An instructor shows a student how to swing around a pole backwards during a Thursday evening pole fitness class.
A local pole dancing studio is expanding to fit the increasing demand for lessons, says co-owner Michael Hewitt.
Earlier this month, Ottawa Pole Fitness opened a refurbished second level, allowing for taller poles meant for advanced students who perform more complex moves.
“Since we are the largest pole fitness studio in Ottawa we were booking up classes two months in advance and our students had to wait that long just to take classes. This was the main reason to have two studios,” says Hewitt.
The expansion came in time for four OPF instructors to practice for a Sexapalooza performance at Lansdowne Park last weekend. This is the third year studio instructors performed at the event, which incorporates routines highlighting each woman's flair.
Pole dancing at OPF allows for students to advance through 10 levels, a progression that can be completed in months, says Emilie Getinas, a level five pole dancing student who began taking lessons with a friend in June.
“She thought it would be something different and something fun that we could do together, so we decided to try it,” says Getinas.
Once students at OPF reach the highest level of lessons, opportunities such as “pole jams” are offered. These are sessions where advanced pole dancers feed off each other and show off skills they have learned in other classes or from other dancing experiences, says Hewitt.
Beyond pole dancing simply for fitness, there is also a competitive pole dancing world growing in Canada. In 2010, Crystal Lai, a pole dancer from B.C., was awarded the title of Miss Pole Dance Canada in Vancouver, and in November she competed in Switzerland at the World Pole Fitness Championships.
Despite having little dance training in her past, Lai says she got into pole dancing after going to a strip club with her former boyfriend.
“As a joke, my ex-boyfriend was like, ‘Oh, maybe you should actually look into this.’ So I looked into it, and I’ve been pole dancing for over five years now.” She began competing two years later, and is now an instructor.
For people not looking to compete or reach the highest levels of training, there are also pole dancing parties offered, which often involve groups of friends learning basic moves from a single instructor, with the addition of boas, crowns and a disco ball.
There are also workshops and short-term classes available at many studios throughout Canada, including OPF. One upcoming workshop at OPF will occur just before Valentine’s Day.
“People can come and learn a little sexy routine, a burlesque show, a lap dance, strip tease, chair dance, all of that sort of thing. There’s no nudity, people bring layers,” says Hewitt.
Despite workshops like this, OPF is clear to define themselves as a fitness studio, separating themselves from the erotic imagery that is commonly associated with pole dancing.
The main draw of lessons for many is the fun environment and the fact that pole dancing can work many muscles throughout the body, says Getinas. “It really is a full body workout.”