Name : Francesca
Pole Fitness Instructor at Pole Sessions
Which Studio? : Francesca teaches in the Worsley, Manchester Studio
What do you teach? : Francesca currently teaches Pole Fitness for beginners and intermediates at our Manchester Studio
About Francesca
Francesca is one of our beginner and intermediate instructors, she has such a wonderful personality and every student loves her!
Francesca brings both style and grace to Pole Sessions and no matter what trick she performs she looks amazing! Francesca trained for a year with Claire before Pole Sessions opened after showing her ability to pick up pole fitness at a very fast rate she started teaching.
She is one of our private lesson instructors too. Francesca is in the Pole Sessions Sparkles and performs at many events in the UK
How did you get started pole dancing?
It was something I’d wanted to try for a while, just because I thought it’d looked fun, I had heard Claire was teaching private lessons before she opened the studio so we started!
What is your favorite pole move?
Erm…that’s a tough one I don’t think I can pick a definite one favourite but I really enjoy figurehead, its really pretty.
How would you describe your personal style?
I’d like to think my personal style of pole is quite sexy and a little bit dramatic haha
How often do you pole?
At the minute I can only manage once or twice a week because of uni work but my ideal would be 3 times a week.
What is your biggest struggle as a pole dancer?
I struggle quite a bit with moves that you need a high core strength for like air inverts, because I still don’t have the best strength for it but I’m going to keep trying till get it. Also shoulder mounts again because of core but I also have a really boney collar bone so always feels like its going to snap! =/
What was your most memorable pole moment?
This is a tough one, well definitely when I first cracked the Inverted V, I honestly thought it would never happen it took me weeks but I finally got it, its the only move that has ever really given me any grief. Haha Also I think performing at my birthday pole party in front of all my friends for the first time, it was nerve-racking and scary and I was sweating just looking at everybody but I got it done and it felt great afterwards!
What is it about pole dancing you enjoy so much?
Aside from the fact that it just feels great to have a place where anything goes and you can be sexy and have fun I think I’ve mostly enjoyed meeting all the new people, they make it so much enjoyable than I think if I was just learning on my own at home.
What have you learned that has made the biggest difference to your pole dancing?
After being in the studio with so many different women of so many shapes and sizes and all of them wearing tiny shorts and not caring anymore, it gives you the confidence to feel good about yourself which eventually shows through in your dancing. The pole studio is a completely safe place where every body’s body hang ups are literally left at the door, we’re all women and we all hate at least one part of our body but that doesn’t even matter once you start poling nobody cares, it’s great positive environment.
What are you favourite tips for pole dancing?
The tips I always give my beginners are:
1. DO NOT compare yourself to other people because it will drive you mad! Everybody picks it up at different speeds and eventually you will all catch up with one another so at the beginning don’t feel discouraged because she gets everything before you do.
2. Don’t take it too seriously at this level because it will irritate you like crazy! Just come, have fun and you’ll pick it up without even noticing.
3. Don’t think you have to go to the gym to lose weight and to get stronger to before you come to pole or to improve your pole. Pole fitness courses are designed to build up your strength and fitness levels without the need to go to they gym for those specific reasons. So feel free to go to get a bit of cardio in etc but you don’t need to spend hours with the free weights cause whilst at pole you’ll be lifting and holding your own body weight which is much better and much heavier than those little dumbbells at gym!
Who is the person who has had the most impact on your dancing?
Claire Henderson! she has taught me everything I know about pole from the very beginning of my pole life and she is still teaching me today! She made her studio such a great place that it’s now my 2ndhome and trained me up enough so that I can now teach students at the place where it all started for me! =)
What are the main fitness benefits of pole dancing and how has pole dancing improved your fitness, strength or body shape?
Defiantly toned upper body! My arms, and stomach have toned up so much since starting pole and my arm and back strength is incredible compared to what it used to be! My body shape hasn’t really changed as much as it has toned and just slimmed down.
What do you like to do when you’re not pole dancing?
Think about pole dancing and watch other people pole dancing! Haha I have recently taken up Aerial hoop lessons too which is really fun and another challenge because you use a completely different set of muscles than you do to pole, its nice to be a beginner again!
