Starting in his 40s and still going strong, Mr. Sato offers realistic tips for anyone trying to shift some extra weight this year.

With the holidays over, you’re most likely feeling more refreshed, and ready to take on the new year and all it brings one step at a time, although perhaps those steps might be… a little heavier than they were a couple of weeks ago. For many people like this, myself included, we often look at the new year as an opportunity for change, a chance to better ourselves, leading several of us to resolve to finally kick procrastination in its butt and say, “This year, I’m going to exercise every week.”

Knowing that many of us will be trying to hypnotize ourselves into thinking that, “this year will be different, for sure,” our pole dancing reporter Mr. Sato thought he’d take from his personal experience of changing exercise habits and offer some advice for everyone attempting to shed some pounds this year.

▼ If he can do it, anyone can.

Almost 10 years ago, Mr. Sato was a highly non-athletic person who, in his own words, “hated exercise,” so when he looks back on his years of consistent pole dancing, he always feels surprised. He has since come to the realization that it probably wasn’t that he hated exercise, but that he had simply not found the right activity for him.

▼ In 2016, at 43, Mr. Sato weighed 65 kilograms (143 pounds) just before his first pole dancing lesson.

From his heaviest-ever weight of 70 kilograms (about 154 pounds) at the age of 42, Mr. Sato entered into a self-imposed diet that lost five of those kilograms, but he figured that it was about time for him to start a proper exercise routine, and just around that time he happened to chance upon pole dancing.

▼ This was all he could manage in his first lesson before being completely exhausted.

The first lesson was understandably brutal, leaving him sore all over and covered in friction bruises, but he came away feeling encouraged.

Pole dancing is a sport that people will rarely excel in the first time they try it, no matter how athletic they may be, so it means that whatever your background, you all start on relatively equal footing.

As time passed, those occasional lessons developed into regular practice, and after six years, Mr. Sato had transformed himself enough to commemorate his accomplishments with a professional photoshoot.

▼ At age 48 in 2022

In 2024, Mr. Sato challenged himself further with stage makeup and another shoot, and last year he performed on stage multiple times, showcasing the results of his years of steady effort.

▼ At 50-years-old in 2024

▼ He performed on stage several times.

Now 52, Mr. Sato readily admits that aging brings with it fatigue and physical discomfort he didn’t notice before. Even so, the joy of being able to do something he once couldn’t outweighs those challenges. He remarks that growth is certainly harder to feel as you age, but if you put the effort in, you will never stop growing.

For many people, the issue with continued exercise is the presence of—or lack of—motivation. However, Mr. Sato disagrees with this statement, because to him it was scheduling that was the key contributor to his weekly practice sessions.

Rather than constantly debating when to practice, he decided ahead of time, planning weeks and months in advance. He changed that “choice” into an appointment he couldn’t miss; you rarely find yourself putting off a doctor or dentist appointment, after all. It’s often said that habits take about three months to form, so if you plan ahead for six months, then you’ll have already formed the habit halfway through, essentially guaranteeing success.

The exercise environment is also a major contributing factor, as doing it at home can often lead to the feeling of “I can do it anytime,” or “I’ll do it tomorrow, plus a little extra to make up for it.” In Mr. Sato’s case, he was fortunate to have a studio in his neighborhood that made consistency easier for him, but he suggests that public facilities or online tutorials are useful when proximity isn’t an option. His idea is to create an environment that makes it as easy as possible to access whatever you’re trying to do.

Finally, Mr. Sato emphasizes that setting low goals but high ideals is key. If you decide to lose five kilograms in a month from the outset, but only manage one, you’ll likely end up feeling discouraged. So, start with something gentler, such as losing five kilograms in a year, because that way, if you end up achieving your goal ahead of schedule, you’ll feel a sense of accomplishment and be more motivated to keep trying.

However, for maintaining motivation, smaller and more frequent goals are often better, so rather than losing two kilograms in a month, a more achievable target would be to lose 500 grams in a week. With smaller hurdles, you can keep riding on that high of succeeding your targets right up until you reach your final goal.

Mr. Sato never expected a pole dancing trial experience would lead to a lifestyle change and 10-year habit, but he says that if someone as lazy and as easily annoyed as he is can do it, then everyone else should be able to do it too. So, start making your schedules today!

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