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I am a contradiction, a thoughtful contradiction. I have thoughts, and I want to share them. I am a blogger....

The Beauty Myth

The Beauty Myth is a nonfiction book by Naomi Wolf which argues that as women have become more powerful in society the standards of physical appearance have also grown.

Wolf believes that "beauty" is a societal construct:

"The more legal and material hindrances women have broken through, the more strictly and heavily and cruelly images of female beauty have come to weigh upon us... during the past decade, women breached the power structure; meanwhile, eating disorders rose exponentially and cosmetic surgery became the fastest-growing specialty... pornography became the main media category, ahead of legitimate films and records combined, and thirty-three thousand American women told researchers that they would rather lose ten to fifteen pounds than achieve any other goal...More women have more money and power and scope and legal recognition than we have ever had before; but in terms of how we feel about ourselves physically, we may actually be worse off than our unliberated grandmothers."

Wednesday, 31 July 2013

Pole Workshop...Bruises and Big Spins.

So tonight I attended my first ever pole workshop, with the fabulous and famous Leigh-Ann Reily, from Los Angeles, USA.

I was pretty nervous to be honest, but I really want to advance at pole dancing, and I'm at a stage where the perfection of technique is what I need in order to keep progressing into bigger and stronger moves. It meant I missed my usual pole class (boo) but was totally worth the time and money.

The first workshop was big spins. I love spinning, it's my favourite thing to do and what I feel pole dancing is all about. A lot of people prefer the high level tricks and flicks, and I agree they look fabulous, but tricks alone do not a good routine make. I've been in the audience watching a trick heavy performance, and although I appreciate how hard it is, I do find myself thinking "ok you're strong...but what else can you do". The spin workshop was amazing and I learned a lot about body positioning and the science behind the spin, because if you don't push off right you're destined to a poor spin! I could feel an almost immediate improvement in my spins, and I can't wait to get back to class and use the technique in every spin I can think of!

My second workshop was problem tricks, and I will admit this is where I stumbled a bit more. At this stage every trick is a problem haha because I'm developing the strength I need in order to pull them off. But despite everyone else in the class being more advanced than me I took LOADS away, stuff I can use to improve tricks now and that I will defo keep in mind for when I am trying the tougher moves. Again, biology and science was at the forefront, if your body isn't in the right shape you cannot nail the move. It's about engaging every muscle and forcing your body into the shape it needs to be in so that you use the least amount of energy possible allowing you to hold for longer and maintain your stamina through-out a routine.

The whole experience was amazing. Leigh-Ann was so lovely - I couldn't stop staring at her body, she was so hot it hurts! Her tummy was amazing!! She was modest in her moves though, she knew she was good at what she does, but her desire is to help others reach their goals. All the girls in the class were lovely, and I made some new pole friends which was great. I'm really looking forward to attending more workshops in the future, and have now started a wee pole notebook that I will take with me through-out my pole journey.

Of course none of this would be happening if it wasn't for my amazing instructor Claire, who runs PB Dance and Fitness. If it wasn't for her I wouldn't be here writing this blog, with my right wrist shredded, feeling on top of the world. I Heart Pole Blog biggin up the PB girls will be coming soon!
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