Pregnant pole dancer:
Thanks to her aerial acrobatics, Jade Flash banished morning sickness and fatigue – and sailed through her labour
“My bump made me feel sexier than ever!”
At eight months pregnant, it would be understandable if you chose to do little more than lie on the sofa and watch Netflix – but 28-year-old Jade Flash opted for a more energetic way to pass the time. She was still dancing around a pole just days before giving birth.
SAFE
Jade, who lives near Birmingham with husband Nathan, 34, who owns a building business, says, “I had no morning sickness or fatigue and I think it was because I was constantly on the go. When I asked doctors if it was safe to carry on with pole dancing, they said it would probably be better for me than stopping, as my body is so used to it. I’ve been pole dancing since I was 21 and just love it.”
And the athletic new mum – who owns a circus school as well as being a circus performer – credits pole dancing with getting her prebaby body back within two weeks – and believes it helped when it came to giving birth.
Jade, who welcomed son Maddox on 1 August, says, “The birth was amazing – I didn’t need any pain relief and I didn’t tear, either. I was only in active labour for an hour and it was pain-free. I put it down to how fit my pole dancing has kept me. I’m sure it’s down to how physically fit I am. And now we have our gorgeous boy, we couldn’t be happier.”
Jade’s delight is all the greater as doctors thought she’d need IVF to conceive, as she’d only ever had one period in her life.
She says, “Doctors put it down to me being a bit underweight as a teenager and the amount of exercise I did. I met Nathan when I was 17, but it was only in the last couple of years we worried we might not be able to have a family.
EXERCISE REGIME
“Because I wasn’t ovulating, doctors put me on hormone treatments to try to kick-start it, but it didn’t work. Then, when I was on holiday in Tahiti with Nathan last October, I suddenly came on my period – and, soon after that, I fell pregnant.”
Before she conceived, Jade would be on the pole for up to 12 hours a day. She says, “I used to train seven days a week, but once I was pregnant, I cut it down to four. I didn’t do any moves that would squish my bump against the pole. I’m so experienced, though, that I know what my body can do and how strong I am.
“I put on 2st during pregnancy, but I loved the changes to my body. My bump made me feel sexier than ever when I was on the pole.
“And as I got bigger, I just adjusted my moves.”
Now, Maddox is four weeks old, and Jade can’t wait to start pole dancing again. She says, “I’m breastfeeding and I’m not doing any exercise at all but hope to soon. I’ve missed it! Maddox sleeps really well and is a very calm baby. I think, because I was on the go during the pregnancy and after his birth, it’s really helped his development.
“I don’t want to preach to other women – every pregnancy is different. But if there’s something you love doing, then I believe it’s better to carry on. Just because you’re having a baby, you don’t need to lose yourself!”
By Mel Fallowfield