‘Miss Pole Dance-22’
courtesy of ‘litonali’

This Saturday at an open house at Balance Gym Thomas Circle, you can learn all sorts of things, including how to work up a sweat while becoming very friendly with a pole. For fitness, people. Still, please do not practice on Metro.

You also can learn about boxing, Budoken and CrossFit, which will keep you limber and ready to kick some serious butt, in case you need to fend off anyone who’s gotten too brazen from your pole dancing performance. The day concludes with an electrifying drum and dance performance.

But let’s get back to the pole dancing.

When I asked the We Love DC authors list if I were the only person who hadn’t yet heard of pole dancing for fitness, here are some of the responses I got.

Carl: “I have an old friend in Raleigh who teaches pole dancing for fitness and makes a bunch of money at it. I hear it’s great exercise. I am waiting for the lap dancing for fitness class, myself. Max said he would take that class with me.”

Max: “I’d be all over a lap dance fitness class. That is of course if I only had to sit on a velvet couch in a dark room with a drink in my hand. Keep me posted, Carl.”

Shannon: “I actually go to Balance Gym, and their ‘pole pressure’ class is held in the studio next to my spinning studio, and it is INTENSE. These girls are scantily clad (but still in workout clothes) and completely upside down on the poles doing ridiculous things. Most of the time they have curtains up for privacy, but the little I’ve seen is really crazy. And there are GUYS in these classes too. Very odd.”

Rachel: “All I know is I’ve seen commercials for home pole dancing workout videos on late-night TV a la Comedy Central while watching adult swim lol”

Donna: “I’m considering following Tiffany’s lead on the baby in the bathwater sign and blogging our conversation! Shannon, it makes complete sense to me that there would be guys in the classes. Is there a waiting list of guys outside?”

Rebecca: “PS I believe there are a bunch of celebs who use pole dancing for fitness. Carmen Electra, Denise Richards, perhaps Demi Moore come to mind.”

Max: “And I’m very thankful that they do so. Very, very thankful.”

Katie: “Where I come from (Charlotte, NC) they have chair dancing fitness classes too. Haven’t you people heard of Carmen Electra? ;)”

Carl: “Chair dancing? They do all manner of weird stuff in Charlotte nowadays. I am guessing Carmen Electra has a video workout with that? I might have to rent it.”

Jenn: “I’m going to out myself here and say that a friend and I have been seriously talking about taking a pole fitness class. Except that I am deathly afraid of hanging upside down… Further, I actually have another friend who owns a pole in her house… but she was “in the business” at one point. She said it’s one of the best ways to keep in shape.”

Carl: “I used to hang out with a woman who had been a stripper in a former profession, but I don’t think she used a pole in that vocation. I told her I would install one for her in her home in exchange for demonstrations but that didn’t go over so well. I have never seen pole dancing. Never been to the type of places that have such things.”

So yes, apparently I am the only one. If you go to the open house, enjoy the show!

An area resident since 1997, Donna C. is a DC outsider. When she’s not running her writing and Web business, she’s running around the city, exploring the great outdoors, or trying to figure out how best to go green. See why she loves DC.