Awesome cheer sites!

Check out these sites! They have a ton of tips for cheerleaders! Here's the link:

http://www.cheerwhiz.com
http://www.cheerleading.about.com

Hot Comments!

The scoop on cheerleading!

Cheerleading isn't just a sport! It's something you totally have to be dedicated to! The parts on cheerleading are motioins, tumbling/gymnastics, stunts, dance, facial expressions, cheers/chants, and of course, wearing the cute outfits! JK So, if your a girl (or boy) totally freaking out about tryouts, then i can totally relate to you because I am too! Now if you want some help, KEEP READING!!!
To help you get in shape for tryouts, follow this procedure everyday:

• Get a good stretch and workout rotuine online or from a PE teacher, or wherever you can. Cheerleading is totally about being strong and flexible! HOld each stretch for about 20-30 seconds. Only stretch as far out until you feel the strain. (Don't hurt yourself! It won't make you more flexible! You'll just have a lot of sore muscles!) Also, always work out before you stretch because if you stretch warmed up muscles, you'll get more flexible.
• Motions are the way you move your arms and legs, and you need to mkae your movements sharp, snappy and quick. If you're a little noodly, try this, practice at home by punching out your movements with as much strength as you can, and hold it with that strength for 20-30 seconds.
• Sign up for a tumbling or gymnastics class for that area. It's very dangerous to practice that stuff at home! The tumbling that cheerleading is mostly involved in is back handsprings, back tucks, cartwheels, twists, and round-offs. At the bottom of this web page, I have a description of each. (never lock knees when landing tumbling or suffer knee damage! Pretty soon I'll have an article on dangers of cheerleading.)
• For stunts, you can practice on the floor stunt movements that are done. The ones that are mostly used are scorpions, bows and arrows, scorpion bows and arrows, heel stretches, liberties,pyrimids, and arabesques. I have a description for each of those too at the bottom. But anyways, those are some things that flyers do. Flyers are the ones who are held up or tossed. Flyers need to be flexible, stiff, have excellent balance, and not be afraid of heights. (In cheerleading the word toss refers to getting thrown, or flipping or jumping and having someone catch you.) The bases make sure the flyer is secured and holds her up. The frontspot and backspot are there primarily for the flyers saftey and to make sure they're there to catch her if she falls. Bases and backspots need to be alert, and have alot of strength, upper and lower body.
• Facial expressions is how your face is presented to the crowd. In cheerleading you must always SMILE!!!
• For dances, cheers and chants, you'll basically learn as you go along. Cheers are chants used to encourage the team using tumbling, stunts, words, and motions. Chants are short phrases with few motions and no tumbling or stunts. Dancing is motions and dance moves using no words, or little tumbling and stunts.
• Jumps. Something you need to know how to do being a cheerleader!!! The types of jumps mostly used are toe touches, hurdle (left and right), pike/hitch kick, and left and right herky. Again descriptions at bottom.
• Kicks and splits are probably the easiest part. For kicks, you need to keep both legs straight, kick your legs as high a you can, and keep upper body straight. Practice both legs. For splits, you need to make sure legs are straight, go all the way down, or almost all the way, and pretend you're not in pain, JK. There are front splits left and right, (which is when your left is in front of your right leg or vice versa and you spread them out and go all the way down. Middle splits is when you spred your legs out to the sides and split them down the middle. It's easy to get to a middle split from a front split if you can't go down.)
• If you're going to try out for cheerleading, you need to be dedicated. Because if you bail, you're letting down your whole squad. You are a role model to your fellow classmates so you should try to keep good grades and be nice to people. (We all know the stereo type cheerleader, but trust me, when you're mean to everyone, people hate you and talk about you more!) If you're a cheerleader be prepared to put a lot of time into it because some teams have practice everyday! Some on weekends! Cheerleading is also very expensive, so talk to your parents before trying out. You have to pay for uniforms, cheer camps, classes, and much more. Cheerleaders normally do pep rallies, and games. And on every game day, most schools make you wear your uniform to school.

Well, that's cheerleading in one smack of words. If you have questions, write a note under comments, and I'll answer it in another article right away!

♥/cheergirl14