Help my cheerleaders

[.V.]

So I dissappear for a month then come back asking questions. Can't be on much right now, but do want to get something right.

I will be helping out with conditioning for the cheer squad from the middle school this summer.

They were chosen based on desire, dance ability, and big smiles...not physique or fitness level. Some are very small and weak, some are a bit heavier than they'd like to be.

I've got a handle on what to do for general conditioning, someone else will be working with cheers, gymnastics, and dance routines. I'm just to get them fit enough to keep going for a couple of hours at a time.

For conditioning work, we will be of course running sprints and doing some endurance running, along with burpees, pushups, and other bodyweight stuff.

However, because they will be doing stunts that require strength, the ability to lift another girl over thier heads while she balances in their hands is a must. This is going to require some kind of resistance training.

They are cheerleaders, not bodybuilders or powerlifters. I was thinking that some kind of explosive lifting and holding work would be beneficial. Or maybe my desire to explore olympic lifting is sneaking in on me.

Ideas?

Hi Andy,

I think isometric holds would be helpful in contributing to the strength.

How about handstand holds against the wall for those who are able to do it? For the others, start with pushup top position holds and gradually elevate to raising the feet until they are eventually able to maintain a handstand hold position.

How about barbell or dumbell thrusters?

How about pullup bar hang holds?

Box jumps might also help with explosiveness as well as bounding drills on grass, like a hop, skip and jump (triple jump sequence). Wall sits for 15-30 seconds then explode into a high knee tuck jump is another idea.

[Lady C]

I would think some overhead presses/squats and handstand push-ups would add significantly to both the strength and stability issues. General overall movements with some added resistance. Do heavy low-reps one day and light high-rep the next time.

[.V.]

Here's the plan, we will be limited by equipment.

walk to warmup
stretch
easy run for 1/4 mile at first, working up to 1 mile (not too much at first, because they will get lots of other laps for different things that they do or don't do, I don't agree with running as a punishment...but I'm just the conditioning coach).
stretch
sprints
bear crawls
pushups (HSPU is a bit extreme for now, but will work up to elevated feet)
burpees
situps
maybe, just for fun we'll do wheelbarrows.

M, W, F - strength training.
Squat, Dead, Row, OHP
My light 10lb bar only, adding 2.5-5lbs a week, just to learn the movements and not injure them.

So that's my plan. After this they will work on cheers and the movements. Not too much actual work involved at this point. Stunts won't begin until they are stronger and after cheer camp.

Critique? Change the order of exercises? Notice I didn't include pullups - we have no place to do them, darn it.

And MostMuscle, I saw you looking. Since you've written about training and motivating ladies before, I'd love your input. These ladies are much younger than the ones you've likely worked with but starting on fitness while young is good I think.

Another thought crossed my mind Andy.

I see you have stretching as part of the warmup, but maybe you should have some additional stretching as all the cheerleaders I have seen are quite flexible with their ability to do the splits in mid-air.

Also, a standard cheerleader move seems to be the front leg high swing, sort of like the warmup front swing that is a staple of martial arts training. Maybe some leg swings as part of the warmup, 10 reps with the right leg and 10 reps with the left leg and build from there.

[.V.]

Good idea P. Actually today for our stretching we did all the stretches that come at the beginning of the karate workouts from back in my shotokan days. Those are some good stretches and are part of all my workouts. We got some funny looks while we were stretching. Not as funny as we'll get doing burpees tomorrow though. They don't want to run too much and I told them that's OK, a high level of fitness can be reached without running too much. I think they will actually look at the running as a relaxing workout by the time summer is over. In fact, me who couldn't even run a mile a few months back, didn't even get winded last time I went for a run and I ran almost a mile that day. It seems that other high intensity work done daily even improves cardiovascular fitness.


So, other than more stretching...how does the order look? Should I change the order of exercises around any?

[TomG]

I talked to a kid who did stunt on our high school cheer team. He said the girls did a lot of running, pushups, situps, and were told to always stretch out on the floor when watching TV. They did nothing with weights. He said most of the girls did conditioning on their own. They were/are a top competitive cheer team.

Tomorrow I will see one of the girls, a flyer, and ask her what they do.

[gymgirl]

Originally Posted by TomG

I talked to a kid who did stunt on our high school cheer team. He said the girls did a lot of running, pushups, situps, and were told to always stretch out on the floor when watching TV. They did nothing with weights. He said most of the girls did conditioning on their own. They were/are a top competitive cheer team.

Tomorrow I will see one of the girls, a flyer, and ask her what they do.

I've already given my $0.02 to ya andy, and I think you've got a great order and exercise selection.

I do have to agree with Tom, I don't recall us lifing weights. We did lots of plyos and pierini's sugestion of box jumps is something i forgot to mention to you earlier. I always lifted on my own, but the rest of our squad did not. And we definitely were encouraged to stretch on our own at home. We also took basic tumbling class. If you could not do a backhandspring you did not make varsity.

I do think you have a good mix though and the additional strength can't hurt. What I found was girls usually lacked the endurance, cheering for an entire game might look easy but it really can take a toll on you if you are not in good shape.

Anyway, lookin good andy, lookin good.

[.V.]

Well, today was the first real workout. We did everything except wheelbarrows and weights and thanks to pierini's suggestion about the balance and high kicks I decided to see what kind of kicking they could do.

It appears the karate and kung fu training is going to come in useful. Again, the same stretching workout and some balance and kick training. We did 45 minutes of what I've outlined of back to back work with breaks to the water cooler whenever they needed it.

They had a great time, had never seen some of our exercises before. They thought it was pretty cool that the stretches were from a karate workout and the kicks and balance were from a kung fu workout. Sorry P, kung fu kicks are faster and much prettier to see so I think they will be closer to what they'll do with the cheers.

We lost one because she quit, said they ran too much yesterday. That was mostly because she had attitude with the actual cheer coach who gave her extra laps.

I'm going to have to watch it though, those that are left are really determined and want to work hard. Especially the chubby ones who see a slim, fit future from the workouts. After the burpees, they wanted more and if the way I feel right now (yeah, I did it with them) is any indicator, some of them will be pretty sore tomorrow. I see an extra IR heat therapy (tanning) session in my immediate future like tomorrow morning.

We did have an audience by half way through and I think some of the other squads will be adopting some of our workout. I even saw the hardcore PE teacher that they all hate watching us as if she was taking notes. I hope not, because she's not nice and motivating...just cruel.

Thanks to all who made suggestions. Especially you gymgirl, our discussion before helped me make the backbone of this plan. When I told Angela you'd helped me make the workout she told the other girls, "you should see the girl that helped him make this. If we can look like her by the end of summer we need to do every bit of this without complaining." So rest assured you are still inspiring the next generation of gym girls. Even though we aren't in a gym, we are on a track and have one end of the football field.

[TomG]

I asked my competitive cheer friend. She said the first few weeks are a lot of running; a mile or two, in-line jogging last person sprints to front, stairs, suicides. Then they go in the gym and do a hundred sit-ups and a hundred crunches. Push-ups are done in circle; all hold a top push-up position, one girl does one, the next does one, around the circle, the first does two, etc. up to about ten. Then they all do tumbling.

On other days they all go to a gym, warm-up with different types of running: sideways, bend over walk out with hands then feet like an inch worm, etc.. Then they do different plyometrics with boxes, throwing medicine balls at walls, etc. The only weight type exercise was pulling a cable up and across the body, like starting a lawn mower.

She said they never did handstand holds and in junior high the girls did not hold flyers. That came in high school.

Good luck.

[.V.]

Thanks Tom.

We've got the workout pretty much settled now, changing things just a little here and there so they don't get bored.

Flyers? Our girls have been holding them since 1st grade. Used to be second - starting with termites now is 1st starting with pee wees. They are a bit heavier now though so they need to be stronger. Plus, some of the girls have never cheered before, moving into this from other sports. Some took last year off to do other sports, and a couple have been there from day 1 way back in first grade.

Interesting thing. Yesterday I saw some of the varsity players watching us from the weight room door. Then, after the 2nd set of burpees they were sprinting 125 meters to the water cooler I keep at the opposite end of the bleachers from where we workout at. One of the guys came down and whispered, "you're a real bastard, you know that don't ya. We don't even have to do those." Must be a good workout eh?

[ixoyc]

that is really funny

[.V.]

Not as funny as me having to teach them cheers. I wasn't supposed to have do that part. But somehow, there I was doing dance steps with the girls showing them how to get it right.


What the hell have I gotten myself into. This really IS a job for a mom.

[Your_Crazy]

LOL. I hope I don't end up doing that with my daughters. An that guy was just scared because if they get to strong they'll kick his butt for gawking

[gymgirl]

Originally Posted by a_welch503

Not as funny as me having to teach them cheers. I wasn't supposed to have do that part. But somehow, there I was doing dance steps with the girls showing them how to get it right.


What the hell have I gotten myself into. This really IS a job for a mom.

geeez who needs cheer camp when you've got Andy!