Have not written much for pole for sometime, since December is a rest season from running, I presume it will be a good time to write something about pole as I have been doing it more for now.
SLAP DANCE STUDIO: POLE HARD
Took another round of the Pole Hard classes in SLAP. Although the higher levels require their students to wear heels. But they will not totally enforce you to do it if you are not comfortable to wear the six inch high pole shoes. Pole hard varies upon the term, some terms it is really quite hardcore and not able to handle but some are simply more for building up and relaxing. The tricks covered focus more on arm power like static V, forearm static V, hand stands. The core are a real must for this class. The choreography that we did this time was an Army theme for the song called SALUTE by Little Mix. The choreo is not difficult but to do it with style and some sexiness, it is really not easy especially if you are on heels!
There are some floor work and dance sequences which are military like and yet at the same time it is quite sensual and require some form of striptease dance elements to it. Overall at the end of the course, the instructress will decide whether you are eligible to go on to the next level.
If you are not very comfortable with a good inversion or your scorpio or right leg hand is still not perfected yet, the pole hard course might be a bit challenging for you to handle. So the best is to at least take 2 of the Pole inter first before attempting the Pole hard. Pole hard also requires a bit of the stamina and endurance to be able to execute the whole routine well.
GROOVE DANCE STUDIO: ADVANCE WORKSHOPS
I am writing all the advance classes now as these are the ones that I am taking up for now. To speak the truth, as you advance in pole, although many people say that flexibility is NOT important, you can bet on that. Well , if you are not even able to split and lay your tummy down on a front split, the tricks executed will not look as good. Therefore, I am also working a lot on the flexibility. Getting engaged in exercises such as running and swimming does make my body stiffer than usual. To be able to execute pose like splitting on the pole, machine gun and also jade, you really need to be at least able to split one side.
For the Groove Advance workshops, the classes are lesser ( only 4 ) but tricks are a lot harder and also there are more springing up actions and both sides proficiency is also required. This makes the class even more challenging. Groove classes are conducted with thicker poles and also static. So spinning moves requires more effort, I will say this is more difficult than the thinner and spinny poles in SLAP.