Polewear & Gear
As I travel to pole studios around the world, I’ve tested a lot of gear and I only recommend things I use and love. Whether you’re packing for your next class, a performance, or a new studio visit, these are my go-to items for clothing, grip and more.
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I’m tall, 5’10 to be exact. In the pole world, that’s a lot of legs to lift. Speaking of legs, last month at Polecon, I purchased a pair of Shibari Chic Goddess Grip leggings from the brand, Active Elixir.
Pulling them up my legs felt like putting on a bat suit! I wondered if there were built-in superpowers.
What is it like to wear grippy clothing on the pole? Well, if you’ve never tried it, I’ll start by saying it can be pretty cool.
For one thing, grippy material feels a bit like using training wheels.
A few pole performances ago, I learned a move that my instructor refers to as a “roley poley.” I’m not sure what the official pole term is, but it’s similar to a torso switch.
When learning this move, the scariest part for me was trusting the flip over to the feet. Even though it’s low to the ground, the key is the strong knee grip.
As you can see in the video, I’m wearing grippy leggings as I performed the move during a rehearsal. However, my goal was to perform the move without the leggings.
As you can see in the video, I’m wearing grippy leggings as I performed the move during a rehearsal. However, my goal was to perform the move without the leggings and do the “roley poley” without the grip support (see next video).
Grippy clothing comes in handy for initial support. Depending on the types of pole moves you are hoping to do, grippy clothing can lessen the fear. However, there is no guarantee of success. Successfully accomplishing a pole trick takes time, patience and persistence. In fact, I’m totally okay with not getting tricks. Having overcome a significant injury, I recognize when to back off (you can read about my pole journey here).
The clothing options can also be pretty stylish. If you are like me and have trouble deciding what to wear for pole, owning some grippy clothing lets you expand your wardrobe options.
Lastly, it was very easy to pull my knee pads over the grippy material and the foot stirrup fit well with my heels though you can choose not to use it.
Let’s face it, these particular leggings are a bit of an investment, but if they help you conquer a specific pole move like they did for me, then it may be worth a splurge.
I’d love to hear from you: What are your takeaways from using grippy pole clothing?
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