Things To Love About Cheerleading

We love so many things about cheerleading! From teammates and trips to cheers and chants, there is a lot to love! We could spend days naming everything we love about cheer, but we narrowed it down to five. Here are our top five reasons to love cheerleading:

• The uniforms. We don't want to be rude, but our uniforms are just better than other sports' uniforms. There's so much variety, color, style, and sometimes even sparkle! The best days of your cheer career are when you see that box in your coach's office and know that your new uniforms have arrived. It's the Christmas morning of cheerleading.

• The athleticism. There really isn't much to say about this, it’s just awesome!

• The spirit. We've got spirit, yes, we do. It's a common misconception that we go around saying that all the time, but it is completely true that we put tons of spirit behind everything we do.

•  Have you seen the stunts, passes, and routines we do? You have to be behind it body, mind, and soul.

• The glitter. We love the glitter, glam, sparkle, and shine that comes along with cheerleading. Life is boring without shiny things!

• The adrenaline rush. You know the feeling you get at the top of the highest slide at the water park or as you're inching your way up on a rollercoaster, about to drop? Yeah, now multiply that by about 10.

We could go on and on and talk about how much we love learning new routines and working with such a great group of people, but we want to hear what you love most about cheerleading! Let us know in the comments!

How To Beat A Gymnastics Mental Block

Now that summer is here, most everyone is working “up skills” or skills that they will be competing the following season. However, this is also the time that some will struggle with “losing” skills or they may hit that mental block with the harder skills.

So, what happens when a gymnast says, “I’m scared of a gymnastics skill that I used to be able to do. Or, I’m too afraid to try it.”

Many gymnasts say that having a mental block is one of the worst parts of gymnastics. Sometimes they happen for no apparent reason, and you might be able to get the gymnast to complete the skill without problem, if you work at helping them get past there issue.

Here are 8 helpful tips to help both coach and gymnast work through those moments that just might lead to a mental shutdown of skills:

Communicate! Almost every gymnast has had a mental block during her career, so it is not uncommon that your coach has not seen this happen before. The gymnast should want to try to work through the problem, while the coach figures out a plan of action to perform skill again. The two of you should be able to come up with a game plan together.

Visualize. Close your eyes and mentally perform the skill over and over, using as much detail as possible. Sometimes, fear can be enough to scare you from even visualizing, but keep pushing through. Spend time to visually work through the troubling parts and practice performing the skill through completion over and over!

Take a step back. Start back with progression work on the skill again. If the gymnast is too frightened to perform progressions alone, coaches should assist in spotting or working on modified equipment. 

Go back as far as you need to, and do that variation of the skill over and over again. Doing the progressions will help more than shutting down every time you try to do the original skill.

Break it down. Do not overthink the skill. Focus on one specific moment during the skill. Some coaches argue that it doesn’t even matter what, but the key is to get your mind to work automatically. Clear your mind, think of the end result, and let muscle memory take over.

Mental choreography. This correlates with breaking it down. Work out several short phrases for completion of the skill.  The idea is to re-focus your mind on good technique instead of fear. Mental choreography might be repeating in your head “Shoulders open, reach back, spot the landing.” You can also add in positive words to your mental choreography, such as, “I got this!.” Work with your coach to develop a mental choreography for the skill that’s giving you trouble. They will know what are the main points to be focusing on and how best to prepare.

Watch video. Have a coach or another athlete film the skill…then watch it over and over! You are tricking you mind into believing you can simply do this skill instead of being fearful.

Keep strong. Stay patient. You will get the skill back. It is simply a matter of visualization, progression and determination. Don’t give up!

 

World-Record Handstand Attempt

Olympians will help local organizers promote Olympic Day and the upcoming P&G Gymnastics Championships in a world-record attempt for most simultaneous handstands June 23 on Monument Circle.

The Indiana Sports Corp., USA Gymnastics and USA Track and Field have activities planned for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Olympic gold medalists scheduled to attend include gymnasts Shannon Miller and Jaycie Phelps, heptathlete Jackie Joyner-Jersee and basketball player Quinn Buckner.

Children are invited to participate in a gymnastics Fitness Zone and in interactive activities staged by USATF. The program also includes a noon question-and-answer session with the Olympians. Indianapolis’ celebration is one of more than 1,000 Olympic Day events across the country from May 31 to June 30.

Girl Scouts, youth groups and gymnastics clubs will attempt the world record at 12:45, then position themselves into a replica of the Olympic rings. There was a similar world record at Monument Circle in 2005, when 1,072 participated. More information is available at PGChamps.com/OlympicDay.

What should my child wear to class and the Show Off Meet?

For gymnastics and tumbling:  one piece leotard for girls.  For boys, shorts/sweats with tucked in t-shirt.  For cheer wear shorts, fitted tank or t-shirt, tennis shoes.  No denim.  Hair must be pulled off of the face; i.e. pony tail.  No jewelry, rings, dangly earrings.  Studs may be worn.  Leave valuables at home.  Academy West is not responsible for lost items. No gum. There will be one Show Off Meet per year.  For 2014 it is scheduled for July 26.  The class outfit is required to participate and there will be a $1 gate fee for all spectators. The class outfits will be available to purchase one month before the meet.

Dancewear:  Ballet: leotard, foot undies, hair in pony tail or bun.  (footless tights,skirt optional)  Foot undies available in proshop.  Jazz/Technique: leotard, tight dance pants/shorts,black jazz shoes Hip Hop: tennis shoes, soft clothing to move in, but NO JEANS. The spring recital will be in the spring for all dancers. For 2015, it is scheduled for June 6.  Exact place & time will be posted when available.  The recital fee is $80 and will be charged on March 15, 2015 so that costumes can be ordered. Dancers may be asked to provide accessories such as shoes and tights. There is  no gate fee at the recital; bring everyone!