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Instructors listen up! 

Yes teaching pole and aerial can be fun, but it is still WORK. I cannot tell you how many amazing instructors and students I’ve seen lost to this industry because they started teaching too soon, cut their journeys short, got burnt out, had a preventable injury, got taken advantage of or treated bad by students and studio owners, and just lost their passion. So let’s learn from those unfortunate experiences and situations. 

I’m sharing 8 strategies to help avoid BURNOUT as a pole & aerial instructor. 

1. Take Time Off: It’s important that you have mental and physical rest days so that you can tend to your needs and reset. Remember, if you’re not at your best for YOU, then you won’t be able to be your best for your students.

2. Maintain Your Personal Practice: Don’t cut your journey short, and never stop being a student. Schedule time for you to take classes, jam with other instructors and practice your craft. Your ability to keep growing will have a trickle down effect and make a positive impact on your teaching.

3. Set Boundaries: Put boundaries in place to protect your time and energy when it comes to your students and studio. (Yes, its’s 100% OKAY)  And be sure to stick to and enforce those boundaries. If you don’t respect them, no one else will. 

4. Don’t Work For Free: It’s okay to lend a helping hand and be a team player, but if you’re taking on what would be a paid roll (social media, administrative, studio/equipment maintenance, photography, etc.) then make sure you’re being compensated for your time, energy expertise and efforts.

5. Revisit Curriculum: Don’t try to reinvent the wheel every week. Revisit choreography, combos and tricks. Find new and creative ways to present the material and challenge your students to keep it fresh. 

6. Teach What You Know: Avoid teaching things that you haven’t mastered or worked on. Make sure that you are comfortable with all aspects of explaining, breaking down, teaching, spotting, progressing and regressing a move before you introduce it to your class.

7. Get Support: Everyone needs a coach, even coaches. Find a mentor that can help you troubleshoot teaching, command a classroom, and enhance your instruction. Talk to your studio owner(s) and fellow instructors for support, encouragement  and solutions.

8. Know When To Leave: Not every teaching position is a good fit and sometimes you may even outgrow a teaching position. It’s 100% OKAY to advocate for yourself and remove yourself from toxic situations. Know when a studio, environment, culture or people no longer align with you.

If you’re not doing these things or if you’re dealing with uncomfortable, unfair, unethical situations then maybe it’s time to reevaluate your teaching environment. 

Found these helpful? Share with someone who needs to hear these. Got a story to share? DM me at and I’ll be happy to address it constructively for you! Need a teaching mentor? Book a coaching for coaches sesh with me. 

#FlexyFit #FlexyFitOnline #everyBODY #everyBODYCoach #professionalbeginner #PoleCoach #AerialCoach #PoleCompetition #AerialCompetition #CompetitionJudge #CompetitionTrainingTips   #poleinstructor #aerialinstructor #CircusEducators #MovementCoach #unitedbypole #IPIA #internationalpoleindustryassociation #poledance polepassion #poledancelife #polecommunity #poleindustry #polebusiness #polebusinessowner #polestudio  #polecoach #poledancecommunity #aerialstudio #polefitnesscoach #iteachpole 

Instructors: you are a brand. Even if you work at a studio, YOU ARE A BRAND. And in reality, you are working for the students, yourself and the studio.

Regardless of what they say and require you pay for in money/time, studios don’t own:
– your mind
– your time
– your talent
– your image
– your likeness
– your experience
– or your brand…which is YOU

Before I go on, I do want to take a moment to say don’t go diva mode when you play this back. There still needs to be mutual respect, understanding and integrity between studios and instructors. BUT know your worth and your brand.

A student’s connection to a studio is typically by way of instructors because you are the front line. Your Style, creativity, personality, relatability, choreography these are all the reasons why students make a connection to you and with you. And a big part of why they keep coming back.

I’ll let the video share the rest, but we’ll definitely continue this conversation because its one of many that needs to be had.

1. Hardware Focused. Unfortunately, not everyone can win. It’s important that athletes (and coaches) have goals and milestones outside of medals, trophies and podiums. Those things are nice, but they do not determine your success, effort or value.

2. Rules are not understood. Athletes (and coaches) do not read and/or fully understand the rules. Unnecessary points are lost because athletes are breaking rules, not following rules and not meeting category/division criteria.

3. Scoresheets are not understood. Athletes (and coaches) don’t review the scoresheets to better understand what the judges are looking for, what each element on that scoresheet means and how those things are weighted.

Head on over to my Patreon to hear the audio version of this and join in on the conversation. Link in bio! 

#FlexyFit#FlexyFitOnline#everyBODY#everyBODYCoach#professionalbeginner#PoleCoach#AerialCoach#PoleCompetition#AerialCompetition#CompetitionJudge#CompetitionTrainingTips#polecompetitor#aerialcompetitor

I am beyond thrilled to announce that I’m back teaching and have a great summer lineup in the works. I’m kicking off my return with a few trainings I’d love to see you at: 

• Free Foam Rolling Class on June 30th.
• ASSLT (Ass, Legs and Thighs) 4-week series begins July 70th.
• Competition & Performance Building Workshop June 29th at Altitude Pole Fitness and Aerial Arts Flower Mound   
• Unlock Your Stage Potential: Competition and Performance Feedback Workshop July 13th at Altitude Pole Fitness and Aerial Arts Flower Mound   

After some time away to focus on my recovery and healing, I feel recharged and excited to embark on this incredible journey with you all! Mark your calendars, spread the word, and get ready to dive back into the world of FlexyFit. 

When I started the idea and teaching principles behind everyBODY it was because I had experienced and adapted to pole/aerial from the physical sense of so many different body types. It was my own struggles with learning and relearning movement at each shape and size that brought into focus just how important and necessary this was.

• It was being made felt by one group that I was too big while being told by another group that I was too small and not big enough.
• It was “auditory” inclusivity being made for plus-size bodies without science-based training that actually helped those bodies exceed on their apparatus.
• It was students coming to me saying: “I’ve been doing this drill or these sets of drills as directed by my other instructor(s) but I’m seeing no results .
• It’s about hearing stories of lack of support, lack of work arounds, lack of progressions and regressions.
• It was hearing others be told that their questions about exercise, weight or heal weren’t welcomed and that those were bad words.
• It was being told: “you’re strong for a big girl” and “I never would have thought YOU could be able to do that.”

My goal was an is to even the playing field. To maintain safe, welcoming spaces where every body does feel welcomed, supported and successful. To help bodies find a way to achieve movement in the way that feels and works best for them. To really be inclusive of all bodies, shapes, sizes, ages, abilities, etc., and to embrace the growth and changes that bodies go through with their movement.

Listen in to learn more about what everyBODY truly represents: https://www.patreon.com/posts/everybody-means-105649674?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link

I am excited to announce the launch of my first all access video library: FlexyFit Online. I wanted to create something that was accessible to everyBODY and inclusive of all shapes, sizes, abilities and level. Click that play button to learn more about FlexyFit Online and how to get the best results from this online movement library made for everyBODY!!

Listen in to learn more: https://www.patreon.com/posts/welcome-to-world-105462256?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link

Pole & Aerial Competitions got you feeling like this?!? You aren’t alone. Having a knowledgeable coach is a game changer. 

A great coach:

– knows and understands the rules 

– can help you build a level and movement appropriate routine 

– helps you stay motivated and accountable 

– keeps you on schedule 

– gives you support and encouragement when training gets frustrating and/or life happens 

– understands what the judges are looking for and how to maximize points 

– helps you build combos and sequences that work for YOU

– is your voice of reason when you insanely want to do all of the things or want to quit 

– cheers you on and probably screams the loudest when you get to your moment on stage 

– encourages the growth that going through a competition cycle brings. 

– helps you with concept development and music selection 

– guides you through costuming, makeup props, etc 

– edits your music (at least u do!)

– Ensures you fine tune and polish your routine 

– And so much more! 

Slide into my DMs and Let’s talk about your competition concerns and goals.

Say it with me: “I’m not broken. I’m just under reconstruction.”

When you are dealing with an injury or feelings of body dissatisfaction, it’s easy to get stuck in the trap of equating and/or limiting your value to what you see (or don’t see) and what you can or are unable to do. You are not your injury, it’s just part of your story. 

Remember that you were not broken. You are not damaged. You are not unworthy. You’re just under reconstruction. You’re putting your movement back together and finding new pathways that work for where you are and helping you towards where you want to be.

Between life and health issues, I’ve had to reboot my pole/aerial career so many times that I’ve become a certified #ProfessionalBeginner. Through all of the starts and restarts, I’ve mastered the art of starting over and I’m learning to embrace it. 

I’ll be real though, starting over isn’t easy and honestly sometimes it down right f*cking sucks. 

But at the same time, it’s made me a better coach, because I rarely feel comfortable in my own body, which means I’m: always struggling, always learning and always adapting.

So here we go again, restarting again after almost a year of not being or feeling like “ME”. I’m ready to embrace all of the learning and growth that comes with starting over. 

If you’re reading this and facing a restart too, know that you’re not alone and YOU CAN DO IT.

Often it’s thought that freestyles (or any dance really) has to be fancy, hard and full of tricks. However that couldn’t be further from the truth. Less can be more in the most beautiful way. 

Three things to help free your freestyle

1️⃣ Focus on finding comfort and control of your movement. 

2️⃣ Explore and embrace the mistakes.

3️⃣ Move until you master it.

️ Sharing one of my last freestyles below. It was all about pirouettes, turns and circular movement. I have myself one simple challenge/ focus: keep turning!