Fitness craze an eye-opener Pole position for challenge
IT has become a worldwide fitness craze that tightens, strengthens and tones your whole body while you’re having fun.
Pole dancing has long been associated with red-light clubs and seedy guys but the 21st century has made it mainstream.
Owner of Townsville Pole Fitness Kirini Gleeson said pole dancing was a great way to exercise, especially for people who didn’t like a mundane gym regime.
“It is an all-over body workout where you use your body weight,” she said.
“You are getting fit while you are having fun because you don’t even realise you are working out.”
Pole fitness is not like other workouts, with Ms Gleeson saying the hardest aspects were co-ordination, stamina and the combination of strength and flexibility.
You can burn up to 700 calories with just one 45-minute lesson, with Ms Gleeson saying the performance art incorporated athletic moves such as spins, climbs and body inversions.
“Pole dancing is always evolving, with new tricks created every week by other dancers around the world,” she said.
“When I started at the studio the hardest trick then is now an intermediate trick.”
Superstar Jennifer Lopez ignited the fitness hype when she recently declared on Instagram that learning how to pole dance for her new movie was one of the most physically challenging but rewarding things she had ever done.
Kerry Walsh, 58, enrolled in pole fitness with her daughter six months ago and says she is addicted to pushing her limits.
“I am hooked and if you think I can’t get up the pole and move, you will be surprised what the body can do,” she says. “No matter the age or size, there is no limit.”
The ex-military woman said she had always been an athlete but pole dancing had changed her outlook on traditional methods of exercise.
“Running is boring and I’ve done the gym thing and lifting weights, and pole fitness is such an inclusive environment and heaps of fun,” she said.