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Tina: Hi everyone. Welcome to the podcast. Today I have on Josie and she is here to tell us a story.

Josie: Hi.

So I wanted to talk to you guys about my journey into pole dancing, which, you know, can be a little bit taboo, little bit of a stigma there, but I really wanna break that down, and talk about it more as ~a place.~

~Coming from ~a place of empowerment. So essentially, I started pole dancing last year in October on a whim at this studio called, Vertika Pole Studio. It's the only one in town in Windsor. I had seen this studio. For the last 10 years, I've passed by it in different locations.

I've seen it. I looked into it for a little bit. I was very intrigued, but I was always hesitant and nervous to go because I could never get anyone to go with me. And I don't know, me being like kind of outgoing is kind of weird saying this, but I felt very unsure of myself, without having the security blanket of a friend to accompany me.[00:01:00]

So I waited years and years and years and years and years until I met Alex. Alex is the owner of Vertika and it was for a completely unrelated event, but at that event, she was showcasing Lyra and I got to try it out. At the time, it was really, really hard. I didn't realize how hard it was gonna be.

I'm like, oh, yeah, I can like hold myself on that. No, I was humbled so fast, but. Having made that little connection, was enough for me to feel comfortable seeking out the studio itself. So that would've happened last summer, the summer of 2024, and it took until the fall of 2024 to sign up for lessons.

But I did. My very first lesson was with Alex, and I was very grateful for that because I didn't know anyone in the class, so I was still kinda like nervous, but very quickly I realized that it was a very, um, it was a very [00:02:00] empowering community. Everybody was so, friendly and loving and joyful and non-judgmental.

And I had this very narrow view of what a pole dancer could be or what they could look like. I mean, I think we all do. And that was not what I got there. It was women from all walks of life, all ages, all sizes, all ethnicities. So it was really cool, and very comforting. I loved it so much that I, I wanna say I did every, every week.

Every week until Christmas and I convinced, like my husband, I'm like, I only want these for Christmas. Like this is my gift now, and he is just been buying me passes so I can attend classes and more classes. Now I am up to the point where I've been doing it for almost a year and I go like three, four hours every single week.

I am kind of obsessed with it after the whole new Instagram that's just dedicated to poll, because I'm like, you know what? I don't know who's on my public [00:03:00] account. We don't need them seeing all this. It might not be for them, but there definitely is a really strong community of women, especially online, who share their journeys and share the different moves that they're working on and you can learn from one another.

So it's been really rewarding. So I guess all in all, I'm just so grateful that I was able to take that first step too. Deal with those uneasy, anxious feelings, and make, make some new connections. You know, just learning to, to, to lean on myself and to trust in myself and to know that if I wanna do something, I can do it regardless of whether or not people are gonna do it with me.

You have no idea how much I love the story because. Like, I love pole dancing. I love Vertica. I love Alex. I just saw her yesterday actually. The story is so close to my heart and I resonate completely with the, fear of pole dancing and like that stigma. But once you [00:04:00] get there, everyone is so nice.

Yeah. And so strong. So strong. Like when I first started, I, I've never been able to climb anything. Not a rope, not a pole. Like I can't do like chill ups, whatever. It's always been a goal. I can climb like nobody's business now. Like my back is so strong. Yeah. Nice. It's so crazy how good that feels, right when you get that.

Truly because it's, it's quite the accomplishment. 'cause you can, you can see. The tangible proof that you've done something right? Like it's, it's one thing to, you know, I make, I make content, I make pretty things. I'm like, okay, yeah, it's done. But I can't see that skill going up in real time. Whereas with Paul every week I'm like, okay, well that was a little easier.

I can climb a little higher. I can hold myself longer. Like, oh, I can do my bad side now. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. So I love those milestones.

Tina: What has been one of your biggest lessons from Pole?

Josie: I think [00:05:00] one of my biggest lessons I've learned from pool has to do with body positivity. So I grew up in like the early two thousands where diet culture was the thing. Heroin, sheep was very much in style. I was just watching a documentary about The Biggest Loser, and I'm like, wow, like that was a wild time, right?

Like we were so hyper-focused on what people looked like and their weight and that this somehow had meaning about who they were as a person rather than just being a number on the scale or like the space you take up. And so I think in going to Pole, I had this very narrow conception of just a very slim body, like a very slim body.

And like that's who does pull and. I think in going there, like yes there are slim women, but there's also thick women, there's short women, there's fat women, there's, there's curvy women, there's tall women, there's petite, there was all sorts of women, even muscular women, right? And so it's like you don't have to fit into this very narrow box of, [00:06:00] I'm assuming society.

'cause I'm like, I don't even know where I get these ideals from, but where, what society deems should be the body that does that sport. And so. I think in actually going there and seeing this and meeting the women and understanding more about my own body and like what it can do, I've realized that anybody can be a strong body.

Any body can be a pole body. It's simply are you gonna put in the time and the effort, to learn the moves and to gain the strength. Regardless, you're gonna look like, how are we gonna look like, but you can do these moves. Anyone can do these moves. Mm-hmm. So, I've, I don't know. I've had a new understanding of what it means to be comfortable in one's body, comfortable with your body, and just loving of your body.

Mm-hmm. And also the. Level of skill that you have is not necessarily correlated to your body or your body type? Oh, a hundred percent. Yeah.

Yeah.

And I [00:07:00] mean, I've noticed this a lot. I mean, Alex is so strong, she's like, she's crazy to watch, but she's also like this great little compact muscle body. And I'm like, wow.

Like I wish I could do that. But I'm like, that's not my body. Like I moves are gonna look a little bit different. It might take me a little bit longer, but I know I can still get there and I see. Generally women, but also men online who will perform just the craziest of tricks. And you wouldn't think just looking at them that they would be able to do that.

But it's all in, the muscle memory, understanding how to position your body, what you need to be, doing, mechanically to make the move work. But it's more so about then the, just the aesthetic of it all. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Tina: Has pole dancing brought more joy into your life?

Josie: Ooh, yeah. A hundred percent. A hundred percent, yes. It's something I absolutely adore and I look forward to it. I'm actually kind of sad right now 'cause we're like a [00:08:00] summer break, but I get it. Everyone needs a break. But I could be having just the worst day.

And then I'll go to pool, I'll be in that community. I'll feel those vibes. We perform together, I guess, in the space. And I just feel so good after, I guess it's similar to the way I feel with most workouts, except this is what I actually look forward to doing. Mm-hmm. But just that, I don't know if it's like a dopamine drip that you get afterwards because you've worked your body so hard.

It's just that sense of community and accomplishment that just makes you feel so good. But I love it.

Tina: I think it's a little bit of both. Like the exercising of course, makes you feel better and does increase your dopamine. Yeah. But also the community. And actually the, a third thing, but the community,

getting to know people, watching them grow and experiencing that together I think is another, like dopamine hit. Yeah. And then the [00:09:00] third thing I mentioned was like your own progress. I think that is huge. Like noticing your progress and realizing like, oh, I couldn't do this before, or, oh, that's a little bit easier, like you said.

Yeah, that is a huge dopamine hit to finally feel like. You can see the results of all of your effort.

Josie: That is Yeah, I would agree a hundred percent. Like. I know some days I definitely feel stronger than other days, but it's like, it's a pretty much like upwards trajectory, you know, like little dips, but mostly upwards.

Yeah. In terms of the progress and so I really enjoyed that. I did have like a slight injury. A couple months back, I like hurt my shoulder and I was so sad about it because I knew what I did. I knew I shouldn't have done it, but I did it anyways. And I'm like, Ooh, I think I just stretched it wrong. ~It's fine.~

~No, I'm pretty sure it was hurt, but ~it's fine. And so I had to take it easy for a couple of weeks and kind of like not only work my bad side, which you know, I probably should have been doing anyways, but just understanding that I also. Don't always need to check [00:10:00] off something new. Sometimes it can just be working on foundational moves and making them stronger, crisper, nicer lines, things of that nature.

So it made me kind of rethink just going in with that check mark mindset. Because I think if you, if I, anyways, if I push myself too quickly, too hard, I think I'm kind of prone to injury because I like to do that kind of stuff. So I have to. Take it easier. Mm-hmm. Just relax. Mm-hmm. Go slow. But that's also probably why you've seen so much progress and growth, because you're always pushing the edge.

So it's a double edged sword. Truly. It's,

I'm like, how much is too much? I don't know. Once it hurts, I'll stop.

Yeah. I think we're always. I call it like the pendulum swing. You're always just pushing, pushing, pushing. And you really don't know that it's too much. Yeah. Until it clams too much and you're like, oh, oops, my bad.

Exactly. And then you have to take a step back. [00:11:00] But it also goes the other way. When you take a step back and you cool off, you cool off a little bit too much, and then like you sit on the couch a couple of days too many and you're like, oh wait, I feel that crap again. Yeah. Yeah. And you start up, there is a, a delicate balance.

Between like too much and not enough. And like I do try to engage in a lot of self-care. I go for massages about every, every two weeks or so. I like to soak with my mom in her hot tub. That's always really nice. And then just general movement, so like walking, jogging, that kind of stuff just to keep everything.

Moving and loose and tending to knots as they, you know, inevitably show up in my back. ~Mm-hmm. It's so tight, ~

~but a good time. ~I'm like, I see the muscles growing, but Ooh, it's sore.

Yeah. But yeah, it's so important to take time for that self care.

Tina: What are some other things that you're working on? I know you're very involved in the city.

Josie: Yeah, for sure. So I've co-founded an organization with my good friend Jake. It's called Support [00:12:00] YQG. And what we do is we like to essentially create. Ties between, different members in the community, usually business centered, but with the public aspects.

We should be having, a book swap coming up shortly at Whiskey Jack Boutique. They've been very successful so far, so if you are an avid reader and you wanna get some books for free, you basically bring in your old books and you get to pick from a plethora of new books. Well, new to you books.

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. So that's always something I'm doing. Um, I am very involved with the theater and the film community, so I volunteered at, WIFF this past fall. It was amazing. I hope you guys got out to see some of the really cool films. I very much enjoy seeing all the indie talent, because you never know what's gonna be like the next big thing.

Last year I saw a Nora, the Substance, a whole bunch of other movies, but I'm like, wow, like. This was here, showcased a little old Windsor of all places. I am [00:13:00] getting more involved with Vertica, so I am taking on their, their poll teacher training. I'm going through that right now because I love it so much that I just, I wanna teach other people too, like how can I get more people involved so I have to be certified?

And I'm like, yeah, that makes sense, but I can't just do it. No. So I'm working through that and, I should be finishing that up pretty soon. And other than that, I am still, you know, holding strong at St. Clair College. I do instruct there in their public relations and their journalism program. They will be going through some changes, and hopefully coming out with something newer and better for, for the 20 26, 20 27, school year.

But, if you're into social media. You probably gonna be your teacher for that.

That's awesome. That makes a lot of sense because you are doing so well on social media too.

Yeah. Thank you. I've got, a handful of accounts [00:14:00] right now that I am managing for both myself and for other businesses in town.

When I speak to my own channels, I have my main one, which is, just my name, Josie underscore Alley, and that's where I put out a lot of my fashion and my beauty content. It's where you're gonna see most of the PR halls. So if you're into watching, um, like reviews. Or inspo tips, that kind of thing.

That channel is great for that. When we get into the local channels. I've got my things Windsor. Mm-hmm. That's basically all things in Windsor. Mostly just things I find really cool. I call them hidden gems that I think people don't always know about. But I think they should know about. And then I've started my poll account.

Of course. I'm like, I gotta share my love with the world. And you know what, maybe I can like build a little community around that. And so that's been really interesting. We've got our musician accounts, silk Echoes. We have been going around town, playing gigs and like, the wineries, some of the local bars, [00:15:00] event openings, that sort of thing.

Do we need to perform some more? I think so. If you can hire us as fine, just know, let us know. But we're here in the background, just practicing. And then like I said, I do manage business or I do manage, uh, social media pages for a couple different businesses in town. Ones where their niches are near and dear to my heart because.

It's the easiest for me to then care mostly and be authentic and speak, smartly of it. Mm-hmm.

Tina: That's awesome that you are so involved. I look up to that. I want to get more involved in the community. I think it's such, a way to connect. ~Oh, a ~

Josie: ~hundred percent. Yeah. And I mean, with the Windsor, sorry. ~A hundred percent.

And with the community that is both as big and small as Windsor, it's so important to build community because everybody seems to know everybody. As soon as you've gone outside and you sort of to get into the different, facets of the city, whether it be, you know, real estate or you're into cars or theater, whatever the case may be, [00:16:00] everybody within these little epochs know everybody.

Mm-hmm. So it's very easy, I think, to make connections. But also easy to feel left out if everybody else knows everybody, but you don't know anybody. Mm-hmm. And the easiest way I think to, to meet people and to start making these connections is just to get out there and start introducing yourself. Get out to some of the events, whether they're, free events or paid events, what have you, but just being seen.

In public and talking to people really helps to build those community connections.

Tina: Hmm. I love that. Um, I've never asked this question before, but it's just come up in my mind as you were speaking. And so other than your poll certification coming up, what's another goal that you have for yourself this year?

Maybe you can just put it out there and if any of the listeners can help pump it up for you. They can connect.

Josie: For sure. So something I have recently discovered is that I love event hosting. I do. And I mean, that should be obvious because I love being in front of the camera, as [00:17:00] like a content creator and like an actress.

I like entertaining people as a musician. So event hosting, it's those two things. Combine plus an event I get to go to. Mm-hmm. So it's all, it's, it's just all good. Right. I love it. But yeah, having done a couple academic, conferences and. The Windsor International Black Film Fest this past summer.

I've really come to understand that I, I, I, I enjoy this facet of the working world. And so if there are other organizations that do have events going on where they're looking for an mc or a host, I'm your girl.

Tina: I love that. I, as you might know, I have started hosting my own events too. Yeah. And it is really fun.

Mm-hmm. Actually, yeah, it's a little bit weird talking into the crowd and having no one like, do anything back at you. Okay. I just keep going with it, like, alright, I'll just keep talking. No problem. But it's, [00:18:00] I don't know, I just, there is something about it that's really, really fun. I agree with you. It's quite enjoyable.

Josie: Yeah. There's just something about, I dunno if it's like energy dance, but like, I do like the energy of crowds. Like I, there's just something about the vibe of it, something about the vibration of it, that really draws me in. And so being able to keep people. In like a positive, bubbly state, even, after eight hours of just being together.

I love that. Mm-hmm. I love hyping them back up.

Tina: Mm-hmm. I can see that you would be really great at it. Hopefully someone in the audience can hook it up for you. Well, thank you so much for agreeing to be on the podcast today. I think last question, where can people find you? I know we mentioned your Instagrams.

Yeah. Is there anywhere else that people, if they're looking to contact you and reach out?

Josie: Yeah, you know what? I think Instagram is always the best place because that's where I keep all of my. Public facing personas. If you find me on [00:19:00] Facebook, and I don't know you, you are not getting at it, but Instagram, you can find me at Josie, Ellie, or if you're into Windsor, specifically, things

Tina: Windsor, and we will definitely have that linked in the show notes.

So amazing. Thank you so much, Josie. You're welcome. Thanks for having me on. It was fun.