‘Off the pole’ Boomerang Straddle workout

Working on your boomerang leg lines? Or any straddle in the air, for that matter? Well, this one’s for you, friend!

If you missed my last blog post, >>Putting the ‘boom’ in ‘boomerang’<< head back over there to nerd with me on the different lower body elements of the pole dance boomerang, or check out the super speedy quick-fire video below!

The exercise selections below will make WAY more sense if you understand the anatomy of this move first!

Ready to get to work on your boomerang?

My exercise selections for the lower body elements of the boomerang are listed below. At the end of this post, I’ve pulled these exercises together into a quick 25 min workout, to show you how these exercises might look in practice, with a warm up and passive stretch at the end.

While I made this post with the Boomerang in mind, this workout is just as relevant for anyone working on improving and strengthening their pancake position – and aerial straddles of any kind! Bring on the spreadies!

It goes without saying that you must work within your own range of motion (it will look different to mine) and you need to be properly warmed up for these exercises – I’ve provided an example at the end of this post of what that warm up might look like. The exercises and workout is provided as an example only – you should always check with your healthcare provider(s) to make sure that workouts and exercises are suitable for you.

Exercise #1 Pancake good mornings (Level 1)

In this exercise, we’re working on the flexibility of our hamstrings and hip adductors in a pancake position. The focus is on the eccentric part of the movement (the part where we lower our torso towards the floor and our hamstrings are lengthening).

Work within your own range (remember, it may look different to mine), control and don’t force the stretch, stay active and move slowly for a count of at least 5 seconds and hold the end position for 5 seconds if you can.

Exercise #2 Leg lifts in straddle

Here, we’re working on strength in the opposing muscle groups – contracting those muscles to move into our end-range active straddle position.

The focus is on working in the end-range of our hip flexibility, so we’re trying to avoid rounding our spine or tucking our pelvis under. Remember, this will look different for everyone. Keep your back flat and if you find this too challenging another good modification is to sit up on a yoga block to give yourself a little more range to move.

Exercise #3 Reverse crunch with hip abduction

Here, we’re focusing on the pelvic tuck element of the boomerang straddle to bring our legs even closer to us, while also engaging our hip abductors into the resistance of the band. The rolled up towel can help you to keep a neutral spinal position in the start point and to help you feel the difference between that neutral position and the posterior pelvic tuck as you move through and learn to control those two positions.

Boomerang / Straddle workout for pole dancers

To combine these exercises into a workout, here’s how I’d suggest programming that. This workout should take around 25 minutes.

General warm up	5 minutes Light movement – anything that will get your heart rate up a little! Example: light jogging / basic dance-based or aerobic movements.
Mobility / workout prep	5 minutes Mobility/workout-specific movements focusing on the straddle position and the different elements of it, for example: – Straddle Hip Hinge – Side Lunges – Hip Rotations – Seated Straddle Hip Rotations – Cat Cows
Foam rolling	3 to 5 minutes Hamstrings and adductors, focusing on the areas where you feel tight.
Circuit	Exercise #1: Pancake good mornings (5s lower, 5s end-range hold) x 5 Exercise #2: Leg lifts in straddle (5s hold in end range) x 5 Exercise #3: Reverse crunch with hip abduction (5s hold in end range) x 5 Do this circuit 2 or 3 x through, resting when you need, in order to keep good form and for around 20-30s between each exercise.
Stretch	Development stretch (3 x 30s holds): Pancake stretch Gentle movement to stand Cool down stretches (20s each): – Hip flexor stretch – Quad stretch – Glute stretch

Enjoy this blog post? Then I think you’ll love my book Strength and Conditioning for Pole – a framework for creating your own, individualised training programme to get strong for pole!