The Dizzies Part 2c: Breath & The Suck-It-IN Sabotage

BREATHING! 💨 & The "Sucking Sabotage "

It seems obvious that we would breathe—we are mammals, after all! But women - well we got stuff packed we just haven't had time to unpack, YET.

But on the pole, our excited, & our nervous bodies are working through emotional layers, performance anxiety, and decades of old societal tapes about what our bodies can do. When we feel threatened by a new move, our biology takes over and we secretly hold our breath.

If you missed the part about fear triggers your brain picks up, PLEASE go find it in the 3 prior missives!

Shutting it down isn't the answer but understanding it...you can harness the POWER it generates! And yes...We all do it! Not just beginners.

Even my husband, when we work on doubles routines, has to be constantly reminded to breathe! And he is just the spotting prop guy I swing around for heavens sake! He might not fall down or get hit with complete stage fright but I will so I have had to learn tones about the problem! If we suppress or fight this biological response, learning stops and confidence tanks. It can be fixed. And no "stage fright"article ever helped. Until I found out WHAT was happening I was still attending pre-show practice not recognizing the music playing for MY SET! And laughing hysterically. My coach understood but the rest of the room (ready to call the paddy wagon I'm sure). So how to fix it

1) Understand what's happening

2) Understand being a women doesn't make you perfect

3) Learn how to work with it and continue breathing so you can DANCE!

To fix it, we have to understand the brilliance of the science of why our bodies do this, and how we can actually use it to unleash our inner power. When we DO that... we have the sky open for possibilities!

Note from Part 2a and our inner voices: I find it fascinating that we are not sucking "AIR", and tell ourselves "you suck!" all at the same time! IRONIC!

The "Suck-it-In" Sabotage 🛑

Let’s be real, ladies: as women, we have been socially conditioned for decades to constantly breathe shallowly and "suck the gut in" to maintain a flat stomach & lady like posture. In research this is called "postural BRACING"! ( Puhl et al., 2022). Yes it has an ACTUAL NAME!!! It starts in teen age females! If you are an adult dancer, you have had this for a WHILE. (Doria& Numer, 2022).

But in the pole studio, we leave that toxic nonsense at the door! No males here! Forget the gut sucking, even if you ARE doing it for the famed abdominal "sculpting". Yes it helps your muscles, no it is not keeping your lizard brain in check & IS hurting your moves! (Kim & Lee, 2023). Check out the references for ATHLETES!

Besides, in pole, we are sculpting a fit strong whole body, not body parts! And we do body positivity in pole not social stigma management! In pole fitness, trying to execute an invert while sucking your stomach in is mechanical sabotage. Creating the firm, unified tension of your front and back body—while keeping perfect alignment—requires true belly breathing to be occurring based on YOUR body and cues. (Kim & Lee, H. , 2013).

Modified Performance Breathing Exercise Practice!

Sit cross-legged on the floor or comfortably in a chair. Place your tongue lightly against the back of your front teeth. To start, take a few regular, controlled breaths using a simple 4-count for both the inhale and exhale to center yourself.

Once you are ready, follow these steps:

1. Inhale with the Ribs: On your next 4-count, inhale deeply through your nose, consciously letting the breath fill your lungs as your rib cage rises.

2. Transition to the Belly: In the exact split second your lungs feel full & your ribs are lifted, immediately continue to inhale. Feel your stomach fill with air until you experience a slight pushback against your abdominal wall.

3. The Controlled Exhale: Open your mouth slightly into a gentle smile. Exhale very slowly through your mouth to a 4-count. If you want to challenge yourself, extend this exhale to a 6-count. While exhaling, keep your stomach muscles firm in that outward, expanded position—do not allow your stomach to drop.

4. The Final Push and Reset: As you reach the very end of your breath, tighten your stomach just a bit more to push out the remaining air. Then, transition immediately into a slightly quicker, smooth inhale to start the cycle again.

Important Tips for Mastery

Manage "Air Hunger": If you begin to feel short of breath or "air-hungry," do not stop the breathing exercise. Simply adjust your rhythm to a slightly faster pace. We are all built differently, so feel free to adjust your mouth, tongue, neck position, or rib cage to whatever feels best for your body. You will need that lung/brain connection in class! We can't & don't want to forget those BENEFITS of split second biology, that can rev-up your body for the next moves! 🤸

Why We Practice This: The goal is to mimic the natural breathing rhythm we use while dancing or under physical stress. When practicing very slowly at first, it can trigger a choking or air-hungry sensation. On the dance floor, that feeling often causes us to abandon deep breathing entirely and hold our breath. This exercise trains your body to overcome that reflex.

How to get the groove: Notice your shoulders (yep right this second!), tomarrow...your steering wheel grip?, hand position (fists?), arm positions (crossed?), tone of voice.... during the "stress" as you go through the day! Practice this breathing now, and at those times for 4-5 breaths at each stress event and move on. (I find TRAFFIC a great time - HA!)

What to expect: If you practice this during stressful moments in your everyday life consistently for about 5 days, you will start to notice a massive difference in your core engagement and stamina on the next few pole/dance classes. It may take a few weeks to fully click on the dance floor because, there are so many dynamic movements to process at once—but keep practicing. It will come!

So there it is: Embrace Your FULL beautiful mind & Body and BIOLOGY!

The next time you feel a wave of dizziness, panic, or find yourself spinning around aimlessly with absolutely no clue how to get down, give yourself some grace. 𓆩♡𓆪 Your body is just trying to protect you! Break the freeze by sending a deep breath right down into your belly. Let your stomach expand, feed your brain & muscles and watch how much lighter your beautiful body feels. You've got this, ladies!

PS: For Infinite spin from Part 2a??? - PUT A BODY PART ON THE FLOOR! Your hand or foot works great! No you are not an imbecile, it's your biology freezing up!

If you missed the other Dizzy Series parts click here:

Part I: Confessions of a Dizzy Poler (The basic reasons polers dizz out) -triggers and personal focus

Part 2a: The Lie - Dizzy & The Definitions

Part 2b: The BIOLOGY why you stop Breathing and start the dizzies