Pole Fitness Studio owner and operator Fawnia Dietrich is a pioneer of modern pole-dancing fitness. She cut her teeth as a professional exotic dancer, learning the sultry art as she went along, like all the other dancers. She wondered why there wasn’t a place to learn these difficult moves and was motivated to start teaching. Soon after, she opened her own pole-dancing studio, something not common to the world of 1994, much like time-traveling hovercrafts. Fawnia has continued on as a force in the industry, producing the first instructional pole-dance video in 1998—followed by six more videos—and creating the pole-dance instructor-certification course. Thanks to her chiseled physique, she has also been featured in three spreads in Muscle & Fitness magazine.

She now leads a team of instructors in teaching a variety of flirty fitness styles, including burlesque, pole-, lap-, chair-, floor-, and dance classes. Each 55-minute class takes place in their spacious studio, where 17 poles stand ready to hold ladies aloft as they spin and practice complex inversions. An additional 11 poles can be found downstairs, should more space be necessary. Beyond the steamy dance classes, the instructors also helm more traditional fitness classes such as cardio kickboxing, salsa, yoga, ballet, go-go hip-hop and boot camp classes..