 July Challenge

    There are so many booty songs I don’t know how I will pick! lol I better do some squats to beef up the bum!!! https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_lol.gif

    Thanks for putting up the booty videos! they’re excellent. When I was trying to learn this a few months ago, I just went searching on youTube, and there was nothing this clear (although PoleWaxers has a helpful one). Here’s one from Russia that just made me giggle (very European!!!)
    Queen Svetlana Booty Pop Class

    Still completely ignorant on "booty songs"! https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_confused.gif

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 5, 2010 at 3:52 am in reply to: Pole Dancing at 50 (or any age)

    It doesn’t hurt, Joel, truly it won’t!

    Gonna have a pole jam for your party? https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_wink.gif

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 5, 2010 at 2:09 am in reply to: Mirror for pole

    I went to Home Goods where they have an abundance of mirrors at good prices. It also gives you the opportunity to try out different mirrors before you buy to see what will — and won’t — work for you. Even if you go with the custom mirror, you’ll have an idea about dimensions. I keep mine propped against the wall so I can adjust the angle depending on what I want to see.
    Sliding mirrored closet doors might be the solution!

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 3, 2010 at 2:30 pm in reply to: ggggrrrrrrrrrrrrrr frustration

    Another possibility for Teresa, and I didn’t realize this until reading more about her, is her first performance was on June 20 (or thereabouts).
    Athletes train to "peak" for an event, and it would make sense to "peak" for a performance like that … after which there is a natural & necessary let-down, mentally and physically. There’s a cycle of building (physical training & mental preparation) to peak, event performance, rest &relaxation/maintenance, and then begin again.

    Learning about the performance, it makes perfect sense to me that afterward the body and brain demanded a rest period! if you haven’t had the experience before, it comes as a surprise that after this big achievement suddenly you can’t do diddly!

    Give yourself at least another week of relaxation/maintenance (ie, enough to maintain your current level) and then return to building more strength and learning new tricks. And be sure to post of pic of that next big trick that’s been eluding you these past two weeks!

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 3, 2010 at 1:55 pm in reply to: 2010 July Challenge

    There are booty songs?

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 2, 2010 at 11:22 pm in reply to: Space & Pole

    Is there a pole out there just for vaulted ceilings? I have a pole but I lack the proper space because of my ceiling. I really need more space in order to start doing spins.

    Platinum Stages has a pole for which you can buy vaulted ceiling attachment.

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 2, 2010 at 11:10 pm in reply to: upper body vs. lower body proportion ratio

    I would like some of your opinions on the improvement in pole when you body ratios are proportionate. Also, I have a question on weight. I’m 5ft7, 130 lbs. I’m in a healthy weight range but I have found that my lower portion of my body (with muscle tone) is a little less proportionate than my upper body.
    <snip>
    Would it be more productive in my pole work to lose weight even though Im not overweight, and concentrate on my upper body strength to improve my spins? Or should just building upper body strength do the trick in the end without me losing weight? I figure the less to throw around the easier right?

    What do you mean by proportionate? We’re at the same height and weight, but our bodies are differently proportioned — whose proportions are "better"??? Seriously, we’re all complaining that we can’t find jeans!!!
    It’s natural that our lower bodies are relatively stronger than upper bodies, even if we’re not runners. For our own well-being, it’s good to have balance, but that’s hard to achieve unless you train for it. As for genetics, work with what you’ve got — what you see as a disadvantage for some moves may prove to be an advantage for others.

    You’ll get more value from building strength than losing weight (all you have left for losing is curves, and you really don’t want to see those curves laying softly pleated against your bones).

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 2, 2010 at 10:28 pm in reply to: ggggrrrrrrrrrrrrrr frustration

    Something else to consider, Teresa, is that you’re at the age when women’s bodies are experiencing Change, and let me tell you, weird stuff happens! Some of the changes are conspicuous, like hot flashes https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_redface.gif, but there is a full spectrum of subtle changes. The changes don’t happen at a steady rate, they are cyclical. Both your brain and your body can go wonky.
    "That ship has sailed" for me, so I’d forgotten!!! it can create frustration in normal life, but when you’re trying to progress physically, as you are, that must heighten the exasperation factor. You’re doing the best you possibly can for your body & brain, so don’t be too hard on yourself if your progress doesn’t always go according to plan, it’s just Mother Nature’s last reminders of the joys of being a woman (right before she stops reminding you …)

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 2, 2010 at 10:04 pm in reply to: Am I a wimp or am I normal?

    Looks like a good plan, be sure to record your level of soreness the next day to see if it improves over time.
    Adding in some of the therapies (of those suggested here) should accelerate healing. Don’t try new tricks until you’ve recovered to "normal".
    Your experience will be invaluable to other instructors (and over-achievers). Keep us posted!

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 2, 2010 at 5:44 am in reply to: Street Poling ~ Post Your Pics!
  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 2, 2010 at 4:14 am in reply to: Am I a wimp or am I normal?

    My chiropractor recommend MAGNESIUM. 1-3 tablets at bedtime. I also get weekly massages, and try to soak a lot in the tub. Is it a matter of building more muscle? Or not overdoing same moves?
    I’m trying to find a way to teach and not burn myself out at the same time. Any formats working for other instructors?

    Epsom salts is magnesium sulfate, so throw a good dose of that into the bath … it’s like a giant transdermal patch!

    What happens with over-training is that instead of building muscle, you’re breaking muscle down. And/or over-stressing ligaments/tendons. Muscle grows over time, but needs rest to achieve that growth. Once you have it, you need to maintain it, or you lose it. So you probably need to back off a while to let your muscles recover, and over time you will learn what is "too much" in terms of particular moves and repetitions.

    Professional athletes train every day, but vary the nature of their workouts. Ballet dancers dance every day, but they’ve worked for years to get to that level of performance.

    We’ve had problems with our instructors getting injured from doing too many classes, and working on advancing their own skills at the same time.

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 2, 2010 at 3:13 am in reply to: X-Pole X-pert XX or Platnium Stages Extreme?

    I’m happy with my PS pole, which I had to get because of my vaulted ceilings. I liked that it was adjustable and I could move it around.
    The only problem is that the vaulted ceiling attachment needs to be affixed to the ceiling, it doesn’t move around, and I wasn’t entirely sure where I wanted to keep it. So at the moment I have it in a room with flat 9′ ceiling, and it’s working out fine, but I may move it into the room with the vaulted ceiling (but installing the fixture will be a project that high up!)

    I had a problem with the pole getting increasingly slippery, and called PS; they told me to use 409 (or any type of cleaner that wasn’t "streak free"), instead of alcohol.

  • Maria-Elena Kadala

    Member
    July 2, 2010 at 2:58 am in reply to: ggggrrrrrrrrrrrrrr frustration

    Consider, Teresa, that you’re already at an advanced state, so each of the "new" moves is relatively more challenging, so you can’t expect to keep learning at the same rate.

    If it feels like a brain/body disconnect, perhaps take time out to just refine the "old" moves, until your brain/body are ready to learn something new. Remember that rest is an important component of growth! Take a break from frustration for a week or two, keep doing what you know already, and then give the new things another try.

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