22 Easy Ways To Stay Motivated To Pole At Home
8

22 Simple Ways To Jumpstart Pole Fitness At Home

Do you struggle to get motivated to workout at home? Do you find you tire more easily than you would in a group session when you practise at home?

How many times have you started your pole session at home and stopped after a couple of moves, exhausted?

I hate to say it but, a lot of the time, if you skip a pole workout it's because you're being plain lazy, it's as simple as that.

That said, not everyone is born motivated and dedicated, so you certainly wouldn't be alone.

There's so many physical and psychological road blocks to your motivation at home.

So just how are you supposed to achieve your goals and dreams this way?

Well, this article reveals a list of simple things that will tick physical and emotional triggers to keep you motivated to workout at home.

24 hours a day, 7 days a week!

(This page contains affiliate links – my full disclosure statement is available {here})

What You Will Learn

  • 22 ways to kickstart your workout
  • The exact strategies I use to stay motivated to workout
  • How to avoid boring plateaus through session planning
  • What to do if you don't have time for your pole session
  • How to stop yourself tiring too fast when you practise at home

There's no one size fits all answer to tapping into your inner motivated self.

That's why I want to teach you various methods that have worked for me.

Then you can either choose set ways that suit you, or mix them up all the time to keep things interesting just like I do.

So let's get started, here are 22 easy techniques you can use to stay motivated for your home pole workout.

#1) Remember Why You Started

Do you remember how you felt before you started pole? Can you recall how you felt about yourself, your body, and the transformation that pole has given your confidence?

The times you wanted to wear a cute dress but you didn't have the courage to whip those legs out.

To start with, you might want to check out my list of reasons to start pole fitness, to give you a little reminder of why you wanted to do this in the first place.

If you can already remember why you started, great!

Let's not go back there.

Start by asking yourself if you really want to start working on those goals all over again.

Do you want to start from scratch because you were feeling lazy or couldn't be bothered?

#2) Create A Pole Playlist

One of the first things I do to get myself ready to pole, is get the music playing.

If you're not feeling it start with a light warm up before the 'main warmup' - just to get the blood flowing and the energy pumping!

So what you need here is some great music. You have to be feeling the music, otherwise you won't be feeling your workout.

If you set up a pole playlist for yourself with all of your favourite songs to either dance or workout to, you'll be off to a great start.

I usually use either upbeat or slow and sexy for the spinning and dancing part of my session, depending on how I feel.

Songs that make you feel pumped and down right hardcore will help you through your core strength work! Don't forget to add to your playlist regularly though.

There's nothing worse than getting bored of the same old songs playing over and over, which in turn makes you feel bored of your workout.

#3) Warm Up

It's tempting to get straight on the pole and start working out.

Performing spins and tricks and getting things off to a quick start will save some time right?

Wrong!

Do you find yourself wondering how you can bash out an hour or more of pole in your class, but when it comes to trying it at home you do one trick and you're shattered?

It's because there's a reason that lesson progression starts with warm ups, flows through to core strength, then your spins, climbs and eventually tricks.

Anything new and more advanced you're learning usually comes in at the end when your body is nice and warm.

warm-up

There are a few ways skipping your warm up affects your body, including loss of energy and strength.

Aside from feeling tired much faster and having a less effective workout, you'll also find that you need the heat from your warm up to stick to the pole.

So, when you and the pole are cold and unloved you're going to have a hard time gripping and feel more slippery.

You'll also be less flexible, and much more prone to injury. So whatever you use to stay motivated, you should always be warming up before you get stuck in.

#4) Lie To Yourself

Following on from my point about warming up, another great way to get yourself motivated for your pole session is to completely lie to yourself.

If you're feeling lazy and just can't be bothered right now, tell yourself 'That's OK! We'll just do the warm up.'

If you meet your lazy self half way and just agree to a light warm up instead of the full workout, I guarantee you'll end up completing a full session.

Once you’re up with your music on and the blood and endorphins are flowing, it’s unlikely you’re going to be able to stay away from your pole.

So lie to yourself, and then once you're feeling energetic just let yourself get carried away!

#5) Put On Your Pole Wear!

This one is psychologically fabulous.

In the same way that you feel so much more in the mood to go out on the town once you've dressed up for the party and put your glad rags on, you should definitely put your pole wear on if you're not feeling it.

Whenever it's time for my pole workout, whether I'm tired, wide awake, busy or just plain lazy, I'll always put my pole wear on.

You feel pretty silly the longer you sit around watching T.V in your pole outfit trust me.

You'll feel even worse if you have to go through the embarrassment of getting changed out of it later on having done nothing too.

Waking up and getting 'dressed for the party' straight away always ensures the hardest part of getting started is out of the way.

The same would go if my workouts were in the evening.

Instead of it being the first thing you do when you wake up, it's the first thing to do when you get home from work.

Just change out of your work clothes straight into your pole gear.

#6) Self-Subliminal Messaging

Here's another psychological trick you can play on yourself.

Just don't put away your pole stuff - who likes tidying up anyway?

My pole is always up unless it has a specific need to come down or be moved.

My pole wear is always right on the floor (in my lovely horizontal wardrobe) beside me when I wake up every morning.

My yoga mats are rolled up and balanced against different walls around the house. Grip gloves, chalk, knee pads, shoes and other random training tools are lazily dotted around the living room.

So what is the point of all that I hear you ask?

Well, truthfully I am slightly lazy, but I also find that when I tidy everything away it is very quickly forgotten.

With everything in plain sight around the house you can guarantee that your pole workout will be on the brain from the moment you wake up, even if you don't realise it.

A little self-subliminal messaging to make sure you can't forget to workout works wonders!

#7) Excite Yourself With New Pole Wear

This is not just an excuse to buy more clothes I promise, not that we couldn't use one 😀

Seriously though, aside from removing the argument that your workout clothes are in the wash having more than one pole outfit can be another way to relieve the 'boredom' of working out.

In the same way that changing up your music playlist keeps you interested, so too does having something different to wear every now and again.

If you have something that you look and feel great in to workout you'll be more likely to put it on in the mornings too which will help with motivation tip #5 - put on your pole wear!

Then there's the fact that once you've spent your hard earned money on a cute pole outfit you definitely have to keep up the moves and look suitably bad ass in it!

#8) Take Pictures

Think about what you're aiming to achieve today, set up your phone to video your attempts.

Take lots of videos and pictures (or screenshots if you have no one to take a photo), admire your progress and pick out anything that could use a little more work.

This way, when you do achieve something new and awesome you'll have evidence too! You'll be able to share it with your friends, on social media and with other polers.

This will provide you with more encouragement, motivation and allow you to celebrate your success with others.

#9) Find a Supportive Like-Minded Community

As with any form of fitness, it's a good idea to find other like-minded enthusiasts who can give you friendly advice and support while cheering you on.

If you're stuck on a move or need a little advice, just don't be afraid to ask.

Finding a community can be a huge motivational boost, and luckily with pole fitness comes no shortage of VERY enthusiastic communities.

You can find these communities on Facebook, Reddit and Instagram just to name a few.

We polers are a very helpful and supportive breed of athlete by nature.

So hit up those groups and forums with your questions and doubts for inspiration and you won't be disappointed!

#10) Search For Inspiration

Are you lacking in inspiration? Do you find yourself practising the same old boring moves time and time again?

That's where social media comes in handy again!

follow-pole-dancers-instagram

Those same groups that you join for support and advice are absolutely overflowing with new ideas for moves and combos to try in your next practise.

Sometimes overwhelmingly so, I often find myself with a list of things to learn longer than my arm and I have to hold off a bit as I perfect each one.

Following other pole dancers on Instagram is a great way to have a constantly fresh stream of new and exciting ideas, something that is crucial to staying motivated!

Why not create your own list of moves to conquer and every time you see something new that you think is within your capabilities, just add it to the list 🙂

#11) Make A List

We're exercising our bodies here not necessarily our minds, and sometimes it can be difficult to remember every move you're working on or wanted to practise.

To stay more motivated and reduce 'pondering time', write or print out your own list of moves that you can do and moves that you're working on.

List all of your core strength, floor work, spins, climbs, inverts, tricks and stretches.

I like to keep the 'Moves To Conquer' I mentioned earlier completely seperate, your main workout session should consist primarily of things you can already do and are working on.

When you've been repeating those for a while it's a good idea to keep things interesting and try out some moves you've never tried.

Refresh your list often, moving things you've perfected into the 'Can Do' list and adding new moves you try into the 'Working On' list as you go.

#12) Keep Things Interesting

As I've said before, it's important to keep your mind excited about your workout.

The same old routine over and over again for months will be very boring, and can lead to a lack of progression.

Use your list we mentioned in tip #11 to put together a set lesson plan for yourself.

Eventually you will have too many moves in your arsenal to go through them all every time you practise.

Change your lesson progression every 6 weeks or so with updated moves you're working on and perhaps a couple that you want to try.

In this way, you'll also stop yourself from jumping from one move to another without properly practising and perfecting it first.

#13) Track Your Achievements

I should have mentioned before I started talking about the lists, perhaps a pole journal, diary or notebook would be a good way to keep all your notes in one easy to find place!

So with that said, you should make note of your long term and short term goals.

Where do you want to be by next year? What do you want to achieve today, what are you working on for next month?

Pole-Diary

Set yourself target dates to try and achieve your goals, they don't have to be concrete but they'll give you something solid to aim for.

For example, I would like to be able to perform a routine in a competition by 2017 - something I'm working super hard on.

I change up certain moves I'm working on each week and every lesson comes with something I can improve on.

Tracking this will help you remind yourself how much stronger you're becoming.

You'll feel amazing when you see how much you've achieved and exactly what your body is doing now that it couldn't do a couple of weeks ago!

#14) Make It Part Of Your Routine

Creating a set schedule for yourself that you stick to as part of a regular routine will help you to keep up your workouts long term.

Have a set time that you workout on certain days, a set number of days per week. Allow for rest days and every 4 weeks have a week off or 'Rest Week'.

Tell yourself that your pole session is at 7am Monday, Thursday and Saturday (or whatever time and days suit you) and don't change from this schedule whatever happens.

So instead of thinking to yourself, in a minute, in half an hour, later because you're tired or 'whatever I can always do it tomorrow', you'll have set times that you can embed into your usual routines.

#15) Create A Backup Workout

It's important if you're embedding a set workout schedule into your routine that you don't miss a session.

Missing one session when you're trying to keep to a schedule can lead to guilt, self disappointment and in the long run a total break down of your routine.

Whether that's because you're thinking 'sod it' once you've missed a few or just trying to catch up on your workouts on the wrong days and falling out of your routine.

Whatever the reason, you'll do well to have a back up plan just in case.

backup-plan-quick-workout

That means, in the event of an emergency or some reason that you don't have time for your full pole session you need something that you can catch up on later or do quickly.

If you don't have time for your pole session, it's a great idea to have a 15 to 30 minute workout in your arsenal.

Some ideas for this are; a floor workout (e.g, push ups, sit ups, plank etc...), using weights, resistance bands, a pull up bar, or just whipping out your yoga mat for a quick session.

That way you don't have to feel guilty about skipping a day in the event that something genuinely disrupts your plans and leaves you short of time for a full pole session.

It will help you keep on top of your strength and flexibility goals too!

#16) Make Your Pole Space Your Own

If you have enough space it's a nice idea to have your own dedicated pole room, somewhere that you can surround yourself with motivation.

If you don't have the room (like me) then you can just steal part of the living room 😉

Make sure you're in your own space out of the way, somewhere without the distraction of television etc.

It's good to be out of the way of the family hustle and bustle where you can get your music on and totally get into the zone too!

You can also put posters up in your pole space to help you stay motivated and focused.

We used to have one similar to this cute one in the studio back home.

#17) Stay Positive!

Don't let yourself feel negative about your session, keep your thoughts away from those nemesis moves that are driving you up the wall.

Dwelling on things like that will only cause you to dread your pole session.

So every time you find yourself feeling negative about starting your pole workout, find something to distract yourself.

The best thing to take your mind off of something you're struggling on is how great it feels to finish a tough pole session.

The good kind of pain you feel after you've given yourself a beasting!

#18) Get Addicted

Obviously we're all addicted right? I don't think there's a workout that compares to pole when it comes to addiction!

Or maybe we're not and it's just me? Either way, being addicted to pole is a great way to keep yourself at it. Just try not to go too overboard.

It's easy to over work yourself and forget about rest days once you become addicted.

You may even find yourself trying to schedule in your rest days the same way we spoke about scheduling in workout days earlier.

As fun a workout as pole is, it's possible that the addiction part comes down to the endorphin rush you get after a hard workout, any hard workout in fact.

Although I'm convinced it's 100% pole for me.

You can use this great after workout endorphin rush as motivation to get your bum into gear in the first place.

Just think how awesome you're going to feel afterwards!

#19) Invest In Crash Mats

How many moves have you seen that you are afraid to try?

How often do you feel down about running through the same old moves and never moving forwards because fear is holding you back?

Well fear not, because there is no need when you invest in a quality crash mat.

The most common thing I hear from home polers is that moving on to more intermediate and advanced moves can be off putting because of a fear of falling.

And rightly so, a lot of these moves can be very dangerous if done incorrectly or if you happen to slip.

Aside from learning to catch yourself well by planning out how you are going to safely exit a move if you get stuck, you should always have a crash mat!

They are absolutely necessary for your safety, sometimes even in moves you think you are confident with. Not only that, but they also give you AWESOME SUPER POWERS!

I'm just kidding, they won't give you super powers but what they will do is remove some of the fear that is holding you back from trying that new move.

This feeling is less of a road block in a studio setting when you have a spotter to assist you.

From my experience learning at home through doing and knowing your own body is much more effective.

With crash mats comes a much safer environment in which to get to know your body and exactly what you are capable of.

Being spotter free also removes the temptation to leap into moves that you aren't ready for.

It encourages you to really build your strength and focus on every move your body makes.

It's because there is no one to catch you if you fall, except your trusty crash mat of course!

#20) Find A Pole Buddy

Wouldn't it be nice to find the pole yin to your pole yang?

Maybe you've been searching for your pole mate for a while because you want to smash out some awesome doubles moves?

Other than having someone who completely understands your crazy obsession with pole, finding someone to workout with can be very motivational.

If you know your partner will be waiting for you at a scheduled time to start your pole session you'll be much less likely to miss one.

You wouldn't want to let someone else down after all!

Then if you did want to let them down you can be sure you'd hear about it.

Your supportive and encouraging pole buddy will probably frog march you to the pole and then give you a beasting for even thinking about missing a session.

If like me you don't have any other polers near you, you can start working on the locals. Friends, friends of friends, anyone who might be interested in joining your cult really!

I often find myself letting friends have a whirl on my pole when they come around, in the hopes that I can get someone hooked and bring them into the fold, providing me with my pole buddy in the process 🙂

#21) Eat Pizza

Now I might be starting to sound a little crazy, but trust me on this one - it's a personal favourite of mine!

I know there's a healthy diet that comes with pole, as with any form of exercise. After all as they say 'abs are made in the kitchen'!

That's all well and good but I find this sort of thinking often doubles up and complicates the pressure you put on yourself when you commit to exercise.

It makes it so much harder to stay motivated if I'm forever trying to eat healthily as well as keep up the workout routines. It just becomes boring, there's no fun in it!

reward-yourself-rest-day

To even things out a little bit I have a 'Treat Day' once a week. Or a 'Lazy Day' or a 'Fat Day'. Whichever floats your boat!

Now, that day is a reward for all the hard work where I rest from exercise and enjoy eating whatever I want!

To hold myself accountable I actually don't get that day if I don't stick to the workout schedule either. So if I skip a workout, I skip my scheduled treat day.

I do enjoy a bit of motivational pizza, it's my proverbial carrot on a stick!

#22) Don't Wash Your Hair

Are you ready for me to sound like a crazy lady again? It's the last time I promise.

This one personally works for me really well, so it would be rude not to share it with you, however gross you might find it!

I only wash my hair on the days that I work out.

shower-after-workout

As soon as I finish my morning pole session, I grab myself a protein meal shake and then jump in the shower to get squeaky clean after all that working out.

So, yeah you guessed it, if you don't workout, you don't shower! Yuck right?

Exactly, so you better make sure you workout!

Final Thoughts

It's very easy to convince yourself not to workout.

I think I've given myself every excuse in the book at one time or another.

Don't allow yourself to make excuses for skipping pole sessions. If you're telling yourself things like:

  • I'm too tired
  • I deserve an unplanned rest day
  • I need to see a friend
  • My arms/legs are achy
  • I'm not getting anywhere fast so it doesn't matter
  • I haven't got time
  • My favourite show is on T.V

Every single one of those is a poor excuse for an excuse! Not one of them should be a reason not to pole today.

So take note of some of the ideas here, I hope they work as well for you as they have for me.

Poling alone at home can be hard sometimes, but stick to your pole fitness schedule and the results will be so worth it.

I know you can do it!

Do you have an awesome motivational technique that I haven't mentioned here?

Why not share it with us in the comments and spread the inspiration!

Click Here to Leave a Comment Below 8 comments