Herman shows her students, including Zina Rose, right, some enthusiasm after their workout on the pole.
dent of Herman’s Polga for nine months. “I have already lost a pant size,” she said. “This is a lot of fun and the girls are all really supportive.” The steel rod, encasing two other poles, is attached to the ceiling and floor. Herman says the key is to use the anchored pole to support one’s own body weight. “We are also teaching them how to regain their balance, which is so important to everything else that they do,” she said. Like traditional yoga, proper breathing is essential, and there is a cool-down period, though much shorter. There is no incense or chanting, but plenty of clapping and high-fiving inside the small workout area. In addition to the main prop of the pole, pillows and wide elastic bands are also used to achieve poses like the chair, the speed bump and the tuck. Herman makes it look effortless. She estimates a 90minute session will burn 800 Diana Herman to 1,500 calories. Already, she counts close to 80 students in her classes with her oldest being a 69-year-old. “Polga can be very spiritual, too,” she added. “As you look up to the pole, you are also looking up in that you have to have the heart to do it. Then think about the love you have for yourself, your family.” Diana Herman said she understands the initial impression this new form of exercise may give. “It is a stigma we are trying to fight, but we aren’t taking our clothes off. There is nothing wrong in Polga,” she said. “This is about empowerment and selfachievement through a unique way of building up body strength. “I am trying to inspire women with confidence,” Herman said. “That is what Polga is all about, a big ‘yay.’”
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“I am trying to inspire women with confidence. That is what Polga is all about, a big ‘yay.’”
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