eek Five – Pole

I think I finally followed Hannah’s warm up correctly! It only took five weeks and an insane amount of concentration, but I feel comfortable now.

After a little conditioning, we started on our first new move of the session, Forearm Climb. After learning the basic Pole Climb the previous couple of weeks, this didn’t feel quite so intimidating at the start. The hand and arm placement felt quite natural. I can already feel that my upper body strength and overall stamina has improved since beginning these sessions and the Forearm Climb proved this to me. It looks so much more ‘professional’ than Pole Climb too (I see it in pretty much every performance at competitions and events). The initial lift off of the floor onto the pole was a lot smoother and personally felt easier than previous sessions.

Then we progressed to Cradle Spin. As I mentioned in my last blog, I feel like my right side dominates (read is stronger and easier for most moves), but my body was about to betray me; left side in Cradle Spin was super easy for me to grasp compared to right side! After a few more tries on both sides and some guidance from Hannah it clicked. The feeling of leaving the floor and being close into the pole was a little alien as most other moves we have learnt so far require the body to be off the pole with straight lines (pointed toes/extended legs for aesthetic purposes) and locked arms.

Hannah then showed us a Side Spin. This proved to be quite challenging for me, both with the leg placement and getting both feet of the floor smoothly. I’m not 100% happy with my current progress, but it’s something to work on until next week’s session.

Finally, we moved onto what I had been waiting all week for, inverting! Hannah showed us a Basic Invert from Strong Hold into Crucifix. I wasn’t too sure about being able to invert from the Strong Hold, but even my first try was a lot better than I thought it would be. After that, another issue I hadn’t anticipated came into play; coordinating my feet above my head while my hands were holding on to the pole. I guess it’s a muscle memory thing and will come with more practice. Check out the still images below kindly shot by Dion.

After the Bird’s Nest in Aerial Hoop last week, being upside down wasn’t nearly so intimidating as I thought it would be. I did also manage to remove one hand while in the invert so does that equal a half Crucifix? My dismount from this move was somewhat less than graceful. Watching most of the other students gliding down the pole to end up on the floor in a pretty pose has made me want to really nail this next time.

Week Five – Aerial Hoop

Unfortunately, there was no Aerial Hoop session at the Aerial Attic this week that I could attend (maybe this will give the various bruises I have picked up during Aerial Hoop to heal a little), but I can’t wait to get back in the studio next week with Ellie, polish up my existing repertoire and add some new stuff before the Christmas shut down.

 Week Five – Aerial Yoga

After missing a few sessions of Aerial Yoga due to work and personal commitments, I was really excited to get back in the studio with Jess. Check out the video below to see what I got up to.

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