"I'll Start Once I Have More Strength"
Over a decade ago, I volunteered in Nepal and stayed at a village guesthouse, where I met a yoga instructor. She asked if I'd ever done yoga before, and I said, "No, I'm just not very flexible." She got so irritated and replied "That's literally what it's for!" At the time, I thought she was rude. I'd just assumed naturally flexible people gravitated toward yoga, and that wasn't me, so that meant yoga wasn’t for me either. Hilariously, a few years later, my inflexible self became a yoga instructor, and I even got to study and get certified in Rishikesh, India.
Now I'm the one scoffing (internally) when people tell me they'd love to try aerial, but they're just not strong enough. Well, of course you're not. Why would you be? YOU GET GOOD AT THE THING BY DOING THE THING! No teacher worth their salt is going to push you into advanced moves in your first class, or at any point when they know you're still a beginner. Everything is progressive. I promise, you won't be forced into any Cirque du Soleil level moves on day one.
I get it, though. I felt the exact same way about yoga. But that logic is backwards, and it keeps a lot of people from ever starting something they'd love.
You Can't Build Pole Strength Without, Well, Pole
Strength is specific. The muscles and grip endurance you need to hold an invert or climb a pole don't come from a gym membership, yoga classes, or bodyweight workouts at home. They come from gripping a pole, holding your bodyweight in a very particular way, and doing it badly over and over until you're not bad anymore.
Doing squats and pull-ups for six months before your first class is like practicing dribbling a basketball in your driveway for a year before you're "ready" to join the basketball team. You'll show up for try-outs with some general fitness and you might be good at dribbling the ball, but you'll still be a beginner at the actual skill, because the actual skill is the thing you skipped.
Every aerialist you've ever admired, every pole dancer who makes an invert look effortless, started exactly where you are now: unable to do it. Nobody is born knowing how to climb a pole or hang from silks. They got strong by doing it, not before doing it.
The awkwardness, the sore muscles, the "wait, how do people make this look easy" feeling is something we've all been through. Even my own coach and I still watch Instagram polers in awe, wondering how they make certain moves look smooth as butter.
"I Need to Build Strength First" Is Usually Code for "I'm Scared to Be Bad at This"
Looking back at my pre-yoga days, I didn't want to be bad. I knew I wasn't flexible, and I was scared I'd be the stiffest one in the room. No one enjoys being bad at something in front of other people. But the fix isn't more private prep time. It's finding an instructor and a class environment where being new feels safe. My teaching style and personality won't be for everyone, but I promise, I don't judge your ability. Most beginners feel the exact same way, convinced they're the worst one in the room and not getting it. I promise, you are a normal beginner, just going through that rite of passage we have all been through.
What Actually Works
JUST DO IT! A good instructor will scale everything to your current strength and build from there. You'll get stronger because you started, not before you started. You’ll look back someday and be proud. Remember. the time will pass no matter what.
