Pole Position: Inner Me Studios

“Aye Girl, yeah you da bizness”  – Usher, Lil Freak

Palms sweaty accelerated heart rate, “Why am I anxious about this feature?”  Research and dialogue, that’s the easy part, but the “Hey you should try it to see if you like!” portion of these interviews always make me nervous. I suppose I can take having egg on my face…just not with an audience.  Yet my date with destiny, my first rendezvous with the pole was nothing short of one of the most empowering experiences of my life.

“Firm your grip and maintain your balance ladies!” With a voice as sweet as my favorite grade school teacher, Nicole Phillips is the lead instructor and owner of Inner Me Studios.  Powerfully petite with curves in all the right places, former model Phillips began her pole dancing training at Philadelphia’s Poise Dance Studio in 2009. For four months she trained twice a day and six times a week before beginning her career as a professional pole dance instructor. Six months later, Nicole opened the doors to her very first alternative fitness studio in Houston, TX.  Unlike her competitors, Inner Me Studios offers the following fitness courses to women, as well as, men:

• Kickboxing
• Hip Hop Dance Aerobics
• Yoga
• Stiletto Fit

When asked on how she combats the negative stigma of her “stripper fit” courses, she advised, “Spouses and partners of most of our clients come in to purchase more training time for their significant other. We’ve had several couples report that things are “heating up” in their relationship. My students can burn on average 250-500 calories per session, so we must be doing something right.”

I can attest to feeling the burn. Following my 90 minute muscle strengthening ménage with an 8ft tall silver soldier, I came home and slept for two hours.  The class moved fairly quickly, and the camaraderie amongst the women during the pole fitness course was simply phenomenal. We cheered, encouraged one another, and together discovered our own inner sexy.  Inner Me Studios holds true to their namesake and is quickly reinventing the way we can all shed a few pounds and reshape our physiques. Seek out a new dance fitness instructor in your area, or check out one of these studios: