Black Meringue

Pole Position

Pole-dancing has broken into the mainstream fitness world, giving thousands of women the chance to release their inner sex goddess while toning up from head to toe in a strictly no-guys-allowed environment. Stephanie Welstead asks, what better way to get in shape for the big day?

Imagine holding on to a pole two inches thick with both hands, both feet on the ground. Now, supporting your entire body-weight with your arms, kick your legs above your head, wrap them around the pole and slide gracefully to the floor. Sound easy? (Did I mention that’s a beginners’ move?) Not only should this give some indication of the level of skill involved in pole-dancing, but hopefully it will convey the amount of sheer physical strength that the activity demands. Not many exercises can work the upper body like this; fewer still offer the chance to do so while making friends and getting your groove on. So, if the thought of lifting weights in the gym leaves you just as cold as the thought of walking down the aisle in a strapless little number, pole-dancing might be just what you’re looking for. Admittedly, moves like this take some practice, but the learning curve is steep. I blossomed from being the only girl in the class unable to lift myself off the floor to (after much hard work and persistence) hanging upside down unassisted in six short weeks. And the buzz that resulted – not to mention the muscle tone – was intoxicating and irrationally addictive. It’s no wonder that pole-dancing is now the preferred way of staying trim for thousands of women across the country.

Entering the mainstream

Pole-dancing first started attracting the attention of gym-goers and carving a niche in the conventional fitness world in America in 2001, with the emergence of actress Sheila Kelley’s ‘S Factor’ classes. These women-only exercise sessions were pioneering at the time, offering a workout inspired by yoga, ballet, striptease and pole-dancing, but reclaiming the latter for women as an activity to be exploited for its remarkable physical benefits, away from the male gaze. The classes gave women the opportunity to explore the way their bodies “want to move,” encouraging them to take a “healthy ownership of their bodies’ sensuality and sexuality” in a supportive environment, while at the same time discovering a new, fun way to keep fit.

These days, S Factor classes receive such frenzied demand that they run in studios all over the US and are popular with many female celebrities, such as Desperate Housewives star Teri Hatcher. The LA studio alone runs 12 classes a day, each holding 40 people with most booked out months in advance. S Factor’s popularity has not only encouraged other companies to offer pole-dancing classes, but has also meant that selling permanent or removable poles for home use has become big business, with the apparatus now being installed in women’s homes by the thousand each month.

As usual, following the growing popularity of the craze in the US, it wasn’t long before pole-dancing lessons were available in the UK. In 2003, Polestars became the first company to offer lessons, and since then demand has soared to the extent that classes are now available through numerous companies and venues across the country.

Binny Hawketts, a former professional dancer and personal trainer, was snapped up by Polestars as an instructor three-and-a-half years ago. After six weeks of helping me realise my own (surprising) acrobatic potential, she told me that she has noticed a sharp increase in pole-dancing’s popularity since she began teaching, a hype which she attributes partly to word of mouth, but mainly to celebrity endorsement from the likes of Kelly Brook, Kate Moss and Jennifer Aniston. “They all made it quite well known that they were doing it and people realised that it can actually be done for fun and fitness rather than just for people who want to be in the industry.”

Getting physical

So why exactly would a busy bride-to-be opt for pole-dancing lessons rather than the more conventional yoga or aerobics classes? One of the main reasons is simply that they provide an extraordinary workout. A lot of the moves require you to support your body weight with just your arms, legs or stomach, so it really does work the whole body and gives muscles you didn’t even know existed a thorough going over. And it is incredibly useful for toning the all-important upper body area.

“It’s a great strength exercise,” says Hawketts. “It’s literally an all-over muscular workout. Obviously when you get into doing routines and spending more time on the pole it becomes more cardiovascular.”
Indeed, Polestars insists that its lessons have been developed according to fitness industry standards to cover all five of the major areas of physical fitness: motor fitness (speed, balance, agility and co-ordination), muscular strength, muscular endurance, cardiovascular fitness and flexibility.

A two-hour class starts with an industry standard aerobics session to encourage cardiovascular fitness. Practising the tricks and spins will improve motor fitness and flexibility, and supporting your weight on the pole will promote muscle strength and endurance.

New heights

As well as the numerous physical benefits, many women have reported emotional benefits and higher levels of confidence after taking the classes. All exercise produces endorphins, which help to mobilise positive thinking, but the buzz you get from pole-dancing is far more intense. The pole releases your inner gymnast, taking you back to the days when you were eight and could do 30 cartwheels in a row just for the hell of it. It’s exhilarating because the pole is a platform that allows you to move your body in ways that you didn’t think were possible. Not only that, each move you are shown gives rise to a new challenge, forcing you to conquer your fears and giving you a sense of achievement when you finally master it.

The confidence-boosting nature of these classes is something that is beginning to receive due attention. According to Polestars, pole-dancing promotes psychological well-being and its provocative, ‘sexy’ elements are especially powerful to improving self image and self confidence. Hawketts confirms that many girls have hailed the self-esteem-enhancing value of the classes. “I’ve seen girls come in who have hardly spoken to me because they’re so shy, but by the end of the course they will come strutting in, head held high. The confidence building is just amazing.”

It’s also important to bear in mind that looking like a Pussycat Doll is not a pre-requisite for taking part in this activity. “I have so many women say ‘Oh, I could never do that, I haven’t got the upper body strength.’ Obviously the more you put in the more you get out of it, but I believe anyone can do it,” says Hawketts, who insists that age or body shape should never be seen as a barrier. “I’ve had girls from 16 to 60 pole-dancing and I’ve taught everyone in between.”

Quick fix

So, are you tempted? If the big day’s fast approaching and a six-week course just isn’t feasible, Polestars also runs one-off sessions for hen parties. The company offers parties a two-hour pole-dancing session, but recommends that ladies opt for a combination of pole dancing and erotic dancing (lap dancing and striptease moves), which is less tiring.
One such hen is Caroline Phipps, a 31-year-old fashion stylist, who highly recommends this as a pre-nuptial activity: “The party really helped me brush up on the moves, and now I have some new tricks to show off on my honeymoon!”

New look

It’s clear that as pole-dancing lessons become ever more in demand they are nestling firmly into the mainstream fitness world; yet at the same time it’s equally clear that this form of dance, which originated in the strip clubs, still carries the association of the sex industry. Companies such as Polestars try and dissociate themselves from this, promoting their lessons for fun and fitness rather than as a springboard into professional dancing. Their lessons do not involve stripping, they are suitable for women of all ages, shapes and sizes and participants are mainly women with office jobs who are looking to try something new. “It’s more interesting than just your bog-standard fitness,” says Hawketts. “Most girls come to me and say ‘I’m sick of my aerobics class at the gym.’”

The general consensus among women who pole-dance for fitness is that it’s about time people realised that taking classes, or owning a pole, doesn’t mean you’re in training for a job at Spearmint Rhino. In an attempt to shake off the activity’s former sleazy image, many companies have even gone as far as to re-brand the phenomenon ‘pole-exercise’. Polestars makes it clear that all of its teachers either have a recognised fitness qualification or are working towards one, to ensure that girls get the maximum benefits from the classes.

However, it has also been suggested that the soaring popularity of pole-dancing lessons has actually helped to change the dynamic of the activity in the strip clubs. Hawketts explains: “It’s more of a skill now to do it in clubs. Whereas it did used to be a lot of grinding and the pole was there just to look nice, now it’s there to be used.”

That said, the association with the sex industry is not likely to disappear any time soon. But is this really what we want anyway? Many students have confessed that the provocative nature of some of the moves is actually part of the appeal and have relished the opportunity to go home and show off their new tricks. What you should remember, however, is that the lessons offer you the chance to learn the moves in a safe, supportive and women-only environment. It’s important that people understand what the classes are about and what they’re not, so that pole-dancing for fitness can construct a new, separate identity of its own.
Anyone fancy a spin?

BM