Riyadh – When yoga instructor Nada took up pole dancing, the conservative Saudi Arabian backlash was swift and severe, and she has fought to recover ever since.
Family and friends in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh informed her that the grueling style of training featuring acrobatic maneuvers on a vertical pole was “very improper.”
As a form of fitness, pole dancing has been contaminated by its link with the unsavory strip clubs and burlesque houses frequently portrayed in Hollywood films.
Nada persisted with the course she participated in at a local gym several years ago, in part to combat this reputation.
The 28-year-old believes she has advanced, at least inside her own social group.
“Initially, they stated that this is incorrect and an error,” she told AFP. Now they are stating, ‘We want to test it’
However, Nada’s insistence on being referred to simply by her first name implies that she and other Saudi pole dancers have room for improvement.
Increased involvement efforts
For many years, restrictions on what Saudi women could wear and where they may work limited their physical recreation options.
Despite continuing suppression of women activists and dissidents, the promotion of women’s sports has recently become part of a broader effort to open up Saudi society and project a softer image to the outside world.
The Saudi women’s national football team played their first home games against Bhutan last month, and a women’s elite league is currently in the works.
Officials are also attempting to increase female participation in golf, a historically male-dominated activity whose domestic popularity is on the rise.
At least three gyms in Saudi Arabia have identified an opportunity and begun offering pole dance classes in response to the changing environment.
May al-Youssef, the owner of a pole dancing gym in Riyadh, stated, “I believe pole dancing has received greater attention since it’s something new that girls love to try.”
Feeling good in my skin
Pole dancing fans believe that since drinking is illegal in Saudi Arabia and there are no strip clubs, the activity’s negative reputation must have originated outside.
One pole dancing student in Riyadh stated she was “absolutely not ashamed” to attempt it.
“I’d say that’s my personality. I am not ashamed to embrace my femininity and sensuality. I am not ashamed of anything as long as it does not harm others “she added.
She acknowledged, however, that not everyone would feel the same way, and she consented to recount her experience only provided she could stay anonymous.
She explained that she gave up because pole dancing was so physically demanding — far more tough than it appears on television.
She said, “I realized it’s not my thing.” It requires a great deal of muscle and strength to do.
Youssef, the manager of a gym, hopes that the physical difficulties of pole dancing are evident in the Instagram photos and videos she shares.
She feels that the transformation of her customers provides overwhelming evidence of its benefits.
“Over time, they appear to appreciate their bodies more,” she stated. They tell themselves, “I am comfortable in my own flesh.”