Meet Francis Codecido | Pole Instructor, Salsa dancer & Engineer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Francis Codecido and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Francis, why did you pursue a creative career?
I pursue an artistic career because, since I was a child I really enjoyed dancing and arts, for me it is like Disneyland. When dancing I can be myself and just fell and transmit something to others. I always participate at school showcases and cultural events and I love going to dance classes. Even when I studied a career as Chemical Engineering, my heart always felt closer to dance and arts, it is something that fills my soul and being able to have as a job or career it is the icing on the cake.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
About my Career I think what set me apart from others is the discipline, the kindest and the focus I have on mindfulness applied to sports, with a Latin flavor of course. Since I came to this sport with an injury I did myself very aware of my body and training in a mindful way is very important for me and for my students. I focus a lot my classes on training with care and listening to the body, so we can maintain our bodies free of injuries and keep doing pole for a long time. Well, it has not been easy to get to where I am, it has been daily mental and physical work, as well as a lot of discipline, especially after move to another country where all the routines were modified and it was no longer easy to access the resources that I had in my country, however I was filled with courage and I continued training at first alone, then I supported myself by my current coaches and training partners who have encouraged me a lot. One of the things that has helped me set clear goals was the Coaching Experience for Athletes with Vicky Rame and Maxi Cabbane, with that experience I set a plan to achieved several of my goals and I got down to work, today I am very happy to have my Pole dancing YouTube channel “Mindful Pole Academy” that has had an incredible reception and continues to grow, I also took 2 podiums in Pole competitions and currently I am very focused on sharing my knowledge and helping others, since in this discipline there is very little educational material so I am currently working in a workshop that a named The 3 day challenge to get your invert, where I teach my method MBT to invert correctly, MBT means Mind, Body and Technique, I am having a lot of great results on students. I am also so exited working on my new Book “Secrets to Compete in Pole dance” where I am going to share my best secrets and methods to put together a competition routine, it will be available soon and I am very excited about it, it will come in English and Spanish, I know it will be key for the pole dance community. I am just starting so, wait to listen more from me soon!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Miami is a city full of favors, if my best friend comes to visit, of course I would take her to the beach, Miami Beach it is a key destination, then we would eat at the Sultan Restaurant and take a walk along Ocean Drive, visit the Versace Mansion, the clock and have a drink at Mango’s Tropical Café. The next day we would go to see Little Havana with its walk of fame, we would take a walk through Coral Gables, the Miracle Mile its a must to see, and we can eat at any of its restaurants, one of my favorites places to relax for a while and have a different drink it is Sport 77 bar, at the end of the afternoon we could go to Wynwood Walls and end up partying there. Other day we can go shopping between International Mall and Dolphin Mall, we can have a really good Ice cream at Erre Ice cream Doral and have dinner at the Cheescake Factory will be a good plan, and if you want a nice dancing night you can go to “La Oficina” or “Cupper Blues” at City Place Doral. Other day we can plan going to the Everglades to have a fun day there. Other nice plan is going to “El Farito Beach” at Key Biscayne.

Of course we need to take a boat tour at Biscayne Marketplace to enjoy the sunset and see the celebrity houses. In the end we can have a nice Cuban food at La Carreta. Another nice trip would be a full day at the Keys, to take the picture on the southernmost point of the US and of course enjoy the most beautiful sunset.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There are many people to thank for being where I am today, first of all God for give me life and open the doors for good opportunities. Then about my dancing career there are 2 people that push me to give the best in a theater Miguel Diaz my dance instructor and Salsa partner, he taught me salsa, rumba, jazz, bachata and how to have confidence in myself to go out on stage and participate in competitions. Then there is a very special thank you to an enriching experience that I lived, it was a musical named “5,6,7 and…The Musical”. Having participated on this musical led me to use emotions to be able to truly convey emotions on stage and to reach the public. After this, I won more confidence and began to compete with the Salsa group. Even at that time I lacked a lot of confidence in myself, especially to teach others, however there was something else that helped me unlock shyness and gain more confidence, and probably you can imagine what is it? Yes, It is pole dancing! Once I start doing pole my life did a 360 degrees change. Pole dancing took my skills and confidence to the next level, I felt that I was capable of doing anything and achieving everything I set my mind to. Here I began to compete individually and start teaching pole and salsa, I felt that I had to share with the world all that pole and dance were giving me, more confidence, self love and the desire to continue improving. About pole I would like to thank one of my most beloved instructors, Jinnesca Garcia, who gave me the opportunity to compete for the very first time in the Venezuelan Pole Championship in 2017. Competing opened up a lot of possibilities for me and I started to thinking of pole as something I wanted to do for the rest of my life and live from it. Unfortunately I had to start from scratch in another country and those dreams had to put a pause, now in the United States there are 2 people to I want to give special thanks, one is Geissa Peralta, she is a physical and pole trainer who has become a good friend and coach, she has encouraged me to compete and continue to improve my pole skills here in the US and I am very thankful for that. The other person is Belen Serra, she became my teacher and coach, it has been a before and after with her classes, it has taken my pole skills to another level and encourages us to be creative and carve out our own style on pole dancing, I’m very thankful to learn from her.

And of course I really want to thank my mom, husband and sister that are always supporting me in all my goals. I really appreciate their love and support.

Website: www.FrapasStore.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/frapaspole/

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/pages/Mindful-Pole-Academy/101509829701714/?locale=hi_IN

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCTIlGWNqMiVnn6x_URHozA

Image Credits
Tomas Gual Pole Sport Organization