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• Simone Muscat
• Apr 1
• 11 min read

Anatomy of a Jade Split

Updated: 6 days ago
Welcome back to another tasty pole anatomy treat by The Pole Physio team,
where we take your favourite pole dance tricks and break them down to their
fundamental anatomy and biomechanics. Sprinkle in trick specific cues and both
on and off the pole conditioning and you have yourself a delightful little anatomy
series.

And today’s blog is a real treat for y’all because we are breaking down everyone’s
favourite pole split: the Jade Split. Once you learn it, it becomes a staple move
and is still an absolute crowd pleaser. Because above all else, we know a crowd
loves… SPLITS!

Now do you know the history of the Jade Split and how it was created? Well strap
in because it sure is one hell of a story!

Back in my day...

The creation of the Jade

Did you know that the No Hand Jade Split (aka the Deville split) was actually
created before the hand on hip Jade Split and it was created by OG pole dancer
Pantera Blacksmith who started pole dancing in 1999. Pantera went on to form an
incredible name for herself as one of the OGs of the industry, releasing some of
the first ever pole tricks DVDs and introducing the flying pole to the world. In fact
Pantera is the creator of most of the core moves that we know and love today:
inside leg hang, outside leg hang, side climbs, shoulder mounts, caterpillar climbs,
ayeshas, brass monkeys and... now you know - the Deville/no hands jade split!
She even created what we think is one of the coolest moves ever.. the death lay!

Considering the pole tricks that Pantera has created have already and will
continue to last the test of time, we want to ensure that Pantera is recognised
within our community as the OG Deville/Jade creator, but also thank her for
shaping the world of pole as we know it. So that's how the Deville was created,
but what about the Jade split and how the name came about?
The naming
Well picture this, it's the early 2000s. Pole dancing is the new kid on the fitness
block and OG pole dancers/strippers are teaching this form of ‘fun fitness’ at local
strip clubs, allowing for a blend of the two worlds of strip and exercise. Bobbi's
then becomes the first Australian pole studio to open their doors in 2004. Bobbi &
co have a genius idea at the time to create what would become one of Australia’s
most well known and revered pole dance competitions - Miss Pole Dance Australia.
Through this competition, many pole icons were born, but none other than Jamilla,
the first ever Miss Pole Dance Australia winner in 2005. Now, that name might
sound familiar to you because Jamilla pioneered some of our favourite go-to pole
dance tricks, including the Jamilla.

So how did the Jade and Deville get their names? Well, at the time of her MPDA
win, Jamilla debuted a Deville split aka a no hands Jade split, a move that hadn’t
been seen before in Australia. This is a move that Jamilla became incredibly well
known for, along with the hands on hip Jade Split. In a time where tricks were
multiplying in numbers and Bobbis were releasing DVDs of pole tricks to the world
to help pole dancers learn at home, they needed names for the tricks. So each
Bobbis instructor had a move named after them in the video. There was a Bobbi,
Vanessa, Deville, Candice and even a Maxi (named after Maxi Shield as it was his
favourite move!). And we are sure there were more that we’ve missed too! Most
of these tricks have since gone on to be re-named by the wider pole community.

So when it came to naming the Deville in the Bobbis DVD, it made sense at the
time to name it after Jamilla as she popularised it in Australia, and hence the
Deville was born. But how did the Jade split get it’s name. Who even is Jade?!?
Well the Jade split is a derivative of the Deville split that Jamilla performed and
was not actually named after a person called Jade! It was actually in fact derived
from the first two letters in Jamilla’s first and last name (JAmilla DEville). Mind
blowing, right? So this is the story of how the Jade and Deville Splits got their
names! Absolutely fascinating! So strange to think the harder move aka the
Deville was created first!

The Modern Day Jade

Now what’s incredible about the Jade split is that it’s stood the test of time. It’s
still every showgirl’s go to favourite splitty pole move and you can understand
why.
 So to wrap up the Jade’s history, we thought we’d leave you with a few fun facts -
Chilli Rox, Australia’s favourite showgirl/pole comp emcee is well known for her
love of the Jade split. So much so that even one of her students has a tattoo of a
chilli in a Jade split on her thigh! And Bethany Finlay (one of Australia's
professional pole dancers) has the same tattoo in honour of Chilli! How’s that for
passion and dedication! Beth was tatted first from memory!

Ok well that’s enough of the fun random facts. Now that we’ve brushed up your
history, let’s talk about the ins & outs of a Jade split.

Entry and Pre-Requisite Screening Requirements of a Jade Split

Now before we get into our Jade split we want to ensure we’re strong and safe to
do so. The pre-requisite pole moves to enter this position are as follows:

• Straddle
• Outside Leg hang
• Leg switch
• Inside Leg hang
• Pike/hip hold

It may surprise you to hear that we don’t actually require a front split to get into a
Jade split. Whilst being flexible sure does help, it’s definitely not needed. And
that’s because our Jade split isn’t actually a true split. But more on this later!

Gripping Points
Gripping points are always important in any move, but particularly in a Jade split
otherwise we’ll find ourselves sliding down to the floor. In our Jade split our key
 gripping points are our:
• Waist
• Armpit/back of shoulder
• Inner thigh of the front leg

The Jade split often can feel tricky when starting out as there is no hand grip on
the pole. Instead of gripping by hand, we require a strong press of both the thigh
and arm into the pole, as well as good waist grip assisted by dropping the back
leg and hip down to the floor. Let’s talk through key teaching points of a Jade split
now.

Teaching Points
When it comes to teaching (or learning) a Jade split, cueing is important. Follow
along with the video below to refer to our favourite cues for a Jade split:
• In an outside leg hang sweep the inside leg around the pole and using your
outside hand on the ankle pull the leg firmly across the body.
• The pole should be positioned into the waist and this top leg positioned into
internal rotation and adduction.
• Allow for a side bend (lateral flexion) of the spine to begin the process of creating
the illusion of a split line
• Place your inside hand on your pelvis/booty with the fingers pointing towards the
feet
• Press the inside elbow inwards towards the pole and firmly keep this hold
throughout the move
• Keep an open chest and extended spine
• Maintain active pressure into the pole through the thigh and elbow whilst slowly
taking the free leg behind the body into extension. We encourage polers to start
with a bent knee and toes to the floor before slowly straightening the leg
• Ensure you are focusing on extension of the back leg through active quad and hip
engagement
• Let your outer hip drop by extending, abducting and externally rotating it so the
knee is pointing out to the side
• Safely exit by returning to a leg hang of your choice. We opt for an outside leg
hang when first learning
Anatomy Specifics
So now we know how to Jade split, what exactly is involved in it? Well, my friend,
there’s a fair bit of muscle strength that’s for sure! Let us do what we do best and
break this move down into sections. Usually we like to break the anatomy down to
specific movements, however for a Jade split it feels more natural for us to break
this down into body parts, so here goes!

Front Leg
When setting up for our Jade split, the first thing we do is sweep our inside leg
around the pole into a pike/hip hold position. Before we hold our leg in place with
our hand, we actively utilise the strength of our hip flexors (iliopsoas and
quadriceps) to bring the leg into place and we primarily rely on our adductors,
accompanied by our gluteus minimus, gluteus medius and tensor fascia latae to
adduct and internally rotate the hip across the body and into the pole.

This adduction and internal rotation are key to making us look flexier than we
actually are and our gluteals/external rotators and hamstrings (medial>lateral)
are lengthened. Our hand passively assists in this motion by continuing to adduct
the leg into the pole.

In this position it’s also the role of the quadriceps to maintain active tension
through the leg and keep it straight whilst our gastrocnemius and soleus are the
primary muscles utilised in pointing the foot.

Inside Arm
Once we’re comfortably set up in our hip hold the next step is to set up the arm to
ensure we have a safe gripping point. We do this by placing the inside hand on
our inside pelvis/hip or as Mischka likes to say ‘put your hand under your hip so
you’re serving your booty on a platter’. The key thing to note is the hand is not
just sitting there pretty. It’s actively creating a shelf for the hip and supporting the
inside hip so we can later take it into extension.

Our wrist flexors and biceps are placed under load here and are isometrically
working to support our weight along with the pushing muscles of the shoulder
such as pectoralis major, triceps, pectoralis minor and serratus anterior.

But that’s not all! A key movement of the inside arm in this position is adduction.
That’s right! We’re not just adducting the inside leg, but we’re also adducting the
inside arm utilising our lats, ensuring a strong and safe gripping point onto the
pole. Later when students have a strong Jade split that can look to remove this
grip and work towards a Deville split, a.k.a a no hand Jade split.

Spine and Pelvis

So, we’ve set our leg and our arm up, but it would be amiss of us to not talk about
what’s happening at the spine and pelvis. As briefly touched on, our Jade split is
not actually a true closed split, it is open in nature. And it’s actually a very twisted
split.

In fact, this is one of the key tips we need to utilise to give the impression of a flat
Jade split – wrap our body sideways around the pole. It’s this lateral flexion of the
spine that allows us to stay in place and create the split illusion. Check out the
aerial picture that slows just how much side bending is used in a Jade split!
Amazing right? The muscles responsible for this feat are our quadratus lumborum
and our obliques.

The other thing that’s quite key and helpful in our Jade split is an anterior pelvic
tilt. By allowing our hips to drop, our spine will extend and there will be less
stretch on our back leg hip flexors and more felt in the abdominals instead (yes
 they work to stabilise too!). So, allow your paraspinals and abs to work here for
you!

Back Leg

And lastly it wouldn’t be split unless the back leg was also doing its thing! So, for
our Jade split to be successful, we require strong engagement through both our
gluteals (maximus and medius) and hamstring muscles to pull the hip into
extension.

Our hip is also slightly position in hip external rotation and hip adduction so power
to our gluteus maximus, medius and stabilisers of the hip (piriformis, obturator
externus, obturator internus, gemilli) that help to create our long illusion lines.
When a muscle is being contracted another muscle is being lengthened, so for our
back leg we find the hip flexors (iliopsoas and quadriceps) are being lengthened
along with our inner thigh adductor muscles.

Jade split? Or more like dorito split??

Nom nom – we looove doritos (#notasponsad) but most of the time we don’t love
a dorito split. We all want to look long and flexy so it’s natural to feel frustrated
when you find your Jade split looking like an acute angle instead of a flat line. But
remember you don’t need front split touch down to look splitty in this move. You
can still achieve a really amazing looking split without a front split because
technically a Jade split isn’t a true front split.
It's all a splitty illusion! Well maybe not all. But a fair amount of it is. There’s a bit
of secret squirrel magic that we can use to help all pole dancers look long flat and
luscious in their Jade split. So, here’s our hot tips to help you out:

• It will feel weird and wrong when you’re first doing it, but side bend. Really get
your body laterally around the pole
• Arch your lower back and anteriorly tilt your pelvis. Back extension will take some
pressure off the back leg hip flexors allowing you to access deeper range
• Open your split! Internally rotate your front leg and externally rotate/abduct your
back leg. An open split is often more comfortable and accessible for our bodies
Baby’s first Jade
Now when we’re starting out it’s nice to take things slow and feel safe. Which is
why we love a baby Jade. When executed well it can look just as beautiful as a
Jade without the same flexy pressure. Check out where it looks like here:

Devil or Deville?
And once you’ve mastered your Jade we can also step it up with a no hand Jade.
The same requirements of a Jade split are needed here except we’re now using
one less grip point – no arm! This is a great variation to work towards.

Choker Jade
And we want to share one more variation of a Jade split with you all, and that’s a
choker Jade. Why the name? Well, the move is effectively a Jade split in a choker
neck hold. Now this trick can be incredibly dangerous when performed too soon
which is why we wanted to make note of it. As expected, there is a choking hazard
that can occurs from compression of the trachea and carotid artery by reaching
the inside arm across the neck to the pole. If you have are having trouble
breathing or actually experiencing choking then then you are not doing the move
right. Despite the name this trick should not physically choke you.

This a high advanced/elite skill and should not be attempted by students that are
not highly skilled in their Jade split or by students that have any medical
conditions that affect may their breathing (i.e diagnosed lung or throat conditions
including asthma) or their cardiovascular system. Please note there is a risk of
carotid artery dissection here via compression which can lead to serious medical
consequences so this move should be performed with extreme caution. If ever
you’re unsure about your medical status, then you should be assessed by your
general practitioner/doctor before continuing pole or attempting a move.

Mischka has demonstrated this move for you all below:

 And just like that, that’s everything you need to know about your Jade split!

If you’re struggling to make progress on any of your nemesis moves,

then make sure you touch base with our rehab and strengthening team.

Online telehealth appointments can be booked with the Pole Physio via our ‘Book
Online’ page that can be found here. Assessment and tailored rehabilitation are
provided in accordance with best practice and evidence-based treatment to help
you unleash your 'poletential'.

Until next time, train safe.

The Pole Physio

Please Note:
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of use and conditions.
• A jade split should ONLY be undertaken if your instructor has deemed you ready to
work on this trick. This information is general advice only and we are not liable for
any injuries that may occur during training.
• This page has been created to provide wonderful knowledge with the pole
community and sharing of this page to pole friends and pole related Facebook
groups is actively encouraged.