Hi! 👋🏽🙂

I’m Fifi Bamboo.

I’ve been pole dancing since 2012, and teaching since 2016. I’d love to be a part of your journey.

My pole story

I took my first pole class in New York City the summer of 2008 with a group of girlfriends from college. I didn’t quite keep up with pole, but I had the best ladies nights with the pole in my dorm room!

After graduating college, I challenged myself to run my first half-marathon. Long story short, I injured my knee. I decided to pivot, and dove headfirst back into pole.

As a beginner, I attended classes at Body & Pole where I had the opportunity to learn from some of the best instructors around. After relocating to Philadelphia, I split time between two studios that welcomed me with open arms: Elite Pole & Fitness and Flaunt Fitness.

My passion for teaching

I realized early on that I wanted to contribute to the pole community by helping others learn this beautiful art form. I completed my instructor certification at Elite Pole & Fitness.

I taught my first class on May 1, 2016 and haven’t looked back since.

Since then, I have become elevatED certified in Flexibility, and designed and led Master-level teacher trainings in:
* pole level 1
* pole level 2
* choreography
* spotting techniques

  • Oh man.  This question always gets me emotional. It took at least 3 years to muster up an even halfway decent inversion... and it still involved a lot of kicking and momentum. I used to cry during class out of frustration. 

    Inverting was especially hard for me because I didn't come from a movement background (I didn't understand when my instructors asked me to "tuck my pelvis" or "draw my belly button towards my spine"), and I had an especially bendy back (which is the opposite direction you want to go in to invert!).

    As a result, I was fortunate (though I didn't see it that way then!) enough to have a lot of input from different perspectives, which challenged me to pay a lot of attention to figure the thing out. 

    Now, as an instructor, this is my favorite skill to teach. I have a number of approaches to tackle this, and I love sharing that with my students.

  • You were unlikely to ask me this question, but it's an important one. Not all instructors will be a great fit for you, and that's okay!

    First and foremost, safety. This looks like solid spotting skills, giving you progressions to help you build on skills appropriate to where you are, and sometimes telling you you're not ready for something because it would be unsafe.

    Everything after safety is about having fun! I love to make you laugh, and come up with memorable analogies to help you make a connection. Always remember that this is likely a hobby... and if we're going to wrap ourselves around a pole and burn some skin off, that maybe we should try to enjoy it somehow 😅

  • I've always been drawn to the grace, flow, and strength of pole. I think there's something really cool about being a super buff vertical ballerina! 

  • This had changed over time, but here's where we are these days:

    * Marlo Fisken
    * Tia Jax
    * Mischka