By healthiergang writer , former competitive athlete and currently Bodybuilding athlete (Bikini category).
Pole Fitness
I see men (and women too, why not!) With lively eyes and a lusty expression every time we talk about pole dance! However, many of them immediately think, wrongly, that we are talking about lap dance, an activity that unlike pole has been practiced for some time in strip clubs and involves thongs and 20 bills thrown on the dancer.
It is also true that Lap dancers often train with a 15 heel in the Pole gyms. However, pole dance is something else! It is not enough to twirl around the pole in a sinuous and winking way. The pole is based on the execution of acrobatic figures, defined with specific names, aimed at building a complete and complex choreography, requiring specific skills of flexibility, fluency and agility.
Not to mention the strength and endurance that this discipline requires!
Pole athletes spend hours training with isometry exercises on the bar, the pole and of course the pole. The activity in the weight room is clearly preparatory to all the exercises that must be carried out during the realization of the figures on the pole.
Story
If we dig deeper we find that the Pole Dance has as its distant ancestor the Mallakham, a traditional practice born in India, around the twelfth century.
Pole dance, as we understand it today, developed in North America around the 20s. In the same historical period, in China, circus performers practiced this same art during their traveling shows. We also mention the spectacular Japanese Kyokuzashi.
The historical reconstruction of this artistic discipline is a fairly complex job, and the basic reason is that the vertical pole is nothing more than an archetypal figure evoking play and sexuality. Pole, like other sports, is born in the form of a game and develops in a more or less complex and articulated way.
Therefore the roots of this art are to be found in the acrobatic circus shows. Here the poles of the marquees become the perfect tool to carry out real acrobatic performances. From a traveling show, it gradually became, together with Burlesque, a service requested loudly by the customers of many American clubs in the 50s.
The introduction of this dance in night clubs is a logical choice, due to the sensuality that distinguishes it, however it is not yet clear when and where. Once it lands in night clubs, however, pole dance becomes lap dance.
The dancers are completely naked, wearing high heels and lacquered, and very often they just do four turns around the pole. It is not even remotely comparable to pole! What is certain is that a certain level of contact is required to perform the figures, a real grip on the pole, and this is achieved with bare skin placed in direct contact with the pole.
But there is pole and pole! Even today there are differences from country to country. The Chinese pole is in fact larger than the current pole dance poles and has a rubber coating. This facilitates the grip and allows the athlete to climb quickly reaching up to 6 meters in height. Many performances involve the presence of several acrobats at the same time.
Il Mallakhamb Indian instead uses a wooden pole and the performances are made mainly by men.
The pole best known to all of us is the one in steel (stainless or chromed), the diameter of which can vary from 50mm to 38mm. The effort increases in the first case and decreases with the smaller poles. At present, poles with a diameter of 45mm are used during the championships. Usually two poles are used, one static and one spinning.
In 2005 the first Pole Dance World Championships took place in Amsterdam. Recall that on this particular occasion the dancer Elena Gibson was disqualified because she undressed during her performance!
Your country's first Pole Dance Language Championship took place in 2010 in Rome, your Pole Dance village promoted by the Federation.
In 2011 FISAC took charge of organizing your country Pole Championship by structuring pole dance in a more rigid way with the introduction of gymnastic rules.
remind you that on June 23, 2010 pole dance was recognized as an official discipline in your country, so much so that it was presented by the Sanremo Festival.
Benefits Of Pole Fitness
We said that pole dance is a dance in all respects! It is acrobatic and it is sensual. We must add that it can be practiced since childhood!
What are the advantages of this discipline? Multiple in fact.
1. Increase in strength
In pole dance, gymnastics and dance come together. Before you get to perform all the figures dynamically on the pole, you need to practice a lot, with lots of isometry and resistance exercises. It is mainly a muscular endurance work.
The muscle groups involved are many, the fatigue is very much felt even if the caloric expenditure is not excessively relevant.
2. Body recomposition
Benefits are also found at the level of body recomposition. This practice in fact makes the figure more harmonious, the lines of the body more sinuous and reshapes the body giving it an excellent tone.
3. Improved flexibility
As in classical dance, pole dance also involves lots of stretching and lengthening movements. The more flexible you are, the more you can "fly" on the pole. It is therefore no coincidence that practicing this discipline improves posture and coordination.
4. Down with shyness
Of course, when you choose to practice pole dance, you must also be ready to dare a little! If you are shy it could be an excellent opportunity to get involved and discover that there is no reason to hide after all. Pole dancing could help you get in touch with yourself and let go of shyness forever.
5. Self-esteem and sensuality
Sensuality is immanent in human beings, this sport really helps to discover your body, to know it and to love it. It helps anyone who practices it to like and value themselves. Self-esteem is that strength that makes us trust ourselves.
Conclusions
Dare and get involved. Defeat boredom and shyness. Bring out your most sensual and captivating side. With this sport you can regain your physical shape, your femininity and have fun between one stunt and another!
Pole dance is spreading everywhere, and it is easy to find excellent courses in many gyms even not dedicated exclusively to pole!
