Pole Dancing

I tried! It was hard, at least for a first timer and I had bruises for two weeks on my thighs to prove it!

Me attempting a Pinwheel turn. I will one day master this!

Pole dancing isn’t just for the Gentleman’s Club
anymore. This has turned into quite the
competitive sport. My cousin owns her
own Pole Dancing studio in Gdynia, Poland so make sure to check her out if you’re
in that area. Also, I decided to start
taking classes. I’ve been going for a
month now and I must say it is such a workout.
On top of it being an actual legitimate workout, it’s fun. If you are in the NJ area, the studio that I
go to is in Morristown and it’s called Wellness on the Green. They offer so many different types of classes
like belly dancing, aerial silks, and much more. With that being said I want to get into a
competition that I went to while I was in Poland. I know what you’re thinking I’ve been back
for a month (Summer Pole battle in Sopot, Poland, which is where the pictures
of the girls are from), but I wanted to get some more information from the
girls that I took pictures of and my cousin’s studio. Enjoy their interviews below!

Ola Wojtowicz(This would be my cousin)

My
studio (Rock the Pole in Gdynia, Poland) has been opened since August 2014.

I decided
to open my own studio because I wanted to be independent. I wanted to
develop it myself and first of all I wanted it to be a clean and nice place for the
clients – not just another company where it’s just the money that counts. I
also wanted to create a place where teaching pole dancing is not on a whim but
a consistent and considered plan.

My studio
offers classes including pole dance and stretching. We also offer classes for
the men such as calisthenics. I used to teach pole dancing in my studio
but unfortunately my health problems, particularly injuries of my right
shoulder forced me to have a longer break and focus on my rehabilitation.
Thus, nowadays my job is mostly more like being a manager than an instructor
but I hope it will change in a couple of months. Fortunately, I have people who work for my
when I can’t.

How long have you been pole dancing for?

I think I started to take lessons in
2011. I took private lessons with
various instructors in Poland. I also
finished a professional courses in Pole Dance and Pole Fitness Instructor in
Warsaw, Poland which enables me to be able to teach others. I started to go to workshops and learn new
tricks on my own. I did have a couple of
longer breaks which were connected to my health problems.

What made you try it?

I thought about how when you try pole
dancing, there are a lot of rules to be broke.
For instance, breaking the rules of gravity. Isn’t that exciting? In order to do that you have to work very
hard, fight the pain and your fears of falling down from the pole. When you work step by step to achieve your
smaller and bigger goals, that is one of the best feelings in the world! Additionally, I have always wanted to dance
and it has always been my passion. The
chance to become a pole dancing instructor came just in time. One thing I will say is the later you start
intense sports that require a lot of discipline, the more difficult it is to go
further than you would like. Thus, my
body has a lot of injuries that I struggle with. However, I’m determined to come back and
dance again soon, because this is my passion.

Have you been in any competitions and how
many?

Unfortunately I did not manage to be in
any competitions. First and foremost I have to focus on coming back and
teaching along with taking care of my injuries.
Maybe in a year or two I would like to take part in a competition in
Poland, however this all depends on my health.
Wish me luck!

Monika Łukaszewicz

How long
have you been pole dancing for?

I
started 2 years ago. Within my first
year I attended pole dancing classes once a week, after one year pole dance has
become my obsession, I bought my own pole and I started more frequent
trainings.

What
made you try it?

My
friend from work joined pole dancing classes 6 months before me and she took me
for classes. I loved it! I always loved to dance, as a young girl and I dreamed
about being in gymnastics, but I didn’t have the possibility to train in my
town. Pole dance is a perfect mix of
dance and gymnastics. This sport is designed for me!

Have
you been in any competitions and how many?

Summer
Pole Battle was my first competition.

Patrycja Szydłowska

How long have you been pole dancing for?

I’ve
been training in Pole Dance for the past 13 months.

What made you try it?

Previously I was interested in a similar
training; gymnastics. My body was ready
for gymnastics, however there was no chance to prepare for competitions with
just two years of experience. Gymnastics
is the type of sport that you need to train for ever since childhood.

Have you been in any competitions and how
many?

I have been in a competition before. It was on the beach (Summer Pole Battle) and it was my first
show. I consider this a great experience
and lots of fun. I would like to take
part in more major competitions in 2016.

***

There
you have it everyone. Pole Dancing is
NOT just for the club anymore. It’s
become a sport, and even though some people still frown upon it, I recommend
you watch some videos on YouTube, because these girls are acrobats. I have no idea how they do half of the things
they do when I can only do a few turns that are still not up to par haha!

**Do not use any of these photos without having written permission from me first. If you would like to use these photos please contact me via email mejmoda [at] gmail [dot] com and I will get formal releases from the dancers pictured above.