As I sit down to write this blog I’m honestly in two minds about posting it. If you’ve been following Chrome Chronicles for a while, you will know that my blogs are usually of a light hearted, funny and sometimes controversial nature, however this one is the first time in about 12 years that I’m attempting to write something a bit more candid. Fear not, this isn’t going to be a load of soppy bollocks, instead it’s going to be an honest take on the current state of my pole dance journey so far, where I wanted it to go and why I’ve decided to take a different path for the future. If you’re at a crossroads with your own pole dance journey, hopefully you’ll be able to relate.
At the start of 2022, I wrote a blog criticizing pole dance influencer culture, and the notion that in order meet your pole dance goals you need to massively cut back on your down time and put your training before anything else (here’s the controversial bad boy if you fancy a read). In all honesty I still agree with the bulk of that blog. The start of 2023 taught me as aggressively as it could that rest is essential for your physical and mental wellbeing and (I say this as someone who has spent their life hopping from obsession to obsession) I’m not sure how healthy it is to obsess over something in general. However, as well as teaching me the importance of rest, 2023 also gave my pole dance journey a massive realisation too. This being the following words of wisdom;
Pole dancing is fucking hard and if I want to see more progress, I’m going to need to train more than I am.
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A few months back, I came away from both my Monday night and Thursday night pole classes feeling like a kebab that had been left out in the rain. I couldn’t manage the combos, I felt like the worst in the class by a long shot and I was letting my sulking get the better of me. I kept telling myself that it wasn’t fair that my classmates were seeing shiteload of progress and I was stuck where I was. After a good half an hour of sulking and grumbling, it then dawned on me why my classmates were seeing what I deemed were impressive levels of progress, and it really isn’t a complex answer.
They train more than I do.
Yep, it really is that simple. One of my classmates busts her ass at CrossFit and in the gym at 5am most mornings, another one goes to six classes per week, another one is a pole instructor and many others train at least three times per week, with even more stretch sessions added in. Once I spoke to my classmates and saw just how much graft they put in, I realised that it was completely fair that they were seeing more progress than I was, and that I was being a bit of an entitled gremlin expecting to see just as much progress when putting in half (more like a quarter to be honest) of the effort.
This realisation isn’t just limited to my classmates too. Many of my pole pals who train at other studios and in other parts of the UK (and occasionally beyond) all pour a lot of their energies into their pole dance training. Now, before anyone starts kicking off I just want to say that there is nothing wrong with this! We are all individuals and what’s normal for the spider is chaos for the fly (maximum cool points if you get that reference). I commend and admire those who have the dedication and willpower to train on a very regular basis, hats off to them. But I just don’t think that’s me.
Working full time and trying to schedule in time to pole, stretch, run a home and fit in my other hobbies is a bit of a challenge to be honest and I often feel like one of those plate spinners from the circus, except instead of keeping my plates simultaneously spinning they often fall and smash on the floor. I love pole dancing and have done for years, but I categorically do not want to push myself to the point of exhaustion with it.
Now, after all that waffle here’s the actual point of the blog, and reason why my pole journey is taking on a change of direction.
If I’m being really honest with myself, for many years in my pole journey I always loved the idea of competing. From 2016-2019 I entered comps annually, and I got back on the horse and entered two last year. I only ever made the live final for one and that was one that didn’t require an initial video entry round. Again, I think this boils down to myself thoroughly underestimating just how much effort goes into creating a qualifying competition performance. And that’s just to qualify, never mind placing in the final or even winning the bloody thing. Pole dance is a activity whereby the standard is ever increasing, and for me to stand a chance of placing in a competition, I would need to seriously up my training game, which is something I have come to realise I currently don’t have the capacity for both physically and mentally.
And that is okay.
Yes I will be digging out my shiny new journal and getting to the bottom of just why competing has felt important to me, but in the meantime I’m going to sack it off and go right back to basics with my pole training. I would love to progress further than where I’m currently at, especially with splitty moves, so my only pole goal this year is to add in an additional weekly practice session on top of the two classes I currently attend, and do some easy 20-30 minute stretching sessions at home when I have time. I want to dedicate more time to a hobby that ultimately brings me joy, but not so much that my mental health and other areas of my life suffer because of it.
As per usual I’m a little late getting this blog out, and have already began training an extra hour per week. So far I have noticed a massive increase in how much I enjoy pole dancing again just for the sake of it, without having a routine to agonise over and perfect. Fear not, I’ll still be performing this year all being well, but in a style that I feel is authentic to who I am and what I love, not one that I’m trying to impress a panel of judges with.
Coar, that was a bit of a long one wasn’t it? Unsurprisingly everything in this post are thoughts which have been brewing away in my noggin for months, and it feels fucking fantastic to finally get right to the bottom of them. Are you too in the process of re-routing your pole dance journey? Let me know in the comments!
Disclosure: The link above is an affiliate link, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn commission if you click through and make a purchase.
Photo credit @thedanhb
Chrome Chronicles 