While many people envision someone with a physically fit body twirling seductively around a pole, the reality is that you don’t have to be stick-thin to enjoy the activity. There is no right shape for pole dancing, and there are many benefits to taking plus-size pole dancing lessons.
Plus-Sized Women Can Pole Dance Too
Pole dancing isn’t just for skinny women and muscular men. It is an exceptional form of exercise, regardless of your shape or physical fitness level. Everyone, no matter their physical appearance, should look and feel good. Pole dancing is a great way to accomplish this. It helps plus-sized people gain confidence in their bodies and feel good while doing it.
Mentally, pole dancing works well when trying to lose weight. Half of the weight loss battle is won the minute we feel happy and confident with ourselves. We put on weight when we are at an emotional low or feel even worse for “letting ourselves go.” But what if we could reverse our negative thought process?
Many of us fail to realize that what makes us attractive is how we perceive ourselves. How we view ourselves often dictates how others see us as well. When we lack confidence, it shows.
Nothing Will Limit Your Ability
While fit people will initially have an advantage, everything is relative to our own ability to hold our body weight. No matter your size, not everyone can hold their weight on a pole. Most people cannot hold their body weight when beginning this exercise, regardless of their size. This strength is something that takes some work to achieve.
You need to develop the right muscles to hold yourself on a pole and acquire the proper grip. While you may feel you are too weak to participate in pole dancing, this may not be the case.
Those who are heavier may have a great deal of muscle over those who are skinnier. It makes them strong when it comes to holding their weight. There may be more weight to support, but it boils down to ability. Low body fat doesn’t mean that you can pole dance well, but being able to hold your weight does.
In time and with practice, you will become more confident in pole dancing. Pole dancing teaches you to move your body seductively and you grow to love your body. As you start feeling more comfortable with your shape, you will become stronger.
It May Take You Longer to Do Certain Tasks
Even though nothing will limit your ability to perform these tasks, it may take you a while to master them. Most plus-size people remark that they need greater knee grip for some of the dances due to the extra weight. Moves like a back hook spin and hooking the knee around the inside pole may be difficult as it involves hip rotation.
Increases Strength
Pole dancing isn’t easy. You will have falls, slips, bumps, and bruises, but this is true of any sport you attempt. Initially, the basic pole spin may appear impossible, especially while you’re working on your arm and hand strength. Yet know that everyone struggles with this at first. It isn’t a matter of size but of strength.
Plus, it isn’t just the physical strength you need. It is mental as well. You need the confidence to be sexy in front of others who may or may not dance better than you do.
Many dances require you to lift and hold body weight, which allows you to build strength in your biceps, triceps, back muscles, and arms. The dances that help with this are:
- Climb
- Fireman
- Spin
Pole dancing also builds core strength. These include your abs, stomach muscles, and lower back when you climb. The dances that help with this are:
- Arms-only climb
- Tuck spin
- Barbed wire
It improves leg strength as well, from the more intermediate moves, and includes:
- Dragonfly
- Rainbow
- Pole-sit
Therefore, pole dancing provides an entire body workout. There are very few muscles that aren’t used when pole dancing and the repetition improves strength. This activity is great for both cardio and strength training, no matter what size you are.
Increases Flexibility
Everyone is born flexible and with a full range of joint motion, but we lose it when we don’t use it regularly. Our joints feel stiff, limiting our range of motion. As you condition these muscles through pole dancing, you restore your natural flexibility.
Furthermore, flexibility is more than contorting the body. There are benefits to it as well. When one part of the body is less mobile, other areas compensate. The result may be premature wearing of the joints, increased opportunity for injury, poor posture, and poor basic movements. People may experience increased achiness and cramping, leading to chronic issues.
Pole dancing allows you to train your joints and muscles to increase flexibility and improve spatial awareness and balance.
Increases Cardiovascular Health
Pole dancing keeps the heart rate up. Even at a beginner level, you get a whole-body workout. It also falls between moderate and intense physical activity, which is where it may get tricky for some plus-size people.
Depending on your BMI, you may have to consult a physician before taking a class to ensure you are safe taking the class without experiencing any health issues. Health should always be your primary concern before attempting any type of physical activity.
However, you can still be plus-sized and be perfectly healthy, and taking a pole dancing class can be a wonderful experience.
Great for Weight Loss
Since you are incorporating strength and cardio, the high-intensity activities aid in quickly burning calories while the strength activities help with toning muscle. Maintaining and increasing activity will also increase your metabolism, so even if you are not pole dancing, you are still burning calories.
Pole dancing allows you to burn fat while gaining muscle and helps you become leaner instead of just remaining healthy.
No matter what your size, you can still pole dance. Plus-size pole dancing classes are easily done, but some moves may take a little while to learn. Be sure you consult with a physician before taking classes to ensure that the intensity is right for you.
Intensity is not a matter of size, as everyone should consult a doctor before engaging in high activity levels, but it is a matter of safety. If you need a little extra support, consider programs like Noom and Healthi to help you in your journey.