The Art of Creating a Pole Dancing Routine

So, I’ve been dancing for eight years. And I danced for a bit in high school, as I mentioned in my “Why Dance” post and all that training has given me two pretty important dance skills:

1.     The  ability to understand moves easily; and
2.     The ability to understand how movement links together with music.

Now I don’t think I can help you with the first skill but the second one is easier than you may think. You just need to follow a few pole dancing principles and you’ll have a routine in no time.

So here’s my top ten LivingLovingLifestyle tips to creating a pole dancing routine:

Tips 1:  Have an idea of a few songs you might want to use even if you haven’t settled on one yet. Most pole dancers are notorious for constantly changing their minds about their music.

Tip 2: Vary the speed and level of your moves because if everything is performed at the same tempo, it may feel boring. Find moves you can do quickly and ones you can do slowly. Ones you can do high up and ones you can do much lower. And don’t forget to add in floor work!

Tip 3: Begin your routine with a move you can hold comfortably, whether it’s on the floor or the pole. You need to be comfortable so you can remain in that move for as long as it takes for your music to start.

Tip 4:  Put your hardest moves close to the beginning. There’s method to this madness I promise. If you leave your hardest trick for later, you’ll already be tiered and sweaty and they might not work. So do them while you still have energy and dry skin.

Tip 5: Spend as much time in the move you are most comfortable. I personally hate spinning so I’d rather spend as much of my routine as I can static. You may prefer a spinner. If so, stay there.

Tip 6: Try stay on the pole for as long as possible. It looks bitty if you have to keep coming down and inverting into your next trick.

Tip 7: Mix hard moves with easy ones. For example, knee hook or “Gemini” is easy and doesn’t take much effort to stay there. Use this move to catch your breath before you go into something harder, like a double knee hold.

I love these :D not a great photo though…

Tip 8:  If you need a moment to breath, go back to the floor. Even basic floor work is the perfect opportunity to catch your breath.

Feel free to browse my YouTube channel for inspiration on some floor moves.

Tips 9: Find a move that looks epic and/or difficult for your finish but is actually really easy. You’ll want to end on a high note even if you might be too tired to pull off THAT triple somersault off the pole. I like basic swan drops. Any time you look like you're falling then catch yourself, it has a big impact, but this drop is simple

Tips 10: Wear whatever makes your feel comfortable, confident and sexy!

So there you go, those are my top ten tips on creating your own pole routine.

Happy dancing!