The day is finally near. I’m finally coming back to Aerial Dance! The first thing I have scheduled is the Pole Practice on August 4th at 7:45pm. I am excited and absolutely terrified. I have learned a whole host of spins and inverts, but I’m not sure what I remember. I’m not sure what I’ll be able to do either!
I have my own pole at home. Just because it stares me in the face every day does not mean that I am on it just as often. During my time off, I’ve only practiced a handful of times. It isn’t that I didn’t want to, it’s that I could hardly bring myself to do it.
I kid you not—I cried every time I started practicing on my pole. It wasn’t because I was losing certain strengths. I expected that to happen. I cried because I missed my Aerial Dance family. I missed the instructors and my fellow classmates. They’ve been there for me, pushed me, corrected me, and applauded me. I missed the interaction and the challenge that being a part of a class offered me. I am so grateful that I have the opportunity to have that all back!
Due to my absence, I’m dropping from Extreme to Intermediate. I’m nervous to test my skills at Intermediate! What if I fail? What if I’m not as good as I think I am? What if I can’t execute some of the basic moves that I was able to do before? My memories of my most recent classes (nearly a year ago) at Aerial Dance are filled with many fun and exciting inverts. I’ve got to get back to basics now. I’m nervous that I won’t meet my own expectations, let alone what I think the instructor expects of me!
To combat this nervousness, I have to remind myself that it’s perfectly normal to feel this way, and there is nothing wrong with starting from scratch. I also have to keep reminding myself that the instructors don’t judge me. They’ll take me where I am and help me build my skills and strength. My ego will be a bit deflated now, but it will be worth it when I’ve finally built my strength back!
Right now my goals are simple:
- Attend at least one conditioning class per week (Aerial Conditioning, Bendy Babe, Fabric Fit, etc.) to bring my body into pole shape
- I will probably replace these with other aerial classes like Hoop or Fabric in the future
- Attend class every week
- Seems simple, right? I’d like to think so! In the past, life got busy. I found myself cancelling out of classes and forgetting to reschedule. I need to do the opposite! Pole is my escape from the world, my sanctuary, one of my absolute favorite things. Noooooo skipping!
I will likely come up with more goals once I’m on the pole regularly. These are pretty good ones to have, and ones I intend to meet. I’ll let you know how it goes!
You can share your goals with me too—I’d love to hear about them! I’m sure we can help each other. I’m open to questions too! Comment here, or find me at the studio!