Introducing Eileen Shoals and Pole World News!

While in Los Angeles for Pole Show LA, there was another camera crew doing interviews with pole dancers.  I was introduced to Eileen Shoals from Pole World News -- a new pole magazine.  After I got home, I exchanged some e-mails with Eileen, and thought her story was so elegantly told on her own that I didn't really need to ask her many questions.  I asked Eileen if I could just share her e-mail with all of you.  So first is Eileen's story...then I will follow up with a few extra questions for her.  Welcome Eileen to our circle of pole sisters!

I just love this community we are a part of. I guess I will share a little about myself and what we are doing with this magazine. Thank you for wanting to include us in your blog. So I began pole dancing 5 years ago. Like so many girls I met last week at Pole Show LA, my journey began at S Factor LA. S Factor was such a healing experience for me because at the time, I was in a difficult relationship that was clearly ending. S Factor gave me permission to really celebrate my femininity and sensual energy during a time when my partner devalued it. I found the pole to be a cathartic tool for expression of all kinds of emotion. I also found that my body seemed to tone up effortlessly.  I met so many lovely women at S Factor who are my friends to this day, such as Natasha Wang. Several of these beautiful women I met in the early stages of pole have gone into competition mode or have opened up their own pole dance studios.  My journey in pole transitioned from S Factor to Be Spun, Hollywood where I met the fabulous Leigh Ann Orsi, Amy Guion, Estee Zakar, Lindsey Kimura, and Lisa Wilhoit, and several other X-Pole representatives. The dancers at Be Spun opened up the arena of tricks to me. I was astounded at how quickly Leigh Ann could teach a novice amazing stamina on the pole. I also study at The Pole Garage in Santa Monica, under Andrea Frankovich. Drea, as we call her teaches a completely different type of pole dance flow that I have grown to love and adore. Throughout my years as a pole dancer, I have been deeply moved at how pole has impacted my life so significantly. I start missing the pole if I haven't been on one for too long. The pole community is my clan. It doesn't matter if I know the person personally or not....once I discover that they share this love affair with the pole that I have, I feel bonded to them in some way.

 

On another note, I have been celebrating the sisterhood of women for many years. You can check out my website at www.beautifulbrains.net. I'm passionate about highlighting the achievements of women and celebrating our sisterhood. I am so intrigued and inspired by women who support each other and love each other without a need to back-bite, compete or be jealous of one another. I feel that when women can be around each other and truly be sisters, an amazing synergy is created. For this reason, the pole world was a natural place for me to gravitate towards. I continue to be amazed at how women in the pole world support each other. Women in the pole community reflect their own unique self-confidence that allows them to be comfortable in their own skin, which makes it easy to support other dancers. There is such a love and respect for each person's unique pole style. Some women consider themselves to be artists. Others see themselves as athletes. Some love the high heals and sexy clothes. Others prefer a serious look of sport. All of this, and so many other perspectives make up the pole community. On top of that, we now have men doing pole! So the community is vast. This is why I decided to create an online magazine called Pole World News (PWN). My partner, Klaus Price and I are working feverishly to launch our first issue this month. The magazine will highlight pole trends and spotlight professional and amateur pole dancers internationally. It will also highlight a different dance studio each month. While the magazine will mostly focus on the pole community, other areas of fitness and dance will be explored as well. It's our hope that this magazine will celebrate the pole community in such a way that pole dancers and viewers will come to the site often to see what's new. We hope for it to be entertaining and beautiful. We want the dancers in our magazine to look good. We want to celebrate their achievements and follow their journey. I have  a lot of love and respect for anyone who has the courage to get on the pole. I want our magazine to support these dancers. The magazine will have information on natural remedies and healing techniques for sore muscles and bruises. We will also highlight "pole food"....what pole dancers eat to stay in shape, to reward themselves for great performances, or to snack on. 

 

Another area I think about has to do with the people who still associate pole dancing with negative degrading behavior. I would love to present the beauty and mastery involved in pole dancing and highlight the dancers as "real" people so the naysayers and critics have a change in perspective. I plan to feature as many interesting and amazing pole dancers as possible. I want the world to see how articulate, smart, evolved, mature and fierce our community is in every way. Everyone has their reason for gravitating towards the pole. I actually find these stories to be fascinating. I hope that our audience will be intrigued and fascinated by the magazine's content also.

I am really excited that you are including diet tips in PWN.  Tell us about the kind of diet you follow to keep yourself in tip top pole shape.

Well, my family comes from Louisiana, where good Southern food is the norm. I know that I have to be careful and really consider what I am eating. I try to listen to my body when choosing food to eat. I do love fruit and salad. I try to eat healthy forms of protein on a regular basis also. My boyfriend is an exceptional cook...which can be a problem. So I make sure to practice moderation especially when he is cooking. I only purchase and prepare organic foods, which makes me feel clean and healthy. I would be lying if I said I don't enjoy sweets. When I'm craving something sweet, I try to make it as natural as possible. For example, sliced organic apple with organic cinnamon is so good and one of my favorite snacks. Beyond these things, I do cleanses periodically, such as the McCombs Candida Cleanse. These types of practices help me keep my weight manageable and they help me to feel really good physically and emotionally. I find that when I feel good physically and emotionally, I am more inclined to eat well and exercise more.\

 

It feels like the pro/competition pole dancers are all going the route of contortion and extreme tricks.  Do you feel like something is lost from pole dancing when it is all tricks and no dance?

Yes. I so admire all of the pro competitors, and contortion and extreme tricks expands pole dance. However, for me it is always about "the dance" first and foremost. What I love about pole dancing is that it is this beautiful sensual feminine expression. In its simplest form, pole dancing is an expression of the dancer's heart and emotions in the moment. I do feel that something is lost when dance movement is absent from pole tricks. I feel this trend diminishes the true essence and beauty of this art form.

Tell us something we'd be surprised to hear about you.

I survived domestic violence in my home during my teenage years after my mother's second marriage. Despite what I saw and experienced, I am a positive resilient human being.

What else are you looking forward to in 2012?

I am looking forward to publishing my cookbook. I am looking forward to covering the latest pole trends in my magazine. I'm looking forward to being more creative and manifesting a lot of joy. :)