Poledancing Injuries?
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Common Poledancing Injuries

• Bumps and bruises are very common, especially in pole dancers who are just learning to spin and climb. The most common sites for bruising to occur are the ankles and shins, as well as the inner thighs and upper arms.

  This is because for many spins and inversions, your legs will be either holding you up on the pole or they will be wrapping around the pole while you're traveling at fairly high speeds. Arms are also involved in a number of strength holds, so they can get bruised up too!

  To treat minor bumps and bruises, ice or a cold pack is generally recommended. A frozen bag of vegetables will work just fine if you don't have an ice pack.

  Put the ice on the affected area as soon as possible, and be sure NOT to place it directly on your skin as this could cause frostbite. Wrap the ice pack in a towel or cloth and apply for 10 minutes. Repeat every couple of hours to reduce pain, swelling and bruising.

  There are also many homeopathic and herbal creams on the market to help with poledancing bruises and other minor injuries. One of the most popular is Traumeel. Traumeel is available in tablet form as well as a topical cream.

You can also use arnica cream or gel, or ask at your local natural foods store for similar recommendations.




• Pole burn can occur in conjunction with bruising, or on its own. Burns result from the heat caused by friction between your skin and the pole.

  This common but painful injury often occurs on the delicate skin of the inner thigh when learning poledancing release moves that require holding onto the pole with only your legs.

  Ice, applied as I've described above, will relieve the pain almost instantly.

  You may need a few days away from the particular move that caused the burn, but in time your skin will toughen up and you'll have fewer problems with this.

  If pole burn is a problem for you, here are a couple of pages with additional information that may help you understand and treat this injury:

  Inner thigh pain when pole dancing

  What to do about pole burn

  
  

• Muscle soreness and stiffness is another common complaint in beginning pole dancers. Keep in mind that even if you're in fairly good shape, doing a new activity that you're not accustomed to requires using different muscles. This is why you may experience some pain or stiffness for the first few days after starting to pole dance.

  If the pain is not sharp or shooting, you are most likely experiencing the effects of discovering new muscles. Congratulations! This achy pain should diminish over time, and is usually worse in the first two days after starting the new activity.

  To treat minor muscle aches, a hot epsom salt bath is a traditional remedy that I love!

  Rather than buying expensive bath salts or drugstore epsom salts in small boxes, I like to buy mine in bulk. These are often available in 10kg or 20lb bags at feed stores and the price is considerably lower this way.

  I keep mine under the sink in the bathroom, and put up to 4 cups in a hot bath when I'm really stiff or sore.

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  This tip was given to me by a massage therapist: Remember to have a quick shower to rinse the salts off your body after your soak.

  The epsom salts pull toxins out of your body, including the byproducts of physical activity that cause the muscle soreness. So for best results, it's a good idea to rinse everything away so these compounds are not reabsorbed by your skin.

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• More severe pain, or pain that only occurs when you move a certain way, or sharp, shooting pains may indicate that you have sustained a strain or sprain. A muscle strain is commonly referred to as a "pulled muscle" while a sprain involves an injury to the connective tissue in a joint such as a shoulder, wrist or knee.

  The common recommendation for either of these types of injuries is R.I.C.E., which stands for Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation.

  While you may be tempted to ignore this pain and continue poledancing, resting now will help you recover faster in the long run. Icing the injured area can help reduce inflammation, as can wrapping it with a compression bandage and raising the injured area above your head for a few minutes several times each day.

  If you suspect you have a sprain you may want to seek medical advice and/or physical therapy.

  In order to get back on your pole as soon as possible, it's important to get an accurate diagnosis of what the injury is, and to follow a rehabilitation plan. Otherwise you may find yourself sidelined for weeks or months, which is no fun at all!




• Feet cramps and other causes of foot pain can be a real source of frustration for pole dancers. Whether you dance in bare feet, or in a pair of sexy pole dancing shoes, you may suffer from foot pain at some time during your pole dancing adventure.

  Common foot issues with bare foot poledancing include plantar fasciitis (commonly felt as heel pain first thing in the morning when getting out of bed) or ball of foot pain from walking and dancing up on your toes.

  If you wear high heel or platform shoes when pole dancing, they may contribute to all manner of foot problems, particularly if your shoes are cheap or fit poorly. These can included bunions, corns, hammertoe and just plain painful feet.

  If you have sore feet from poledancing, you may be interested in reading more about this natural solution to feet cramps and chronic foot pain.

You may also like to read up on:

• Avoiding fitness pole injuries

• Dancer pole safety

• Pole dancing fitness information