You never really forget your first pole sit
"Hands up high above your head, you want to hoist yourself up, cross one leg above the other" Lauren, my instructor tells the class "let go of your hands then SQUEEZE SQUEEZE SQUEEZE"
You never really forget your first pole sit because that burn between your thighs... oh baby
On friday practise I (along with other beginners) go to the studio to practise our sits. We tell our friends in the studio 'Dammit! That hurts!' We tell the more experienced polers it hurts, as if they dont already know. We ask them if it'll ever stop hurting and they laugh (cause it wont)
But they also tell us that the pole will make us stronger.
They were right
Pole gets a bad rep. Its known to be a 'sexy dance' and a lot of people forget all the strength and resilience that the art demands. Heck I know some people wouldn't even consider it a sport. I mean, you try invert into a crucifix and tell me that its not a sport. Its one hell of a demanding sport; theres a lot of core strength, flexibility and pain tolerance involved. Theres a lot of technique, a WHOLE LOT of getting to know your body, a lot of trusting yourself. And OF COURSE its sexy, but its so much more than that.
Its so much more than that to me.
See Im not the sporty type. Im not even the healthy type, I remember not being able to lift up a vacuum. I remember idealising a stick thin body figure to the point that Id starve myself for it, challenge myself to see how long I could go without food. I had a point when my relationship with food and my body was so bad I needed to get help for it, and even after that was over, I still kept obsessing over weighing scales and body figures and beat myself up about gaining a kilogram.
When I started pole that changed. I think at that point my eating habits were alright but my mindset was still 'Mira you ate so much, BAD!'. My mindset was still structured to think skinny = achievement. So what changed when I started pole was I started associating achievements with acing that spin/nailing that invert/holding that pose. I started worrying less about being skinny and focused more on being stronger, and its such a rewarding sport because you have to take the time to get to know the way your body was made. You come back every week and you can clearly track your progress and witness your body change. I think the transformation your body goes through with pole is one of the most obvious and rewarding things anyone can go through. And its not a competitive sport so its just you, your body, your mind and the pole.
On top of the nature of the sport being so rewarding and positive, I started pole in UCL and the society is one of the most open, supportive and helpful bunch of people Ive met to date. You forgot to shave your armpits? Thats cool. You're not a size two? Who cares. You wanna go pray before you pole it up? No thats not weird. Every Friday the committee sets the poles up and members can come in and out whenever you want, practising any move you want, so its the time polers from all different levels meet each other. Not once have I struggled with a move and not had someone with more experience come to help me out. Every time you nail something, someone cheers. Everybody is happy to offer to teach what they know and show you the way around the poles. And you can find people from everywhere, from all types of backgrounds and stories. The society welcomes anyone and everyone.
I have nothing but good things to say about pole and this years committee. This years committee has worked so hard to facilitate everyones growth and learning, and make sure theres lots of glitter in the process. I couldn't have had a more caring and lovely bunch of people welcoming me into this art that I love, and if any of you are reading this thank youuuu sooooo muchhhhh
Im so happy I found pole, and Im so happy with where its got me with my body and mind. Im the heaviest I've been in my life, but Im also the strongest and pole has taught me to be comfortable with looking at my chunky lumpy bits in the mirror and count what matters- and that is being able to rely on yourself to pull yourself up when you're upside down.
Heres to more happy years on and off the pole
Love from London,
Mirr
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