Hi, I’m Julie Grosse and this is how I work out

Julie Grosse is a legal assistant who found a creative way to stay fit, and uses it to help raise money for cancer research.

Where do you workout? Why?

PoleFit Carolinas in Huntersville. I picked this studio because it felt comfortable the first time I went. The ladies are all very supportive and encouraging. It’s a positive environment where I think anyone would feel encouraged to try new things. I also appreciate how supportive they are of my charity work. We found a way to combine pole fitness fun with raising money for the American Cancer Society. Friday, April 24th will be our 3rd Annual Pole Jam for a Cure where we bring friends, family and strangers into the studio to see what we do. This year we’ll have Novant Health’s Mobile Mammography Unit on site so ladies can get their mammograms then come join us for a little wine and pole!

Have you always worked out? If not, what was the tipping point that got you started?

I’m really not a fan of traditional workouts. I often say I started dancing before I started walking, so finding a way to stay fit and dance sounded like a perfect solution to me. As you get further into adulthood and the stresses of real life find you, you realize you have to find some way to stay active and get your body moving.

What are your general fitness goals?

To feel good about myself and have fun while staying healthy. I would love to do a pole competition at some point, but I have to find time to prepare for one first.

Favorite workout outfit:

Pole Fitness requires skin to stick to the pole so most of the time boy shorts and tank tops do the trick. Sometimes the 6 inch heels are included, but I dance barefoot most of the time.

Pre- and post-workout fuel:

Does Coke Zero count?

Fitness inspiration:

Takeila Fox was my first pole instructor and always pushes me to try things I don’t think I can do.  As far as “pros” go I love watching Karol Helms and Alethea Austin.

Current favorite workout song:

Overnight by Zac Brown Band, Ride by Chase Rice, Crazy in Love (the Fifty Shades version) by Beyonce and Addicted by Saving Abel.

What’s the most challenging workout/competition you’ve ever completed?

I haven’t competed yet, but I would like to one day. Pole Fitness is always challenging. You work different muscles every time and sometimes you have to go back to the basics to polish them up again.

What’s the one fitness gadget/app you can’t live without?

An X Pole and YouTube. You have to have a quality pole to do the tricks and spins we train to do. If you buy one at the mall and try it on your own, it’s probably not going to end very well for you.

What’s your weekly workout schedule?

I usually only make one class per week, Exotic Pole Fitness (EPF) on Saturday mornings, but I try to do some cardio 2 or 3 times a week.

Walk us through a typical workout.

EPF lasts for 90 minutes. Start out with a warm up that includes stretching and getting your body moving. There are different focus points depending on what’s being taught that day. That lasts for 20-30 minutes typically. Sometimes we go straight to whatever pose/spin/trick the instructor is teaching and sometimes we do a free dance where everyone does their own thing for one song.  We end the class with a 10-15 minute cool down that includes more stretching and some yoga poses to relax the muscles we’ve just abused.

Have you ever been injured? Tell us about the recovery.

Knock on wood, I have not been injured badly. Polers consider bruises badges of honor and most of us have several we’ll proudly show you. Bruises mean we’ve been working hard, usually on something new.

Do you have any gym pet peeves?

My biggest pet peeve is people who automatically judge pole fitness before they know anything about it and automatically assume we’re all strippers. This is not easy. It requires strength, flexibility, coordination, confidence and trust in yourself. Give it a shot before you assume you know what it’s all about. My only pet peeve in the studio is probably getting to class late to find someone else is using the 45mm pole that I like, as opposed to the 50mm. There are only 2 45s in the studio and I definitely like them better.

What principle from your workouts do you apply in real life?

I try to support and encourage others like my instructors have done for me and to try new things, even if I don’t think I can do them.

What’s your favorite non-gym workout around Charlotte?

I like to walk outside – Little Sugar Creek Greenway, around Uptown anywhere and around the Speedway.

Is there anything you don’t eat for health reasons?

Not really…I’ve often been accused of eating like a 5 year old!

What’s your guilty pleasure food item?

Pizza, cheddar cheese, ranch dressing and Coke Zero!  If I run out of any of those things at home, someone is in danger of bodily harm!