Theme Big: Barbie Pole Class!
I love pink and am so so excited for the summer of Barbie! Continuing my themed pole posts, this is a 60-minute pole class plan based on the movie Barbie. This is a fun, upbeat class. (p.s. how cute is the Barbie graphic below Ana Paula Olivieria created of me? She was so fast and easy to work with, highly recommend her if you’re thinking of commissioning any artwork!)
General instructions:
Dress up! I loooove all the clothes in this movie! Can’t go wrong with pink, glitter, fringe, or denim!
Free playlist. This playlist is 90% from the movie and 10% songs with a Barbie vibe to round it out to an hour long. Obsessed with the Barbie soundtrack!
Both sides! As a physical therapist, I cannot stress enough how many injuries are caused by muscle imbalances. Do yourself a huge favor and always do both sides, even if one of them is terrible.
How to scale the class to your level: If you are a beginner, I suggest doing moves from the floor without climbing up the pole, or from one climb up. If you are an advanced student, challenge yourself by putting your pole on spin mode or by focusing on your non-dominant side (ideally everyone is doing both sides).
Warm-up:
If you are following my playlist, the first 3 songs are for warm-up and conditioning.
Potential Pole Moves:
Here is a list of potential moves at various levels. I like to do 2 combos for class, with only 2-3 new moves total (the rest are ones my students will have already learned or are simple to pick up). Click the hyperlink to see a photo or tutorial I found on the interwebs.
Hello Boys - Hi Ken!
Scissor Sit
Box split- really all the splits for Weird Barbie, but I feel like a box split and drop splits emulate her the most
Drop split
Fallen Lady Spin
Rocketwoman
Figurehead
Dolphin
The Journey to Barbieland Combo is an intermediate-advanced combo (can be done on static or spin pole). You can see this full combo here on my instagram.
This is a long combo, but mimics all the different modes of transport they take to travel from the Real World to Barbieland.
Rollerskate (skater) > snowmobile (outside leg hang)> camper van (genie)> tandem bike (tulip) > rocket (rocketwoman) > boat (sailboat spin or dolphin) > car (scissor pole sit)
Final Freestyle: What Was I Made For? OR Speed Drive
What Was I Made For? is great for an all-the-feels slow, moody freestyle. Speed Drive reminds me of choreographing to Aqua and Spice Girls with my childhood best friend, Ashley, in her backyard. Both are fantastic options! Below I’ve included some amazing Barbie pole inspo.
Would love to see any videos or photos if you try it at home or in your studio. Tag @valpolephant so I can see them!