Pole dancers in action

Katy McCarten

Speaker: Mark Worden (Standard British accent)

Mention lap dancing, striptease and pole dancing, and most people will immediately think of sleazy nightclubs where young ladies dressed in skimpy clothing dance for half-drunken men. That was the case until a couple of years ago, but now both striptease and pole dancing – although not, as yet, lap dancing – are becoming the latest trends in physical fitness.
Pole dancing is a form of gymnastics that requires muscular endurance and coordination as well as sensuality. Pole dancing increases upper body strength, while toning the body as a whole. Nor is it restricted to the ladies: occasionally men train in pole dancing, although more for exercise than eroticism.

THE FULL MONTY

Striptease, on the other hand, does not need much explanation. If you’ve seen the cult 1997 movie The Full Monty, you will know what it is.
Belly dancing is seen as something sensually eastern, but it became popular in the west after being introduced at the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago by a dancer known as “Little Egypt.” Over the last decade belly dancing has become very popular because, not only is it sensual, it also improves suppleness and can be practised by women of any age.

POLESTARS

Of all these types of erotic dancing, pole dancing is the one that has adapted most readily to the world of health and fitness. In order to find out more, we met Katy McCarten, a young university graduate who teaches pole dancing in Manchester for a company called Polestars. Polestars operates throughout the UK, as well as in Ireland and Australia. We asked Katy McCarten about the women who attend her classes:

Katy McCarten (Liverpool accent):

We do get a lot of women who have had children and a lot of them say, “Oh, I just wanted to feel sexy again, after having had a child, I wanted to kind of bring a new skill into the bedroom,” just kind of things like that, really. One lady just said: “I just want to feel sexy again, I want you to teach me to be sexy,” which is quite a big thing to take on! I try my best!

For more information on Polestars, visit: www.polestars.net.