3 Things you NEED In Your Pole Practice  Sign up for Rekindle by the 18th for two FREE extra no-equipment pole conditioning classes (including recordings!): https://www.slinkthroughstrength.com/rekindle-your-passion-for-pole Welcome to this week’s episode of The Evidence Based Pole Podcast through Slink Through Strength. This week we will be discussing the 3 essential aspects of pole growth. The 3 things you need are conditioning, challenge, and PLAY. We will explore what to explore on and off the pole and how these 3 pieces come together.  Conditioning is essential to pole, I offer these classes if you’d like to explore this together! Conditioning is: Strength, off the pole, Flexability, off the pole, Power/agility, off the pole, Speed, Coordination on the pole, Endurance, on the pole! (but not your hardest possible tricks), Cardio, on the pole, Balance on the pole/heels  Challenge gives us the space for growth through exploration! One component of challenge is Technical exploration. Technical exploration is NOT synonymous with conditioning; it *should* be separate, this exploration is Learning new pole moves, Refining existing moves, and Learning transitions This is the point of Pole Pathways classes; my structure means you don't need a super well-conditioned baseline to work on something challenging for you Another component of Challenge is Artistic exploration. This includes Freestyle, Learning choreography, Dancing to different music, and Embody different characters (This is the point of Freestyle Flow characters) Play is essential not only to your pole practice but also your life! Challenge is *not* the point of play time,  play is! Play helps us build emotional resilience and helps to cope with stress; Social play in particular may be beneficial for adults with mental illness. Play is also linked to greater life satisfaction, physical fitness, creativity, and happiness  Find more play in Pole by Poling with friends, Putting aside the need to be good, not giving yourself limitations or rules, and Taking my Freestyle Flow classes! (We also freestyle during Pole Pathways) Slink Through Strength Email Sign Up:  ⁠http://eepurl.com/iimjnX⁠ Join pole instructor & personal trainer Rosy Boa as she chats with experts about the evidence-based practices you can introduce to your pole journey to improve your pole journey and feel better. The Evidence-Based Pole Podcast aims to help pole dancers feel better on and off the pole by talking with experts and diving into relevant scientific research to find evidence-based insights we can apply to our pole journeys. It’s a production of Slink Through Strength, the inclusive, evidence-based online pole studio, which can be found online at slinkthroughstrength.com. Edited by: Simone Rossette  [email protected] Sources:  Philipp Berger, Florian Bitsch, Henrike Bröhl & Irina Falkenberg (2018) Play and playfulness in psychiatry: a selective review, International Journal of Play, 7:2, 210-225, DOI: 10.1080/21594937.2017.1383341 Dobbins, S., Hubbard, E., Flentje, A., Dawson-Rose, C., & Leutwyler, H. (2020). Play provides social connection for older adults with serious mental illness: A grounded theory analysis of a 10-week exergame intervention. Aging & mental health, 24(4), 596-603. Magnuson, C. D., & Barnett, L. A. (2013). The playful advantage: How playfulness enhances coping with stress. Leisure Sciences, 35(2), 129-144. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/rosy-boa/support