From Fear to Flow: Using Anxiety to Improve Your Pole Performance

If you’ve ever felt your heart race before attempting a new trick, a drop, an invert, or stepping on stage for a pole performance — you’re not weak, broken, or “bad at pole.” You’re human. And more importantly, your nervous system is doing exactly what it’s designed to do.

It might come as a surprise to learn anxiety is NOT inherently bad. Yes, that’s right. Read that again.

We are often taught to believe that anxiety is always trying to harm us or ruin our experience. But what if this was not the case? What if anxiety could actually be helpful to our performance and enjoyment?

The good news is…this is actually true! If we allow anxiety to run unbridled, it will undoubtedly have a negative influence – anxiety is our brain’s way of trying to protect us from threat. But if we embrace a different mindset, and learn the skills to change our relationship with anxiety, we can actually thrive.

Perhaps you are new to pole and aerials, or perhaps you are ready to level up? Maybe you have a goal to perform or compete this year, or maybe you are already a seasoned performer. No matter your level or experience, anxiety is likely to still be a key player in your performance and enjoyment. Remember back to your first pole or aerials class – how were you feeling? You likely remember feeling some nerves,  butterflies in the stomach, sweaty palms, tight muscles, and racing thoughts. All of which are completely normal!

When our brain perceives some kind of threat – like trying a new activity or new move – we set off the fight or flight response. Our heart rate rises, breathing becomes more shallow and faster, we feel adrenaline surging through our body, and the butterflies in our stomach awaken. We often think negatively about everything that could go wrong. If we let this response run, we are likely to experience less enjoyment and have less capacity to perform the movements we need to. But if we reimagine these symptoms, we can actually use them to our advantage.

You see, we experience the exact same physical signs when we feel anxious, as we do when we feel excited. The only difference is the thoughts you are experiencing. If you are focused on all the things that could go wrong – slipping, falling, not getting the trick or what everyone will be thinking about you, and what might happen if you can’t do some of the moves – you will feel anxious. But if you turn your thoughts to the excitement of a new challenge, and the buzz of trying something completely different – you will feel excited. This mental shift is key in us harnessing our body’s natural response to challenge. We can learn to perform well DESPITE noticing some anxiety being present.

Try these tips to change your relationship with anxiety:

1. Reframe your experience – “I feel excited to try this!” is more helpful than “I feel nervous about trying this.”

2. Embrace a growth mindset – focus on the learning experience and the feeling of being present in the moment

3. Visualise success. Before you execute a move, or before you step into your routine or performance, spend a moment visualising yourself performing successfully. This primes your brain for success and fires up your neural pathways.

4. Breathe! Breathing is the quickest and easiest way to moderate our fight or flight response, as it reduces our heart rate, slows the adrenaline flow, calms our thoughts, and brings us back to the present moment. Try box breathing – breathe in for a count of 4, hold your breath for 4, breathe out to a count of 4, and hold again for 4. Before you execute each move or trick, take a grounding deep breath to focus and calm yourself.

5. Unhook from unhelpful thoughts. Focus on the key technical points of your move OR calmly repeat a mantra in your mind (e.g., “I’ve got this”) OR imagine your thoughts passing by like clouds in the sky OR sing your favourite song in your head.

6. Avoid caffeine or excessive sugar before class or performances, as the effects can mimic or worsen the flight or flight response.

Sometimes, however, changing our relationship with anxiety can take a little more support.

If you find that nerves or fear are holding you back in pole, aerials, or performance, working  with a performance psychologist can equip you with the tools to feel safer, more confident and more in control of your body

Our Pole & Aerial Psychologist works online with performers all over the world — helping you not just cope with anxiety, but actually use it to perform at your best. If you would like to overcome your anxiety, book with them online today.

Until next time, train safe.

The Pole Physio

xx