{"id":928649,"date":"2026-10-15T04:34:12","date_gmt":"2026-10-15T04:34:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/928649\/"},"modified":"2026-10-15T04:34:12","modified_gmt":"2026-10-15T04:34:12","slug":"how-dance-studios-are-reshaping-relationships-and-fitness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/928649\/","title":{"rendered":"How dance studios are reshaping relationships and fitness"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Studios continue to find success across Sydney. Picture: Google Maps<\/p>\n

While most couples\u2019 interests are poles apart, Misha and her husband, Sam, are getting down on the pole together in a growing movement pouring millions into the economy and the commerical property sector.<\/p>\n

For the newlyweds, who tied the knot in August, their AUD $2500, 10-foot stainless steel pole is a pillar of their marriage.<\/p>\n

The couple ditched the traditional first-dance waltz for saucy flips and splits on the polished pole, stunning their 150 wedding guests.<\/p>\n

The 33-year-olds are part of a rising swarm of sweethearts trading pickleball, predictable movie dates and board game nights for pole dancing to keep their flames burning.<\/p>\n

And it is a trend that is spearheading growth in Australia\u2019s commercial property space thanks to the proliferation of adult dance studios rising to meet public demand.<\/p>\n

From a taboo sport in the 1990s, pole dancing is now seen as a huge driver of fitness, with about 300 to 400 dedicated pole and aerial fitness studios operating across Australia.<\/p>\n

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Aerial dance studios and pole dancing studios are on the rise as more couples embrace the sport. Picture: Supplied<\/p>\n

In fact, men just like Sam, a 6-foot-1, roughly 104kg hunk, are spinning circles around their wives and girlfriends on #PoleTok. It\u2019s the sometimes-NSFW section of social media dominated by the 400,000 guys and gals of the discipline worldwide.<\/p>\n

Some beneath the hashtag are shaking their moneymakers, well, for money \u2014 posting clips of their pole play in hopes of getting hired as in-person talent or driving new audiences to other platforms.<\/p>\n

Others, like the unblushing bride and groom, revere pole dancing as an athletic art that strengthens their bodies and deepens their intimacy<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of stigma around pole dancing, some people might think, \u2018Oh, that\u2019s just for strippers,\u2019\u201d Misha, a finance pro, told The Post<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, it has sensual roots. But there\u2019s so much athleticism that go into it. It\u2019s a lot harder than it looks. We love it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since posting their pole-dancing videos online, the duo has been hit with a barrage of nasty comments, from digs at Sam\u2019s sexuality to sneers at their \u2018weird\u2019 and taboo antics.<\/p>\n

But Misha and Sam, who chose to withhold their last name for privacy, aren\u2019t phased by the flak.<\/p>\n

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Misha and Sam have embraced the sport for the good of their relationship. Picture: Supplied<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of people think pole is just for women. It\u2019s strange for them to see a guy do it, especially with his [female] partner,\u201d said Sam, an engineer, who first suggested he and Misha give pole dancing a whirl in March. \u201cI just don\u2019t feed into the negativity.\u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are times I have to hold all of Misha\u2019s weight while we\u2019re doing a move, or she may have to position herself in a certain way to accommodate me,\u201d he added. \u201cIt\u2019s like a metaphor for marriage.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Pew Research, more than 60 per cent of married adults cite \u201cshared interests\u201d as key to a successful marriage.<\/p>\n

Relationship therapist Cyndi Darnell told The Post that a strong connection is the \u201cglue\u201d that holds relationships together, praising physical activities like pole dancing for fostering \u201cattunement\u201d between partners.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen engaging in a physical activity with another person, a co-regulation of nervous systems and heartbeats can occur, creating a sense of connection and communication that transcends words and conscious thought. That\u2019s attunement,\u201d said the expert.<\/p>\n

\u201cThrough couples activities that require very close physical connection, you and your partner become one being during the exercise,\u201d she continued.<\/p>\n

Travis, a macho military man who pole dances alongside his wife, Laura, several times a week, agrees. The non-traditional twosome, from New Jersey, laud the sport as the cherry-on-top to their sweet 22-year union.<\/p>\n

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Travis and Laura have found huge benefits from joining the trend. Picture: Supplied<\/p>\n

Travis encouraged Laura, 40, a nurse, to pursue the pole as a self-esteem booster in 2022, pointing her to Pole To Pole Fitness, with studios across NYC and NJ.<\/p>\n

As many women often experience, changes to Laura\u2019s physique left her feeling less than hot. But after pole reignited the bombshell\u2019s confidence, she lassoed Travis into the risqu\u00e9 revelry, sparking his fire for the ankle hangs and pirouettes, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt built my confidence. I started to get more comfortable and fell in love with the community, learning tricks and doing exercises that feel more like fun,\u201d said Laura, who treats pole sessions with her not-so-shy guy \u201clike a date night.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although admittedly \u201cuncomfortable\u201d at first, Travis, one in a handful of guys at the studio, credits pole with increasing his mobility, flexibility and agility, as well as his ability to remain in-sync with his significant other.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do dance lifts, mounts and dismounts on the same pole. I can pick her up and place her on the apparatuses or take her off of one pole and gracefully walk her over to another apparatuses,\u201d said the ex-serviceman.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Studios continue to find success across Sydney. Picture: Google Maps While most couples\u2019 interests are poles apart, Misha…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":928650,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[64,63,538,137],"class_list":["post-928649","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-fitness","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/928649","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=928649"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/928649\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/928650"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=928649"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=928649"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=928649"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}