Session Twelve: Fireman's climb.

I didn't get a video of myself climbing to the top. When climbing up the first time I relied on my upper body strength to pull myself up to the top of the pole.  I did this because it was an easier option for me due to having upper body strength, however I fatigued my arm muscles pretty quickly and learnt this was not an effective way to climb.  When I tried climbing for the second time I used my legs and combined this with momentum to enable me to climb more effectively.

Below is a video of what I a fireman's spin looks like.

Over the 12 sessions I have gained more upper body strength, better abs, tighter glutes, and a lot more confidence.  I have also discovered that pole dancing is not a sexy, glamorous and easy skill to master.  People should stop undermining people who perform pole dancing as a means of fitness, sport or occupation until they have tried it themselves and obtained the friction burns and bruises that come with it.

Below is a video of a professional doing pole dancing.

Session Eleven: Routine

Session Four for introduction course:

First week of the course:

Design of session:

The instructor gave an overview of the course. 

Warm up:

Cardiovascular warm-up 

1.     Run up and down the stairs

2.      10x push ups (either on knees or on toes)

3.     10x star jumps  

Stretches

1.     Wrist rotatory stretches 

2.     Wrist flexion stretches

3.     Wrist extension stretches

4.     Shoulder stretches

5.     Chest stretches 

Below is a video of a routine. It has all the moves I have learnt over the course. I have not posted individual videos of each move as I just chose to focus on two spins and to show you my improvement. 

Reflection:

Before I did the routine I went over all the moves that we had learnt over the course. I knew that I was quite confident in my ability however there were others that I wasn't so confident with. The back hook spin and the fireman's spin were two moves that I felt confident doing and the front hook spin was one where I wasn't. When I did the front hook spin I found it hard to get momentum when spinning therefore I was quite ridged and I spun to the ground pretty quickly.   I had not run through the routine before it got recorded which is why there are some small timing issues. 

Overall I felt like I have improved from the first week. I gained more confidence which helped me to try and get more involved.

Session Ten: Basic Invert

Firth week of the course:

Design of session:

Warm up:

Cardiovascular warm-up 

1.     Run up and down the stairs

2.      x10 push ups (either on knees or on toes)

3.     x10 star jumps  

Stretches

1.     Wrist rotatory stretches 

2.     Wrist flextion stretches

3.     Wrist extension stretches

4.     Shoulder stretches

5.     Chest stretches 

Below are picture of me doing a basic invert:

The instructor had to help me get into position  for this move because I didn't really know how to turn myself upside down. In this situation is was more important that I was able to experience being upside down than having the skills to get myself in to the correct position. The instructor is ensuring that my knees are correctly locked because I have to be able to grip onto the pole with my knees. 

Below is a picture of me doing a basic invert.

Session Nine: Basic Plank

Design of session:

The instructor gave an overview of the course. 

Warm up:

Cardiovascular warm-up 

1.     Run up and down the stairs

2.      10x push ups (either on knees or on toes)

3.     10x star jumps  

Stretches

1.     Wrist rotatory stretches 

2.     Wrist flexion stretches

3.     Wrist extension stretches

4.     Shoulder stretch

5.     Chest stretches 

Below of are picture of me doing a basic plank on the pole. There are also pictures of some of the bruises that I obtained from the pole. 

Reflection:

I found this pose easy to do but it was extremely painful on the inner thigh.  It was important to learn back and point your toes and hands in opposite directions.  I also found that I was spinning while doing this pose which meant I was lacking core muscle strength.

Session Eight: Stretch and Strength Session

Saturday 9th May

Design of session:

Today I did a flexibility and strength session and followed this video and also the link below. Flexibility is an important aspect of pole dancing because the more advanced the move is the more you are required to rely on your flexibility. After doing this session I felt it made the following weeks session and skills more obtainable.  I had become quite sore from pole dancing and it was good to release some tension from my muscles.

I chose to do an online yoga and pilates session to improve my flexibility and strength.  After doing both of these sessions I was very sore but I felt I had benefited my pole dancing by becoming stronger and more flexible.  Some of the exercises in the pilates video required a lot of core strength which was made easier by the strength I had gained by pole dancing alone.

Yoga Video: 

Pilates Video:

Session Seven: Second Self Directed Session

Second self directed session: 

Design of session:

Warm up:

Cardiovascular warm-up 

1.     Run up and down the stairs

2.      10x push ups (either on knees or on toes)

3.     10x star jumps  

Stretches

1.     Wrist rotatory stretches 

2.     Wrist flextion stretches

3.     Wrist extension stretches

4.     Shoulder stretches

5.     Chest stretches 

Below are two videos from the first session:

Video one: Back Hook Spin:

Learning the back hook spin (Frieden, 2014): 

1.     Step with the outside leg and pivot lifting the inside leg. 

2.     Turn your body towards the pole. 

3.     Once you’re facing the pole you should grip the pole with your other hand at the level of your jaw. The hand should be well wrapped around the pole and the elbow bent out towards the side. 

4.     The inside leg will wrap around the pole behind the knee. It is good to think about lifting your foot as if you wanted to touch your heel with your bottom.

5.     As soon as you take off tilt your head and chest to the back and push your pelvis forward.

Reflection:

I felt like I was getting stronger which is helping me with my grip which is also helping me with my momentum around the pole.  I was still getting a lot of bruises from pole dancing.  I have noticed from the first week that my body is staying higher on the pole and are now able to spin for longer periods of time.  I still need to work on kicking my heels up towards my bottom.

Session Six: Third Session at Introduction Course

Third Session at Introduction Course 

Design of session:

Warm up:

Cardiovascular warm-up 

1.     Run up and down the stairs

2.      10x push ups (either on knees or on toes)

3.     10x star jumps  

Stretches

1.     Wrist rotatory stretches 

2.     Wrist flextion stretches

3.     Wrist extension stretches

4.     Shoulder stretches

5.     Chest stretches 

Below is a video of doing the fan kick after completing the third session.

This week we didn't learn any new moves however we did the moves on a pole which rotates. When you begin pole dancing it is better to learn on a static pole because it allows you to build up your upper body and core strength. A static pole also allows you to build callouses on your hands which makes gripping onto the pole easier. When using a spinning pole a different kind of strength is needed and having a good grip is important.  A spinning pole can also get you twirling a lot faster than what you're used to doing causing dizziness and motion sickness, this means it is very important to start off slowly.  If you tend to get dizzy it is good to focus on your pole or a non-moving body part (Myers, 2010). 

References: 

Myers, L. (2010). Static versus spinning poles. Retrieved from http://www.thepoledancingshop.com/static-versus-spinning-poles/

Refection 

I found the spinning pole very off putting as I got dizzy easily and struggled to focus on the task.  For the front hook spin I found the spinning pole beneficial because I was able to gain momentum which I wasn't able to achieve on the static pole.  Overall I felt like my technique and ability was improving in pole dancing.