Pole Dancing, Yoga, Pilates, Oh My. Q&A with Rocke City Pole Fitness on St. Thomas
Rocke City Pole Fitness is a newer fitness studio and concept to the Virgin Islands, located at the Crosswinds Plaza on the East End of St. Thomas. You may have heard of them already, maybe you tried a class or you are a die-hard enthusiast at this point. And if not, we recommend giving them a try. Rocke City Fitness (cleverly named after the owner’s last name, and simultaneously paying tribute to St. Thomas–“Rock City”), is a studio that teaches you guessed it, sexy, yet strengthening, pole dancing. That is not all they do though, they also offer classes on chair dancing, cardio kickboxing, yoga, stretching classes, and pilates classes that utilize bands, sliders, and body weight. If you are a beginner there is nothing to fear–the instructors are extremely knowledgeable, helpful and friendly and will get you feeling comfortable in no time (we have personally gone to these classes and can attest to that!).
We sat down with the badass owner of Rocke City Pole Fitness, Arianna Rocke, and asked her to explain the studio and what they are all about!
Q: Can you tell us about how you started Rocke City Pole Fitness and how you got the idea?
A: Growing up I was always involved in dance and gymnastics. After moving to St. Thomas, it was very hard to find any adult dance classes or even a space to dance on my own besides my bedroom. Wanting to stay in shape, this led me to my interest in fitness coaching, yoga
Q: You were one of the very brave souls who opened right after Hurricanes Irma and Maria, what was your experience with that?
A: I was terrified but it was actually great! I think because Rocke City is so unique, it got a lot of people excited to do something new and take their minds off the Irmaria stress for a moment.
Q: Who is your typical client?
A: Our typical clients are young to mid-age women, but we’ve happily had men and women of all ages.
Q: Pole… This can be extremely intimidating to some, can you debunk that fear for us?
A: Most people know absolutely nothing about pole fitness! Their heads are usually filled with YouTube videos of the hardest tricks in the world, or drunk girls falling off poorly installed poles. We start with the basics and safety is always first. The majority of first-time pole students leave feeling completely surprised at all they were able to accomplish and with a totally different perspective on what pole fitness is really all about.
Q: What else do you do at the studio?
A: Pilates and aerobics-based group fitness classes, kickboxing, cardio dance classes, Zumba, yoga, and more to come!
Q: How do you see the fitness scene changing in the Virgin Islands?
A: I’ve been in St. Thomas since 2011 and fitness is becoming far more popular than I’ve ever seen it before, in my opinion.
Q: Do you have any events or new classes coming up?
A: Yes! Our new schedule with new classes just came out! See below:
Booking is easy, pricing is fair, and drop-ins or bundled packages are available. Sampler packages are available so you can gauge your interest which is how we started off with them! Interested in everything you see above? You can attend all of their classes unlimited for around $250/month! Contact the studio to purchase online. Once you have signed up, scheduling a class is super simple and convenient by using the MindBody app (free). You can also schedule a class and pay after the class is complete if you’d rather do it that way!
Add them on Instagram at @RockeCityPoleFit and you can also find them on Facebook for the most up-to-date information on their classes and any specials they may run.
Visit the Rocke City Pole Fitness business listing for more information.
Looking to learn more about what the islands have to offer in terms of fitness: view our full guide.
Have any questions? Would you try pole dancing for fitness? Let us know in the comments section!
Tags:fitness