Pole dancing is not just for exotic dancers anymore, and belly dancing isn’t just for Egyptian goddesses.

Folks of all ages are looking for ways to exercise beyond traditional treadmills and weight rooms, and fitness establishments are responding.

Jennifer Frost, 31, is hoping to tone up her stomach muscles after having her second set of twins, so she is taking a belly dancing class at the YMCA.

Gloria Charles, 44, is hoping to get into a bikini by next summer, so she is taking a pole dancing for fitness class at Inside Out Fitness.

Darla Jackson, 49, says losing weight would be great, but she mostly is taking Zumba, a fitness class inspired by Latin dance, at Crossroads Sports and Fitness Club to improve her overall health.

Inside Out Fitness started offering pole dancing for fitness classes about nine months ago, and there has been a steady stream of participants ever since. Apart from providing a break from monotonous gym and jogging routines, pole dancing exercise provides an intense and satisfying workout, says instructor Lacey Chambers.

“Regular exercise is boring,” said Chambers, 18. “The goal is to get a workout without feeling like you had to try so hard.”

The morning after Charles took the class for the first time she was very sore.

“I told my husband everything but my fingers and my nose hurts,” said Charles, a tax compliance officer with the Montana Department of Labor and Industry.

Chambers says sometimes people get the wrong idea about what the class is like because pole dancing is generally associated with strippers.

“It’s just a little bit nasty,” said Jennifer Krause, owner of the club.

Krause said the regimen focuses on core work and tremendously increases upper body strength. Chambers offers instruction after a warmup that encourages good form and many times inspires some laughter. Dancers hoist their own body weight with their arms, building muscles in the arms, abdomen, back and legs.

The fun begins when the disco lights flash and music begins.

The question, is will the trend last?

Tyler Wright, CEO of the YMCA in Helena, says finding new types of exercise that won’t just be fads is always the challenge in the fitness industry.

“What is hot a year ago isn’t hot again,” he said.

Arwen Cochran teaches two belly dancing classes at the facility and says contrary to popular belief participants don’t show off their bellies.

“It’s good exercise,” she said.

But, it’s more than that, Cochran adds. It’s about making a connection with the music, she said, which becomes artistic. Plus, the costumes are fun.

“It’s more than just standard exercise,” said Cochran, a belly dancer since 1997.

Kathy Brummer is a 54-year-old who has been taking Cochran’s classes for a couple of years.

“It works my brain,” said Brummer, of Townsend. “I’d rather do this than a crossword puzzle.”

Ages range in all these alternative exercise classes from 14 to 60 years old and older. All experience levels are welcome as instructors are trained to be responsive to the needs of each class.

For the past 10 years, Esther Merritt has taught fitness classes at the Broadwater Athletic Club.

“Fitness is progressive and constantly changing,” Merritt said. “Those who attend like to try out new things that come out.”

Many trends do not last, she said.

“When kickboxing first came out it was huge — there was great demand for it,” Merritt said. “We’ve seen it fizzle out and we don’t even have a kickboxing class like we used to.”

A big trend in Helena right now is Zumba. Rhonda Schlosser teaches the cardio-dance workout with Latin rhythms at Crossroads.

“It’s fun and easy and like no other (fitness class),” Schlosser said. “Lots of people can’t believe what a workout you get and don’t realize it until they are halfway through.”

Merritt teaches Zumba at the Broadwater, and she isn’t surprised it’s so popular.

“It spices up their routine, shocks their muscles,” she said. “If you do the same thing over and over again your body doesn’t have to overcome a challenge. You have to challenge a muscle for it grow.”

Darla Jackson said she loves Zumba class.

“It goes by so fast and doesn’t even seem like you are exercising,” she said. “I look forward to going to my classes knowing it will benefit my health and I have so much fun doing it.”

Merritt said fitness enthusiasts who are not sure about trying out these unconventional courses can be reassured that there will always be the old standbys of step aerobics and spinning.

“People always go back to the basics,” she said.

The key, Merritt said, is health.

“Exercise and fitness is way more than a vanity issue,” she said. “It encompasses the whole mind, body and spirit of a person — relieves stress, improves health, longevity of life and helps with focus.”

But Merritt says if participants are getting burned out from their basics, daring opportunities are available.

“(Zumba) is so much fun,” she said. “It’s exercise in disguise.”

Reporter Alana Listoe: 447-4081 or alana.listoe@helenair.com