If you have NEVER pole danced...read this blog

Although this month's blog hop is about the sanitization of pole, I am not going to enter this into the hop.  But if you want to read other blogs on the same subject, click HERE. 

You can read my other two entries below:

http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2013/10/october-blog-hop-stripping-stripper-out.html

http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2013/10/october-blog-hop-2-sanitization-of-pole.html

I have written many times about pole in the Olympics:

http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2010/03/weighing-in-on-debate-pole-dancing-in.html

http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2012/05/pole-fitness-and-olympics.html

http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2012/06/pole-fitness-versus-pole-dancing.html

http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2012/07/how-do-you-get-pole-dancing-into.html

I also have multiple posts discussing the difference between sexy pole dancing and pole fitness or pole sports:

http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2011/02/stripping-vs-pole-fitness.html

http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2012/01/stripper-versus-pole-dancer-debate.html
  
http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2012/06/pole-fitness-versus-pole-dancing.html

A conversation in the Pole Dancing Bloggers group about International Pole Sports Federation's anti-doping policy for the World Pole Sports Championships (which is a requirement for pole to one day be considered for the Olympics) motivated me to write this post.  Whether we call it pole dance, pole fitness, pole erotic, pole artistic, pole exotic, pole sport, pole entertainment, circus acts, aerial arts, or anything else, aren't we still dancing on a pole?  At the same time, is it wrong that those who want to get pole sport into the Olympics need to distance themselves from those who dance in 8 inch heels?  Likewise, is it wrong for those who dance in heels to be offended by that distance?  Everyone is entitled to their own opinion.


Anyway, if you have NEVER pole danced before...but have thought about trying...what draws you to it?  Is it the sexy side?  The dance -- whether you love ballet, jazz, hip hop or modern dance?  The athleticism?

And if you haven't tried pole dance, but REALLY WANT TO, what is holding you back?  

Just curious!  Please leave comments below. 

Oh, The Sexy Has Been Broughten...or Something Like That

Last week, I posted about UPA's Bringing Sexy Back Week.

Today, I present to you my video:



I believe that "sexy" means different things to different people.  I don't really think I embody the popular sense of the word.  But what makes me feel sexy is being comfortable in my own skin and being able to turn down the lights and dance like no one is watching.  This free dance was kind of hard for me because I had a few people in the studio watching while I taped it.  I also felt like I danced a little stronger in my first attempt, but I slipped a little during a spin then laughed, so I scrapped that one.  I taught class then filmed my second attempt between classes after I was all sweaty.  I was a little more tired but I also think that helped me slow down a little bit (and I feel like I still need to slow down even more).

There is a battle being waged on Facebook.  This week, I have seen Pink Pole Power's posts about bringing elegance daily.  I don't know if it is directly in response to UPA's Bringing Sexy Back Week, but the timing would indicate that it might be related.  (Side note: even though I started this sentence talking about waging war...I didn't mean to indicate that Pink Pole Power was the one waging the war.  I am referring to some conversations I've had with other people on Facebook.  No disrespect meant to PPP, I love them!)

My friend brought up on Facebook that she was tired of hearing about the pole fitness versus pole dancing debate.  She personally wasn't interested in the sexy side of pole dance but she liked that pole dance was versatile enough to embrace all types of dance.  But she also didn't like the debate because she thinks everyone should be accepted.  I don't want to blame the Olympics push, but there are definitely some groups that would like to see a little bit of a divide so that they can distance themselves from the strip club roots.  And I feel like this debate will continue to happen, along with other growing pains, as our industry becomes more mainstream.  There will be those who need and want pole dance to be more like gymnastics -- very tricks-based and not sexy whatsoever.  And there will be those who remember the roots of the sport -- and actually dancing around a pole. 

I am not saying there is not room for every kind of pole dance.  But I do not believe that this debate will be going away any time soon.

I know the quote from Claire at The Pole Story has also stirred some controversy:


If for some reason, the idea of your dancing being connected to the strip club scene is upsetting to you, if you desperately need to distance what you do from what those “other girls” do, if you truly believe that you are doing this because it’s just a really good workout, then I strongly suggest you spend some time thinking about why you chose pole dancing.  Because there are a million ways to get fit without putting on six inch stilettos, a bikini and swinging sensually around a pole.

So what about those girls who don't wear six inch stilettos and tiny bikinis?  What if you don't dance "sexy" at all?  While I understand that dancing in shoes, or dancing sexy in general, is not for everyone, I don't believe Claire means specifically that every single pole dancer has or will strap on six inch stilettos and dance like a stripper from a rap video (and, I am not speaking for Claire here, I am only telling you how *I* took her quote).  To me, she is saying, if the stigma attached to pole dancing bothers you so much, maybe you should find another source for exercise.  

So the debate continues.  I know I am instigating it by continuing to write about it.  But the topic interests me and the number of people reading these posts seems to indicate they are interested as well.

Please tell me how you feel about the debate.  Be kind to your fellow pole dancers, though!  Every type of pole dancing is accepted here!

Chinese Pole

So much debate about pole lately.  Sexy.  Not sexy.  What to choose...what to choose.  Are we strippers in training?  Are we gymnasts in training?  Do we really need to pick?

We have talked about pole fitness versus pole dancing, and about getting pole into the Olympics.  I've struggled with the need to define pole dancing in the past.  I think it's okay to be sexy if you want.  It's also okay to focus on fitness if that is what you prefer.  It's all still performing on or around a pole. 

Well, if you are a Chinese Pole Artist, you know exactly what to choose!  I featured Timber Brown last year.  In that post, he stated:

"People sometimes refer to me as a person who does Chinese poles, an aerialist or a pole dancer.... I ask that people to refer to me as a 'pole artist.' Not because I am not any of the above things, but because I am all of them. In my work I strive to encompass a little bit of what all of those things means to me."

Although he identifies himself as a well-rounded pole artist (which he absolutely is...please look him up on YouTube!), I wanted to focus today on the Chinese Pole part of the man that is such an amazing artist.  

I briefly looked into the history of pole dancing for my blog and then for The Pole Dancing Shop.   Chinese Pole is defined by wikipedia as follows:

Chinese poles are vertical poles on which circus performers climb, slide down and hold poses. The poles are generally between 3 and 9 metres in height and approximately 2 to 3 inches in diameter.^[1] Some poles have a slightly larger pole that rotates around the static central pole using ball bearings. This rotating pole allows a performer to spin on the vertical axis, giving a performer the ability to incorporate rate of spin into what would otherwise be static moves. bringing the body closer into the pole causes the performer to spin faster. A few Chinese pole tricks have been incorporated with pole dancing techniques.

The poles are sometimes covered with rubber to improve grip. However, the rubber can cause friction burns on parts of the Chinese pole artists' bodies.

The most famous trick is "the flag" where the artist hangs straight out from the pole with his or her hands. This requires a very strong upper body. A few people are able to do push ups in this position, and even fewer can rotate the legs around in a circle—this requires enormous core strength.

 

Check out some amazing videos below:

And, although Chinese Pole appears to be dominated by men, here is a female Chinese Pole Acrobat:

So, although Chinese Pole certain focuses on amazing feats of strength and tricks, there is still a lot of theatrics and artistry required.  I would dare call that a little bit of a dance.  :-)  

What do you think?

Pole Fitness versus Pole Dancing

There has been some talk lately about differentiating between sexy pole dance and Olympic-minded pole fitness.  I spoke by e-mail with my friend, Rita from Russia, about the varying degrees of sexy on the pole.  She said in Russia they have several styles:  Pole Fitness, Pole Sport, Pole Artistic and Pole Exotic (a cross between Pole Artistic and Erotic Pole Dance -- undressing is not allowed, heels are okay, vulgar moves are forbidden).  Insofar as the conversation between Rita and I went, I would put stripping in the "exotic" category.  I think, for this post, my break down is a little more simple, even though I can understand what she means with each of those categories.  For this post, I am talking about pole dance and pole fitness (which would be the same as pole sport to me).  I am sure the line is different for every single person, so I write here about MY opinion about the difference between pole fitness and pole dancing.  I am sure yours may be different and you are welcome to leave any comments below on where you draw the line.

I have talked about stripping and pole before, although in this post, I am not talking about stripping.  I do, however, understand that even though stripping is in pole dancing's roots, some people really do "need" to differentiate stripping from pole dancing for their own personal reasons. 

http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2011/02/stripping-vs-pole-fitness.html

http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2012/01/stripper-versus-pole-dancer-debate.html

I feel like pole fitness competitions or showcases usually leave the six inch stilettos out.  They seem to be more tricks/contortion-based.  And I feel like pole dancing competitions should encompass the beauty of the dance, sexy or not, and may or may not include shoes (perhaps this is where the difference between pole art and pole exotic might come in).

Long ago, I weighed in on the Olympics debate by saying, I didn't care.  And I still don't care.  You can read that post HERE.  I support those who want to get pole into the Olympics, but it's not my personal cause.  However, the pole fitness cause is near and dear to the hearts of those wanting to get pole into the Olympics. 

Recently, I posted a blog from Pole Dance Italy about getting pole into the Olympics.  You can read that post HERE.  I excitedly posted it on Facebook and tagged KT Coates, a pole fitness pioneer from the UK, who is leading the charge to get pole into the Olympics.  I thought KT would be happy to have another ally on the Olympics front.  I'm confused about what exactly happened, but KT was not happy with our post.  She kept telling us how disappointed she was with our negativity.  We still don't know why she was so upset.  Most likely it was simply because Pole Dance Italy didn't cite her as the pioneer of attempting to get pole into the Olympics in their article.  However, you can't assume that someone in Italy knows that someone in the UK is passionate about a subject, even in this day and age of over-sharing on the Internet.  I was really saddened and disappointed by the exchange on Facebook.

Anyway, putting that aside, I wanted to post about the World Pole Sport Championship, scheduled to take place in London this summer.  You can check out their website HERE.

The organization description reads:

JUST days before the start of the 2012 London Olympics, the world’s finest pole sports athletes will come together to compete for the title of the first 2012 IPSF World Pole Sport Gold Medal Champion. 

Since its arrival on the mainstream fitness scene, pole fitness, as a sport, has seen a dramatic increase in the number of its athletes and has doubled in popularity annually across the world.

Far from being just about pole dancing, pole sports or ‘vertical gymnastics’, requires strength, athleticism, creativity, and grace.  And pole sports athletes across the world are ready to get their sport recognized by the greatest sporting event in the world, the Olympic Games.

Hosted by the International Pole Sports Federation (IPSF), it’s hoped that this year’s World Pole Sport Championship, to be held at the York Hall Leisure Centre in London on July 19th and 20th, will serve as the foundation of the future of pole sports as an Olympic competition.

There are three separate categories in which competitors can qualify for: Women’s Singles, Men’s Singles, and Doubles.  The top athletes of each category will be awarded the International Pole Sports Federation’s gold, silver, and bronze medals.   

The IPSF is an organization for promoting athletic competition in pole sports and uniting pole sports athletes around the world. Its aim is to make pole sports more prominent in the sports community and to get pole sports competitions in major global sporting events such as the World Games and the Olympics.   

In addition to the competition, they will be holding a summit:

The IPSF is holding a first ever International Pole Sports Summit at the competition where everybody is invited to share ideas on the pole sport Olympic movement and ways to improve, support, and promote it. This is a golden opportunity for athletes, international and national organizers, and pole enthusiasts to exchange information on their experiences. This will help the IPSF to govern the pole sports movement in order to achieve our shared goal of Olympic recognition for pole sports.

So I would now love to hear everyone's opinion on the difference between the various types of pole.  Which type do you prefer?

Ummmm....I'm a Pole ARTIST

Continuing with the pole dancer versus stripper debate...  Get caught up here:  http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2012/01/stripper-versus-pole-dancer-debate.html

A couple of weeks ago, Twirly Girls were part of a local radio show's live event [http://lolorashel.blogspot.com/2012/02/twirly-girls-at-sarah-vinnie-secret.html].  Going into the event, I knew the "stripper thing" was going to come up.  The general public associates pole dancing with stripping.  As we know, one can mean the other.  But it doesn't have to.  I warned the girls that the topic would most likely come up.  I figured it would be mostly in good fun since Sarah and Vinnie have an entertainment show to put on.  It did come up and the S&V show felt like one of our girls in particular was a little bitter in her response.  I didn't think she actually came across bitter or mad, but I know her and they don't, so maybe that's why the disconnect happened.  Either way...on the radio a day or two later, they made the point that we are all swinging on a stripper pole, so we shouldn't be that shocked when the subject came up.  

In my mind, they are right.

Are you a stripper?  A pole dancer?  A pole fitness enthusiast?  A pole artist?  There are many names for what we do.  And there's nothing wrong with being any one of those things, or all of them.  But when someone says to you, "oh you pole dance?!"  Are you the first to say, "but I'm not a stripper!"?

Now this is where I get stuck.  If someone comes at me with the whole, "oooh, so you're a stripper, right?" thing, I usually respond with, "If I had a nicer body and a little more rhythm, I'd definitely consider it!"  But I also grew up in a religious home where acting out and being a little naughty held some appeal.  I've also spent many years learning how to ignore those who tried to make me feel bad about myself or guilty for things that I do.  I sometimes forget not everyone has had that kind of life training. 

I don't want to disconnect from my pole community either.  If it is offensive to some to be called a stripper, am I belittling them by telling them to get over it?  On the other hand, do we owe it to the "pole fitness" community to explain to the general public that there is a bit of a difference between stripping for dollars and taking classes at a pole fitness studio?  Granted, I like working out and feeling stronger but I really enjoy putting on "stripper heels" and cute clothes too.  

In my mind, I say, take me or leave me...I owe you no explanation for anything I do or say.  However, I feel like some of my pole sisters may feel like I am not hearing them or taking their feelings into account. 

At the end of the day, regardless of the words we use to describe what we do, we're still doing it -- swinging around a pole.  And, it's like some of us are almost waiting for the fight...waiting for that outsider to bring up pole dancing, daring them to call us a stripper, so we can attack and explain that we are pole artistes!  We should not be ashamed of what we do.  I feel like if we make excuses and try to distance ourselves from stripping, it almost becomes, "we doth protest too much..."   

It seems like a lot of the negativity and disharmony comes from WITHIN our own pole dancing community. Some spend so much time debating the words we should use to describe what we do -- and even more time judging other dancers in the industry.  I think we need to first band together, then we can worry about what the outsiders think.

At the end of the day, a person who will judge you for pole dancing, doesn't care if you're a stripper or not.  They will judge you the same.  So why not hold your head high and proudly proclaim:  YES, I AM A POLE DANCER [or insert your favorite term here]!  That's what I plan to do.