Plus Size Poler

You never know how someone you see will impact your life in such a substantial way. During May 2020, while I was laying in my dorm room bed scrolling TikTok, a video of an exotic dancer came on my feed. That was the first time becoming a pole dancer ever crossed my mind. I was, and frankly still am, a broke college student, in the middle of a pandemic, thinking of ways I could make money. Moments later I searched "can fat people pole" in my Google search bar. After looking through the articles and videos that came up from my search I found a video of Roz Mays, also known as "Roz the Diva". Seeing a plus size black woman on the pole was astonishing. I was beyond impressed with the skills that Roz possessed along with the fact that someone who looked like me was a dancer. Unfortunately this was during the strict part of lockdown where gyms and studios were closed and I was forced to forget about being a dancer for the time being.

Fast forward to early September, I joined a Facebook group for plus size pole dancers and someone in the group posted a video of Roz and I was sucked into a rabbit hole of searching for all the videos of her dancing I could find. I was in awe of what she was capable of doing. I found out that she was a pole instructor at Body & Pole, an aerial arts studio in NYC, and I immediately booked introduction pole classes with Roz without hesitation. I felt so lucky to be able to train with someone who I admired; it felt like a dream come true. On September 28th I took my very first pole dancing class and never looked back. In that first training some of the first things Roz told us was that pole dancing was extremely hard and that because we were fresh fish it probably wouldn't look pretty. At the time the well seasoned pole dancers I followed on Instagram made pole look so easy and it wasn't until I started doing pole myself that I understood the strength, not only physically but mentally, that being a pole dancer took. Four months later I lost 20 pounds and I am doing things I never thought I would be capable of doing.

Not only is Roz a certified pole instructor she is also a personal trainer who has been featured in The New York Times, ESPN, Glamour and Shape Magazine. I admire Roz most for how she has no shame in who she is, speaks out against injustice and works hard to make sure all people have access to fitness no matter their body types/ abilities. Roz went from someone who I stalked on the internet to someone I can now call a friend and mentor. Starting pole as a 6'1 and 295 pound black woman was far from easy and continues to get difficult as I progress but I have been able to see myself get mentally and physically stronger in the process. I have healed parts of myself being able to express my emotions through dancing and that was something that never crossed my mind. I started pole because I wanted to make money and it has become something that has allowed me to see myself and my abilities in so many different aspects. Pole allows me to be vulnerable enough to accept that failure is a part of any journey but does not define you. Many of the lessons I have learned since starting my pole dancing journey are ones that I am able to take with me into other areas of my life as well. I will forever be grateful for that video came up on my 'For You' page on TikTok that gave me an idea that would end up changing my life in so many ways.