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Sitting Pole Up Exercise
By Susan Peach
This exercise will help you build the core and upper body strength needed to do lifts, holds and spins on your dance pole.
If you're a beginner, the sitting pole-up is the place to start. As you progress, or if you're already at an intermediate to advanced level, you can try two more difficult variations: the kneeling and the standing pole-up.
Start the Sitting Pole Up exercise by sitting cross legged with your legs around your pole. Sit close enough so that your body is touching or almost touching the
pole. How close you'll get depends on your body weight and build, so
don't worry too much about this.
If you have large breasts or a round belly, some of your "squishy bits" might touch the pole. If you're very thin or lean, there may be a gap between you and the pole. Either is fine, not to worry. The main thing is to sit straight and not be leaning into or away from your pole.
Next, reach your hands just above above your head, but not too high. Grasp the pole with your elbows bent and a firm grip.
When you're ready, engage your core muscles (think of pulling your belly button in and down towards your tailbone) then slowly lift your body off the floor. Focus on using your core and upper body to lift yourself. Aim to lift yourself so that you are looking directly at your hands. You may not get there right away, but keep this in mind as your goal.
Allow the edges of your feet to give you a little support and keep you balanced, but try not to use them to actually lift yourself. You may need the help of your feet at first, but as you get stronger you should be able to rely on them less and less.
Avoid rotating your feet all the way so that the soles are on the floor. If you do this, you may end up pushing with your legs and losing most of the upper body benefit.
When done correctly, this exercise is quite challenging!
Remember: it doesn't matter how high you lift yourself. The important thing is that you get off the ground. If you can only lift half an inch at first, that's great! Keep at it and soon you'll be lifting higher.
Lift slowly and with control, keeping your core muscles engaged. Pause at the top of the movement (ie the highest point you're able to lift yourself to), then lower yourself back down slowly and with control, all the way to the floor.
Keep your body very close to the pole as you lift, make sure your pelvis remains tucked underneath you, and keep those core muscles engaged!
Now change your hands around so the other hand is on top, and repeat the lift. It's important to change up your grip each time, as this will be very helpful in developing balanced strength. It will also help develop your ability to execute spins and other pole tricks using both your dominant and non-dominant sides.
Depending on your level, you might start out with only 1 or 2 lifts on each side. As you get stronger, work up to 6 lifts on each side (12 lifts in total). You can then increase the difficulty of this exercise by doing it from a kneeling position, and then eventually from a standing position.
Sitting Pole Up Exercise - Reminders
- Don't worry if you can't lift yourself very high at first...that will come with practice.
- Don't put your hands too high on the pole at first; as you get stronger you can reach higher.
- Don't push with your feet; remember: lift up instead of pushing off.
- Do engage your core muscles before you start to lift.
- Do keep your tailbone tucked underneath your hips, rather than letting it "pop" out the back.
- Do change your hand position every time you lift, to ensure you strengthen both sides of your body equally.
More Pole Exercises & Stretches To Try
Susan Peach is an early pioneer in pole dance fitness and the voice behind Your Pole Pal, a long-running resource for the pole community. She taught dance & fitness for nearly 30 years, leading hundreds of classes and working with thousands of students aged 6 to 80+, and created original programs when formal training did not yet exist. She also produced one of the first pole fitness DVD series, along with instructor training and Latin dance fitness programs. Today, she writes and builds Your Pole Pal, still with a soft spot for Latin dance music.
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