Pole dancing with L.A.P
Posted February 5th, 2008 by Hazel
in
Free pole dancing taster lesson at LA Fitness, near Liverpool St with the London Academy of Poledancing, L.A.P.
Descending the stairs into the gym, the anticipation of what lies ahead begins to build. Stepping into the studio two poles are assembled ready for the hour and a half session. It could be said by some that pole dancing is not for the faint hearted, but as toned Alexe, our tutor from L.A.P, soon proves, anyone can give it a go. After being introduced to each other, Alexe helps everyone to feel at ease and the nerves soon begin to disappear.
A couple of years ago pole dancing became increasingly popular with women who wanted to keep fit and trim and this seems to have stuck. Unlike the seedy strip joints you might imagine, at LA fitness, Alexe takes you on a course of sophisticated moves and spins around the pole.
After a quick warm up bubbly Alexe shows the class as many basic moves as the time allows. A typical lesson as part of the course usually consists of around 8 to 10 girls. There are 14 of us and she comments on the size of the group – it’s unusual for that many women to attend one session, and with seven girls to each pole it was a large class. The taster session was filled with women of all ages, from 20 to 50, and, as a couple of older women proved after presenting their brief choreographed routine to the class, it’s not just for the young and flexible – anyone can give it a go. Pole dancing classes are somewhere to enjoy yourself and learn something new. Even with such a large group of women Alexe was very helpful and thorough, managing to give almost everyone a one-to-one , making everyone feel comfortable, no matter what their ability. Explaining that she wants everyone to leave the session having learnt something - even if no one has another pole dancing lesson - she sells it well.
Pole dancing is a chance to let your hair down and is completely different to a sub-standard gym workout you may only pretend to enjoy – it’s not every day you see so many smiles at the gym! It’s definitely good exercise too - there is a lot of potential to get toned and you can expect to stretch muscles you forgot you had! It can be challenging making the moves flow together, especially when Alexe makes it look so seamless, but over the course of the ninety minutes things start to come together.
When you’re half way up the pole, spinning around in mid air with your legs outstretched, you do begin to wonder about the dangers of it all and how easy it would be to fall off. Pole dancing does have the air of gymnastics about it, and there is no space to be clumsy; it was evident that some girls were better than others although those that struggled with one move often found their talents elsewhere, and everyone took part in high spirits.
During the session you spend quite a lot of time practising with the pole, so shorts and a long sleeved T-shirt work best for training. Shorts enable you to grip the pole with the skin of your legs, and long sleeves because you can expect a few knocks and bruises. As Alexe pointed out, the training session is much longer than an actual performance, so it’s best to protect your arms – unlike the scantily clad women you may see in clubs.
After over an hour – the class having practised and learnt many different moves - Alexe quickly demonstrates everything you could expect to learn during a beginner’s course to the gasps and amazement of her pupils. This really helps to create a good picture of the potential for 6 weeks training.
After this impressive display, it’s time to warm down, helping to stretch out all those long neglected muscles! Pole dancing is a great work out for the arms - they certainly ache a lot by the end of the lesson, and Alexe tells the girls to make sure they stretch them out again when they get home, or to have a well deserved hot bath.
Pole dancing is ideal to push yourself and improve your confidence, and this is an integral part of the discipline. It may not be for you if you are a bit of a wall-flower, but with time and practise you’ll be strutting your stuff and performing moves you never dreamed of in no time. Despite this, as another girl agrees, it really does require dedication and if your heart is just not in it perhaps you could try a different style of dance, like salsa or swing – both great exercise but more of a group activity.
Pole dancing is great fun and like nothing you had previously imagined. Nearly every woman left with a smile on her face, having felt she had learnt a new skill or at least had an insight into the world of pole dancing. It is doubtless Alexe will have little problem finding willing pupils who find it an enjoyable way to keep fit. The women all worked extremely hard and the burn was definitely felt the morning after!
Contact: alexe@laphq.co.uk
Descending the stairs into the gym, the anticipation of what lies ahead begins to build. Stepping into the studio two poles are assembled ready for the hour and a half session. It could be said by some that pole dancing is not for the faint hearted, but as toned Alexe, our tutor from L.A.P, soon proves, anyone can give it a go. After being introduced to each other, Alexe helps everyone to feel at ease and the nerves soon begin to disappear.
A couple of years ago pole dancing became increasingly popular with women who wanted to keep fit and trim and this seems to have stuck. Unlike the seedy strip joints you might imagine, at LA fitness, Alexe takes you on a course of sophisticated moves and spins around the pole.
After a quick warm up bubbly Alexe shows the class as many basic moves as the time allows. A typical lesson as part of the course usually consists of around 8 to 10 girls. There are 14 of us and she comments on the size of the group – it’s unusual for that many women to attend one session, and with seven girls to each pole it was a large class. The taster session was filled with women of all ages, from 20 to 50, and, as a couple of older women proved after presenting their brief choreographed routine to the class, it’s not just for the young and flexible – anyone can give it a go. Pole dancing classes are somewhere to enjoy yourself and learn something new. Even with such a large group of women Alexe was very helpful and thorough, managing to give almost everyone a one-to-one , making everyone feel comfortable, no matter what their ability. Explaining that she wants everyone to leave the session having learnt something - even if no one has another pole dancing lesson - she sells it well.
Pole dancing is a chance to let your hair down and is completely different to a sub-standard gym workout you may only pretend to enjoy – it’s not every day you see so many smiles at the gym! It’s definitely good exercise too - there is a lot of potential to get toned and you can expect to stretch muscles you forgot you had! It can be challenging making the moves flow together, especially when Alexe makes it look so seamless, but over the course of the ninety minutes things start to come together.
When you’re half way up the pole, spinning around in mid air with your legs outstretched, you do begin to wonder about the dangers of it all and how easy it would be to fall off. Pole dancing does have the air of gymnastics about it, and there is no space to be clumsy; it was evident that some girls were better than others although those that struggled with one move often found their talents elsewhere, and everyone took part in high spirits.
During the session you spend quite a lot of time practising with the pole, so shorts and a long sleeved T-shirt work best for training. Shorts enable you to grip the pole with the skin of your legs, and long sleeves because you can expect a few knocks and bruises. As Alexe pointed out, the training session is much longer than an actual performance, so it’s best to protect your arms – unlike the scantily clad women you may see in clubs.
After over an hour – the class having practised and learnt many different moves - Alexe quickly demonstrates everything you could expect to learn during a beginner’s course to the gasps and amazement of her pupils. This really helps to create a good picture of the potential for 6 weeks training.
After this impressive display, it’s time to warm down, helping to stretch out all those long neglected muscles! Pole dancing is a great work out for the arms - they certainly ache a lot by the end of the lesson, and Alexe tells the girls to make sure they stretch them out again when they get home, or to have a well deserved hot bath.
Pole dancing is ideal to push yourself and improve your confidence, and this is an integral part of the discipline. It may not be for you if you are a bit of a wall-flower, but with time and practise you’ll be strutting your stuff and performing moves you never dreamed of in no time. Despite this, as another girl agrees, it really does require dedication and if your heart is just not in it perhaps you could try a different style of dance, like salsa or swing – both great exercise but more of a group activity.
Pole dancing is great fun and like nothing you had previously imagined. Nearly every woman left with a smile on her face, having felt she had learnt a new skill or at least had an insight into the world of pole dancing. It is doubtless Alexe will have little problem finding willing pupils who find it an enjoyable way to keep fit. The women all worked extremely hard and the burn was definitely felt the morning after!
Contact: alexe@laphq.co.uk
