I tried pole dancing, and I loved it

Polercise is essentially what it sounds like- Pole dancing for exercise… This class is in the centre of Belfast and they offer a 20% off student discount so 8 classes come to £60. I have to say, it’s well worth the money! If you’re looking for a fun way to get fit, meet new people (and possibly create a plan B career plan) this is the class for you. It’s quirky and original but sure, aren’t the best things in life?!

calling to the world of snapchat for luck… it didn’t respond.

Walking into a pink room in the middle of central Belfast; I see the posters of students past and present along the walls. All extremely talented, all making it look so easy. Along each wall are mirrors, glitter and fluffy sofas.

“This would be great for hen parties!” I commented. (Turns out they actually do use the space for Hen party classes).

We were presented with 9 shining poles in the middle of the room, all of us absolute beginners awkwardly holding onto a pole each, unsure of whether we were about to make an absolute idiot of ourselves!

We were made very comfortable by the staff involved, they shared jokes with us and made us confident enough to just go for each dance move we were presented. They encouraged us to try again and just have as much fun as possible while doing it.

Dancing in a drama school for the best part of 5 years, I was already confident enough to go into the class and do as best as I could with what I already knew, so I found it quite easy to pick up some of the basic cardio exercise routines at the beginning of the class which gave me a head start.

Beginning of the class being the operative word. After that we began learning some of the basic moves including the ‘Kate Moss’ and the ‘Fireman.’ These were tricky at first but once we practiced a few times we eventually got the hang of it!

Cluelessly grasping onto the pole here

We then put all the moves we had learned that day into a dance routine (to the song ‘Smack that’ which was hilarious in itself).

Everything was way too fast but by that point we were all just having fun with the routine and trying our best, if at first you don’t succeed eh?! After that we were all on a high, this was pretty much the most fun I’ve ever had exercising in my life!

Thing were then taken down a notch, we were all given mats to lie on and the teacher slowed the music down and instructed us in stretching and relaxing our muscles. Considering it’s been a while since I’ve done any exercise the rest was much appreciated! After a stretching routine that resembled a short yoga class session we stood up, put the mats away and that was the end of the class.

I have to say, the next day my arms hurt in really strange places and it did take quite a while to recover from the first class! However, I’m currently on the third class of the semester and haven’t felt any pain since that first week! This exercise class really is all about practice but is absolutely fantastic for building up your strength (and is also a great party trick) as well as your confidence.

Pole dancing is fun, flirty and fantastic. I can see why people spend years doing polercise, it really is addictive! There’s a sense of achievement when you do finally get a move right after trying so hard and it’s for that reason I will definitely continue going to classes!

“Get into a sexy pose” “Er…”

There are several classes throughout the week for those of you who like the more unusual exercise class and with a hefty student discount you’ve got no excuse not to go!

Front door of Polercise classes on Donegall Street just up the road from the Kremlin!