Need a flip cam?
Red Panda: Cute but fierce!
- Thread starter Red_Panda
- Start date
For the fun of it the other day my fiance decided to see how I could theoretically do on an army physical fitness test, so he timed out two minutes to see how many push ups I could do in that time. Turns out I can do 35, which is not amazing by any means but its great for me who could barely crank out two push ups awhile ago (as I've said many times, very weak shoulders, not to mention that frail lower back I have from my injury last year). Anyway, I guess that's more than I'd need as a girl in my age range to pass, so, woot! Of course, no epileptics with brain tumors allowed in the army lol! =P No worries there.
My pole dancing instructor's mission seems to be to torture my obliques and thighs haha =P They buuurn! Last night we worked on some fancy new moves which were tricky, but I nailed them! She actually came over and said she could tell I've done dancing before. At the end of the class she took the pin out of the bottom of the pole and let a few of us try out the pole in spinning mode - it was crazy fun but hard to hold myself up on! When I get my own pole (yes, I'm getting a pole for home, this is just too fun to quit when the class ends!) I have to make sure mine can spin. Its most excellent, and she said its great for advanced moves.
Anyway, today I can barely cough without feeling those poor muscles in my midsection; they took a beating. But I am starting to notice some very nice lines emerging there as my abdominal definition slowly improves. Nothing like an extreme change in workouts to get the body to respond right? As a trainer at the local gym says "Shock the body, shape the body." =D
My pole dancing instructor's mission seems to be to torture my obliques and thighs haha =P They buuurn! Last night we worked on some fancy new moves which were tricky, but I nailed them! She actually came over and said she could tell I've done dancing before. At the end of the class she took the pin out of the bottom of the pole and let a few of us try out the pole in spinning mode - it was crazy fun but hard to hold myself up on! When I get my own pole (yes, I'm getting a pole for home, this is just too fun to quit when the class ends!) I have to make sure mine can spin. Its most excellent, and she said its great for advanced moves.
Anyway, today I can barely cough without feeling those poor muscles in my midsection; they took a beating. But I am starting to notice some very nice lines emerging there as my abdominal definition slowly improves. Nothing like an extreme change in workouts to get the body to respond right? As a trainer at the local gym says "Shock the body, shape the body." =D
I went to power yoga today, and there I was, going along as usual, when we got into our floor work and something amazing happened - I went into my forward fold and was able to grab onto my feet! Like not just grasp feebly at my toes, but wrap my hands right around the sides of my feet with my legs kept straight! =D I had noticed little improvements to my flexibility here and there but this is huge for me. Before starting yoga I couldn't even grab my ankles in a seated forward fold, so now I feel so accomplished! Its great to feel something pay off like this! At this rate I'll be able to do a split in no time 
Haha!
Haha!awesome job for flexibility!
Hey hey, so you're favorite panda has been struck down by illness once more. Poor panda right? I went to the ER today after being struck down with crippling abdominal pain and nausea... After finally medicating me enough to get me out of the fetal position, they gave me an abdominal CAT scan and an ultrasound and determined that it was most likely an ovarian cyst that had ruptured. So I'm curled up at home with a hot-pad, some Percocet, and a referral to see a local ob-gyn soon to follow up on the issue. Fuuuuuun. Ouch.
So despite my ruptured cyst I still went to pole class on Wednesday night because, well, it was the last class of the level-1 session and that's exciting! It was dress up day =P I went easy on myself of course so it was more for fun than for exercise, but it really is super super fun. After class we all went to celebrate our level one graduation by going to the Gold Club (a strip club near the studio) to see if we could catch some pro pole dancers in action. Its relevant, you know? I got to wedge a dollar between the fake breasts of a bleach blond who smelled of beer - everyone should do it once in their life!
Anyway, now there is a break of a couple of weeks until the pole level 2 session begins... I have already signed up so my spot is totally reserved =D I will be away for the first week of the class (alas) but it will probably be pretty easy to catch up. Level 2 will get into combo tricks and the start of aerial and inverted moves! Woohoo! So that's coming up starting March 18th. Until then, I'll recover from my cyst, stick with my yoga (gently at first haha), and over spring break I'll be doing some horse back riding - in South America!
Anyway, now there is a break of a couple of weeks until the pole level 2 session begins... I have already signed up so my spot is totally reserved =D I will be away for the first week of the class (alas) but it will probably be pretty easy to catch up. Level 2 will get into combo tricks and the start of aerial and inverted moves! Woohoo! So that's coming up starting March 18th. Until then, I'll recover from my cyst, stick with my yoga (gently at first haha), and over spring break I'll be doing some horse back riding - in South America!
I was asked to do a photoshoot for the fitness studio I pole dance at, along with some other girls, to help promote the class - so I got a little practice in between sessions. Woot! My abs are sooore. But its so fun. Level 2 starts later this month =) Next week I'll be doing some horseback riding over spring break which I can tell you right now will kill my legs, since I'm out of practice and haven't used those muscles properly in awhile, but again, change of activity is always good for the body right?
Well, horseback riding in South America doesn't begin until Wednesday, and pole level 2 doesn't begin until the 18th, so what to do until then to stay in shape? Floor work in my heels! Hahaha. I downloaded some sexy music and went at it with some of the "sexy workouts" we learned in class, plus a few new ones (that I may or may not have observed in a strip club). It was super fun, the heels added a balance element as well as weight to my legs, and it was indeed a workout - I was sweating by the four songs in. No wonder strippers are in good shape, they are stretching, crunching, leg lifting, and all in heels on a daily basis! Between the floor work from these classes and the yoga, my flexibility has very noticeably increased, more so than just the toe-touching I mentioned before. I am working my way up to a split in both directions - I'm down to just about a foot (or less some days) off the ground. I can still only do 35 push ups but that number will probably go back up when pole 2 picks up and we start aerial tricks - arm, shoulder, and back muscles will play a huge role and get quite a work out.
In other news one of my friends wants to get back in to using free weights, which she used to do a lot when she played rugby, and I've been meaning to get in to some more real weight work (right now I just do what I can at home with my fiance's limited weigh equipment really, I hate going to the school gym alone) so we might buddy up to go have at the weight room starting after spring break.
In other news one of my friends wants to get back in to using free weights, which she used to do a lot when she played rugby, and I've been meaning to get in to some more real weight work (right now I just do what I can at home with my fiance's limited weigh equipment really, I hate going to the school gym alone) so we might buddy up to go have at the weight room starting after spring break.
and these pics are located where?
When I have any of the pictures from the pole photo shoot (if they give me copies) I'll be sure to share
The article will be in Hartford Magazine at some point though.Just got back from Chile! I did lots of horseback riding (killer thigh workout, let me tell you...) and lots of hiking around the mountains, and ate lots of healthy farm food like chicken and avocado. Woot! Now I'm off to my first pole fitness level 2 class =P More on that, and some pictures of me on horseback, either tomorrow or when I get home tonight!
No guys in my pole class, only women allowed in this one. The owner feels that having men present might make some of the women in the class feel self conscious. Truth be told, the self conscious women didn't actually last long in this class... it takes a certain amount of confidence to grab onto that pole and really swing yourself around it. In most cases, if you can't do the move with some degree dedication, its just not going to work right, so they got discouraged and drifted away - especially when it came time to wear shorts so we could start doing aerial moves (you need the thigh friction).
As for me, I'm finding level two way more challenging than level one! Fan kicks, sideways spins - our eventual goal is the ever classic upside-down split hold thing you always see pictured. One of my biggest problems I'm facing is that I need more upper body strength, and more leg strength/flexibility. What I mean by that is, I thought my legs were pretty flexible (from the yoga) but when it comes time spread my legs in mid air it is so different. To be flexible enough to spread them with the resistance of the floor or my hands pulling is one thing, but to he able to just pull them up there with my own opposing muscles? Gah, its freaking hard! So I need to keep stretching those hamstrings and working those... what is that thing, hip flexers? Anyway, you know, the ones that lift legs out and to the side
So if anyone knows of a good exercise to work the pull-up muscles (without an assisted pull-up machine, which would be the obvious choice
Don't have one, or a bar sturdy enough to pull up on) let me know. I have a basic home gym, is pulling down with a certain grip going to work the same muscles as doing a pull-up? I need to eventually be able to grab onto that pole and lift myself up for a lot of these moves.Oh and as promised, pictures of me jumping horses in Chile! The grey is called Cynthia, and the chestnut is Myten. These are pretty small jumps still because they are young-ish and this was more about training them than seeing how high they can go (they can jump crazy high, I've seen them). Their owner hopes to start showing them next year or the year after.
Attachments
Last edited:
Whew, well I beat myself up yesterday! Power yoga for an hour and half in the morning, and pole dancing in the evening. Which doesn't sound like a lot to you crazy weight lifters but pole dancing is intense work when you're wearing seven inch heels and trying to flip upside down... my shoulders and abs are still aching! Plus we do the floor workout before we start to warm up and to make sure we're building all the muscles we'll need week by week. We tried to do "pole climbing" but apparently I'm too darn silky, and kept just sliding down haha. I could do it before but now that my legs are getting more toned its harder! She said having extra fat does make your legs "cling" to the pole a little better so now I just need to get stronger inner thighs to really cling to it. Yoga was all about the back bends yesterday. I can do a full wheel now, no problem (which for years I thought I couldn't do!) and my poor lower back is reminding me just how much it got worked yesterday.
Ok, so some exciting news: probably getting my own pole finally! Because my ceilings upstairs are all vaulted (high and at crazy angles, skylights and beams everywhere, just not convenient at all) mounting a pole was going to prove tricky, so I went ahead and decided on a Platinum Stage pole. This is a 7' 11" pole with a roughly foot-tall, four by four "stage" for a base that holds it up steadily without having to anchor to the ceiling or floor or anything. It seemed the best option. Online brand new price? For the most basic package (wooden stage, steel pole) about $400, and that's not even including shipping. But then I looked on craigslist, and someone near me is selling one with a brass pole and steel stage, which brand new would be about $500 plus crazy shipping costs, and I can probably get it for just over $400 I think, which for a brass pole would be a great deal. So I'm in negotiations now and there's a good chance I'll be getting it Then I can practice at home and build up those pole dancing muscles quicker! (and get that super fun workout more than once a week, because there is nothing as fun as a pole workout for me right now, I love it.) Updates as I have them!
Then I can practice at home and build up those pole dancing muscles quicker! (and get that super fun workout more than once a week, because there is nothing as fun as a pole workout for me right now, I love it.) Updates as I have them! I GOT IT! Yesterday a couple friends and I took a truck down and picked up my lovely pole. Brass finish, steel stage surface, its looovely. I have to say, the brass makes a huge difference for me in a lot of the climbing/aerial tricks. Its much easier to grip too than a steel pole. Of course this makes swinging tricks a little harder (not sliding as smoothly) but since those are the ones I ace more easily anyway, I could afford for those to become a little more challenging if the trade off is that climbing becomes do-able!
Anyway, the pole is all set up and I spent a good couple of hours on it yesterday and I am soooo sore today. I didn't even notice how hard I was working on it because I was just having fun, but this morning I feel it. Best kind of workout IMO And I just want to get right back up there, but I think my arms need a break for sure. Once I've recovered a little I'll try to get some video or something of me doing some of my moves. Woot!
Yesterday a couple friends and I took a truck down and picked up my lovely pole. Brass finish, steel stage surface, its looovely. I have to say, the brass makes a huge difference for me in a lot of the climbing/aerial tricks. Its much easier to grip too than a steel pole. Of course this makes swinging tricks a little harder (not sliding as smoothly) but since those are the ones I ace more easily anyway, I could afford for those to become a little more challenging if the trade off is that climbing becomes do-able! Anyway, the pole is all set up and I spent a good couple of hours on it yesterday and I am soooo sore today. I didn't even notice how hard I was working on it because I was just having fun, but this morning I feel it. Best kind of workout IMO
And I just want to get right back up there, but I think my arms need a break for sure. Once I've recovered a little I'll try to get some video or something of me doing some of my moves. Woot!
Lol...............