When it comes to pole, aerial and pregnancy, very few people put themselves out there giving specific, real, actionable advice. People are happy to tell of their own experiences rather than telling others what to do – and for good reason too.

Some of my friends have quit pole as soon as they became pregnant, others I’ve not let pole in class, and then some have continued to pole for as long as their bodies allowed them to. Whatever the decision of the mother to be, that’s the important one and the only one that matters.

I posted a picture of ‘Flying Through Pregnancy’ by Kate Edwards recently and it got a lot of interest. For women who do pole and aerial there really isn’t anything out there to guide you through training while pregnant. I completely understand why there isn’t much other there at the moment – I’m not sure how much research there is out there in terms of pole and pregnancy, but was super happy when I found this book was coming out.

I’ve not been pregnant but have my Pre and Post-natal qualification, so while I can’t look at this book through an ‘I’ve been there’ lens, I have an idea on the exercise side.

Flying Through Pregnancy

This is going to sound very silly, but I was surprised by how much information has gone into the book. I was (needlessly) worried at first that any book about pole and pregnancy would perhaps avoid giving advice and maybe just stick to the usual advice about fitness and pregnancy. Now while this is good advice, it’s already out there. Our niche needs more!

What I like about this book is that it comes from someone who has been through it all – Kate has training in pole and aerial, has been through pregnancy and is pre and post-natal trained, to name a few of her qualifications… as well as all the other research that goes into a book like this. I suppose what I’m trying to say is that it’s not preachy. It’s so easy to tell people just to stop doing their hobbies – but for the person being told to stop, it’s not that easy (unless you want to, of course!)

I enjoy that this book focuses on pregnancy as a whole – for example giving advice on how to relieve cramps, aches and pains you might feel and why, and information on changes to your body and even sleep (or lack there of!)

Before I talk about the pole and aerial side, the advice given is that ‘the final word should always go to the health professionals involved in your care.’

That said… let’s get to the pole.

Pole and Aerial Training

So, how realistic is the advice? The advice stays humble. It’s there to help you modify and change your training, meaning you can carry on while pregnant, rather than showing you how to up your training to the next level. Which of course makes sense!

I think this book has a lot to offer in terms of being realistic. It’s so easy to say ‘cut down your training’ or ‘you’ll be fine training as you were’ depending on what the person wants to hear but the book shows a pregnant Kate demonstrating stretches, how to get up from the floor and a variety of balance exercises. There are some pole and aerial sequences in there for you to try too.

Extra Advice

There is also a whole chapter dedicated to ‘testimonials’ from polers who have been there, done that, and had the baby. There is so much relevant advice in that chapter – and it reads like a conversation with a friend.

So to summarise, I think this is a really interesting and useful resource for the pole industry. Of course everyone is different and some people will want to pole during pregnancy and others will not, and either is absolutely fine. I think it gives helpful and realistic guidelines, rather than just telling you it’ll be an easy journey and to carry on as you were. I think it’s also beneficial for those who are on the fence about poling – there is so much information that relates just to pregnancy and your body, that it’s a good read.

Of course there are so many pre and post natal books out there, but it’s nice to go through (and read through) it with someone who has been there in your niche. If you’re not in the pole world it’s so difficult to realise quite what the body goes through.

So if you’re a pregnant poler (or soon to be), or even an instructor who wants to be a bit more informed, I do think this is a great book which gives out a lot of useful information. I’m sure there’ll be tons of books for you to read alongside this – but it’s pole related, so that makes it much more fun to read 😀