Difficulty: Advanced

The Half Flag is an eye-catching pose. It’s a very graceful move when performed properly, while at the same time showing demonstrating impressive strength and core control.

About the Half Flag

You’ve probably seen advanced pole dancers pivoting into a Half Flag at the top of a pole and holding it with impressive control. Start at the bottom! Once you feel confident performing the pose, then move it up the pole to wow the crowds (or your cat :). It’s also an easier pose to get into from the floor than when hanging onto a pole.

There are a number of different Half Flag poses, and they don’t all have straight legs. It’s more important to focus at first on turning your hips and keeping your body horizontal and flat. (So if your left arm is hooked and your right arm is down the pole, you need to turn your hips left, and vice versa.)

You can try attitude legs (bent legs and pointed toes) as Libby does in the video. This shifts your body weight inwards and is much less strenuous to hold — and it looks really pretty too!

The Half Flag isn’t that difficult technically, but it does require a lot of strength and confidence to master. After you’ve perfected the pole grip, work on raising your legs in a tucked position to get safely in and out of the move. Then try holding that tucked position for longer and, when you’re comfortable with that, move on to the attitude legs pose. Finally work towards the straight Half Flag as your core strength — and overall strength — allows.

In detail

1. Stand next to the pole and wrap your inside arm around the pole, gripping the pole in your armpit and locking your arm on the pole.
2. Point your other arm straight down the pole, with your wrist facing up and your elbow bent and resting on your stomach.
3. Leaning forward and, engaging your core muscles, slowly lift your legs off the floor. Tilt your hips away from the floor so your body becomes horizontal.
4. As you get more confident with the move, lift your legs higher and twist your hips so they’re flat to the pole, keeping your feet together to create the perfect Half Flag pose.

In action

Top tips

• Try the move with the pole on both sides to work out which side feels more comfortable for you. Some people can do both, but almost everyone has a favourite side.
• If you cannot lift your legs at all, try lowering your initial arm grip so your body is already in a flatter position, then raise your legs into a tucked position to check your arms will support you.
• Breasts and nylon tops will cause problems with the Half Flag. Take care of your boobs by making sure you grip the pole with your armpit and don’t squash any delicate breast tissue. Make sure your clothing around your armpit is nylon free (or, better yet, wear a strappy top for extra skin contact).
• Another great variation on the Half Flag you can try is bending your legs together and then running in the air — an impressive display of your core strength.

Find this move and 65 others on Pole Exercise DVD 1.

I’ve wanted to learn to scale these giant circus poles ever since, and I’ve recently been lucky enough to start learning Chinese pole with instructor and performer Jon Young.

The style of Chinese pole is quite different from pole dancing, but there are a lot of obvious similarities too. Many of the poses and grips look familiar, and I was keen to find out how Chinese Pole could expand my pole dance repertoire, adding new moves and perhaps giving me a new way of looking at pole too.

A new type of pole

Chinese pole also uses a metal pole, though the biggest difference is that it’s usually coated in rubber. This gives the artist a huge amount of extra grip (and makes some poses a lot easier), but of course completely rules out moves like spins.

Thanks to its circus origins, the poles are much higher than ones we’re used to, sometimes reaching 9 or 10m (27-30′) in the air. The pole is wider too, typically stretching to 7-10cm (3-4") in diameter. This makes a big difference when gripping the pole, and also gives large-handed male acrobats a distinct advantage!

Like a stage pole, Chinese poles are free-standing. They’re held in place with a circus rigging, which secures the bottom of the pole to the floor directly and the top of the pole to the floor via a pair of long straps. This means that the pole has a slight ‘give’ to it, and the extra swaying can be quite disconcerting when you first mount it!

Painful poling

I’m sure you know all about the delightful pole kisses we get after a vigorous practice session, but Chinese pole can be considerably less forgiving: any exposed skin is liable to get burnt very quickly as friction heats it up when sliding down the pole. Luckily the rubber coating means you can get grip through clothes, though complete protection not always possible. (In fact Wikipedia says that artists use the burn marks left on their shoulders as a way to recognise each other. :)

One for the boys

Like mallakhamb, Chinese pole is usually normally performed by male acrobats. The reasons for this are probably largely historic (men do it because men do it), though a man’s greater natural strength – and particularly upper body strength – is an advantage for many holds and poses.

Perhaps the most famous Chinese pole pose (and yes, it’s a strength move) is the flag. Here’s a clip of Dominic Lacasse holding the flag for an incredible 43.5s (he holds the world record), and another short, but deeply impressive, clip of him ‘walking’ in a circle from the flag pose. Update: OneMetal has just published an interview with Dominic Lacasse.

Learning Chinese pole

My first lesson with my instructor Jon was a real challenge, but great fun too. As well as the standard Chinese climb I learnt 10 positions, mainly transitions and rest positions. Most of the moves work well on a dance pole too, though some are more difficult because of the lower grip levels.

Chinese pole Climb

The Chinese pole Climb places both feet flat on the pole. You tend to use more the ball of the foot pushing in. It’s important to keep the hips towards the pole, and bent arms. The second you find yourself sinking back with straight arms it becomes very hard. I found this difficult at first as it was a very foreign way to climb the pole. (Plus I had completely the wrong shoes on!)

This climb is harder on a dance pole, but it’s great fun to do in bare feet or wearing a grippy pair of trainers. It’s an energetic and unusual way to start a routine, and can look particularly striking if you’re performing on a tall pole.

Gazelle Change

Invert into the Gemini, but keep your free leg straight and dropping over your back, rather than sinking into the classic Gemini position. Then swing your free leg towards you, squeeze between your thighs, swing your torso around the pole, gripping the pole in your armpit, and finally change your leg to the Reverse Gemini. Then you can repeat the move again in the other direction.

The Gazelle is harder on a dance pole because of the lack of rubber, but it’s still very doable. Step through the move slowly at first and remember to grip with your thighs. I also recommend using your hands on the pole to change sides at first.

Make sure you start nice and high as the body does descend a little during this move, and be prepared to ignore the burn on your outside leg as you change position and ‘drop’ into the end pose – ouch! If you’re precise enough, it’s a very dramatic way to do the Gemini over and over again in a routine, changing sides as you descend.

Hip Lock and Drop

The Hip Lock is a variation on the Sit. With the pole centred, twist the legs as though you’re going into the Barbed Wire, then lean forwards and round the pole to lock the pose.

The Hip Lock and Drop starts with a Hip Lock at the top of the pole. From there, slowly slide down by relaxing your body and allowing a little slip. After I’d done this, Jon got me to speed it up. I went to the top, took a deep breath and released, and tightened again as the ground came rushing up to meet me. Took my breath away!

My instructor’s Chinese pole showreel.

Other Chinese pole positions

• Frog – A rest position. Bend both feet and knees outwards, placing the feet onto the pole below your bottom. Your hips should be open. Bring your dominant arm around the front of the pole to lock in. You can also straighten your dominant leg out once locked. A very traditional circus move.
• Rest position 2 – Like the Icon, but place your less dominant foot onto the pole to create grip, rather than using the side of your leg.
• Leg Lock – Another variation on the Sit. Sit on the pole and get into the Ox (cross your non-dominant leg on the pole, put the back of your dominant leg’s knee around your foot and hook your dominant foot under the pole to create the lock).
• Attitude – The Knees Variation with your lower foot on the pole to create the lock. It’s important to angle the foot towards the ground and keep your hips forward.
• Lay Back – Like the Fang, but grip with the thighs rather than the feet.
• Handstand – A Double Grip Straight Edge. Stand next to the pole, take the hand position and kick up into it.
• Hip Lock Walk Down – Take the Hip Lock position, then straighten your left leg and walk your hands down the pole, squeezing with your legs, until the straight leg hooks on the back of the pole with the foot. You can hold this position with no hands on the pole before setting up to the do the Handstand.

I got a huge amount out of my first lesson, but it also made me realise just how much I still have to learn. And my goodness I hurt the following day! I thought I was pole fit, but I now know just how hard I need to work at building up my core strength in particular. I felt like I had run a marathon!

Chinese pole dancing

The pole community has grown hugely in the past few years. Our first DVD has 66 moves on, and we reckoned we had included pretty much all known spins and poses at the time. You only need to check sites like WikiPole, which currently lists over 300 moves, for evidence of the explosion of creativity since then.

But there’s still huge unexplored potential, and a huge amount we can learn from Chinese pole in pole dancing. I hope to introduce it into my own teaching and routines soon and can’t wait for my next lesson!

Have you used any of these (or other) Chinese pole moves in your pole routines? Would you like to learn more? I’m really excited about the possibilities, and I’d love to know what you think too!

Fun links

• Eike von Stuckenbrok Chinese Pole @ Chamäleon (Soap Show) (YouTube)
• Crazy Chinese Pole (By Jay Shen) (YouTube)
• Dancing Like No One’s Watching – performance by my instructor, inspired by the film Napoleon Dynamite (Vimeo)
• Crazy Chinese Poles Insanity (YouTube)
• Chinese Poles – info and positions from Simply Circus

Difficulty: Intermediate

There’s no doubt about it: inverting on a pole for the first time can be scary.

Perhaps you’ve been pole dancing for a few weeks, building up your move repertoire and now you really want to try some of those amazing inverted poses.

But there’s just one problem…

I’m scared of falling on my head!

First, let’s talk about why inverting is not actually that difficult. I’m sure you’re already comfortable holding yourself on the pole with your legs in the Icon Pose or when sitting on the pole, and once you’ve inverted you’ll be gripping the pole in much the same way.

There’s a lot of grip on offer, and the Basic Invert leaves your body wrapped around the pole so it’s a pretty secure pose too. In fact, if it weren’t for you being upside down, this move would almost be too boring to discuss.

Preparing to invert

Usually the worry about inverting is a much bigger obstacle to success than actual ability, so take some precautions to make yourself feel better. Get a friend or partner to spot for you: have her stand close to the pole and press her hands against your back once you’ve inverted to help you hold the position.

Steal the sofa’s cushions and put them around your pole, or think about investing in a specially designed pole mat.

Your pelvis should be leading the move, not your feet. Stand next to the pole and tilt your body back while letting your arms straighten to get a feel for the movement required for the Basic Invert.

One of most useful training moves can do is the High Kick, as you’ll pass through almost exactly the same motions when you do a full Basic Invert. Practice the move a few times in a row and try to get your feet higher off the ground each time. Make sure the kick is explosive and remember not to cartwheel your legs.

I know it can be tempting to take a run up to get into this move, but please try not to. You’ll get little extra lift over kicking up from a single step back, and there’s a danger that you’ll have less control if you fling yourself at the pole.

Taking a step back is OK if you need a bit of extra power, but eventually you should be able to do a dead-lift invert with no kick at all.

In detail

1. Place your dominant (stronger) hand high on the pole and your other hand just below. Stand with the pole on your dominant side.
2. Step forward with your inside leg and kick up with the opposite leg (if you’re right handed, this is your left leg) and hook your ankle around the pole above your head.
3. Bring up your other leg and cross the ankle over the one already on the pole. Push your hips up, straighten your legs as much as you can and extend your head backwards.

In action

Top tips

• Allow your upper body to drop backwards and your arms to extend as you lift your legs up. It’s much harder to invert if you keep your body upright and close to the pole.
• Once you’ve got into the move, extend your legs up the pole, push your hips up and drop your head back so you can see the floor. (I know I’m not looking down in the pictures!) This makes it easier for your arms to hold your weight and stop you sliding down the pole.
• If you do begin to slide down the pole, allow yourself to descend slowly until you come to rest on your upper back. Resist the temptation to flip out of the move by dropping your legs as this can hurt your back.
• Make sure you don’t bang your hips when inverting. Ladies’ hips tend to be more prominent and whacking them against a pole is very painful. Start with your hips in front of the pole if you’re not kicking into the move; otherwise remember to allow a little room to clear them as you swing up.

Find this move and 65 others on Pole Exercise DVD 1.

Difficulty: Intermediate

About the eye opener

The eye opener takes your pole workout to a more intermediate level of difficulty. Lucy and her fellow instructors are big fans of this trick! Balance and technique are very important to perfecting the move and achieving a strong pose.

In detail

1. Start by sitting on the pole.
2. Lean back while holding your arms straight, then straighten both legs and cross your ankles while squeezing your thighs on the pole.
3. Place your dominant hand under your bottom, but don’t turn the hand upside down – make sure you grip with the standard grip. Try to feel your thumb resting on your coccyx bone (the bone in the middle of your body) to make sure you’re centred on the pole.
4. Gently pulse your legs to check your balance, then open your legs wide into a full straddle and the eye opener pose.

In action

Top tips

• Remember the hand grip! Your bottom hand should not be twisted with the wrist facing upwards, as this is a weaker position.
• Keep the top arm straight. If it starts to bend, your weight will shift from your bottom arm to your top arm and make the move very difficult.
• Keep your legs as high as possible. If they start to drop towards the ground, you’ll slide down the pole.
• Don’t worry if you spin slowly round the pole. You’ll be able to stop this happening as your technique improves.

Find this move and 65 others on the Pole Exercise DVD.

Eye opener full video

As promised, we’ve also put this move on YouTube. If the embedded video is a little small, click through to watch it in glorious HD.

Difficulty: Beginner

About the seated spinner

The seated spinner is a simple but beautiful spin that Libby (in the video clip) has always performed with style and poise. The spin helps to develop your arm strength, and works out your core muscles too as you move round the pole.

What could be better than a smooth and skilful pole dancing performance? How about a smooth and skilful pole performance with some amazing gymnastics moves thrown in too?

Here’s a step-by-step breakdown of the most popular video I’ve put on YouTube, a pole routine starring Sarah, a former student of mine. Sarah had been doing (and teaching!) gymnastics for several years before she started pole dancing with me, and she puts a lot the skills and techniques she learned there into her pole work to create striking – and amazingly bendy – performances.

Difficulty: Intermediate

About the gemini

The gemini is a dramatic pose and stretch that’s relatively easy to perform as you keep your body against the pole throughout the move. If you’ve mastered the basic invert, there are just a couple of extra steps to get into the gemini.

Here’s the breakdown of a pole dance performance I put on YouTube a few months ago, together with tips for each move that I’ve found useful myself or when teaching. I’ve often been inspired watching other people’s pole work, sometimes even taking my own performances in completely new directions. So I hope it inspires some of you too!

The video

Pole moves in detail

• Floater – Keep good body tension while pushing your hips forward.
• Variation of the Pole Pull Up – Lift up onto the pole, release your non-dominant hand and take your non-dominant foot. Hold this as a pose. You could even add this to your own pole strength training for a bit of variety.
• High Kick – Imagine you’re kicking two people you don’t like (just imagine please!); this will make your leg thrusts much more explosive.
• Backwards Showgirl – Arch your back and look at the ceiling to help your body position.
• Climb – Take your time with the climb; controlled climbs are harder as they require more strength.
• Crescent Moon – Hold this pose for as long as you feel comfortable, reach out to increase the stretch in your back.
• Teddy – Lock in your arm as tight as possible and make sure your bottom is resting on the pole. Don’t wear synthetic shorts – this will make you to slip down and really hurt your armpit!
• Chopper – I pulse my legs down and lift up and over my head (really pushing my hips up) to help me invert.
• Variation of the Half Chopper – A simple but effective transition into the next move. Take your time and make sure your legs are secure before removing your hands.
• Hercules (no handed chopper) – Look down to the floor to create a nice line with your spine on the pole.
• Knees (with added arm wiggling!) – Practice wearing thigh high boots to get through the initial discomfort this move causes on the knees.
• Shoulder Mount – Experiment with different grips on the pole; try the dominant hand above or below to see what feels best for you. Some people use a clasped handgrip (link your fingers together behind the pole with your palms pressed on either side), though a split grip is more secure when you’re upside down.
• Serpent – If you’re a little uncertain about this move, practice getting into it with your hands on the ground.
• Gold Rush – Arch your back and lift up towards the ceiling to increase the line of this move.
• Pole Push Up – experiment with different leg positions, first on the pole for more support and then towards the split legs which becomes much harder.

Difficulty: Intermediate

About the icon splits

The icon splits is a fantastic pose and stretch. You don’t need to be able to do the full splits to do this move. No matter how flexible you are, this move will help to increase it! It will also help build your arm strength and grip on the pole.

Difficulty: Beginner

About the fireman

The fireman is a great first exercise to learn. (In fact I felt I had to start with the fireman as it just feels wrong for me to start teaching with anything else!) The fireman is a simple but elegant spin with the thighs gripping the pole.