Disclosure: Some links in this guide are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, CheerleadersLife earns from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you. We haven’t tested these mats. Specifications come from the makers’ product pages. A home mat is useful for stretching, conditioning, jumps and drilling basics between practices. It isn’t a substitute for […]
Best Cheerleading Shoes 2026: How to Choose and Models Compared
Disclosure: Some links in this guide are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, CheerleadersLife earns from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you. We haven’t tested these shoes. The specs and prices below come from each brand’s or retailer’s product page. Your cheer shoes are the one piece of equipment you wear for every […]
How to Get Your Splits: Best Stretches for Cheerleaders
Splits show up all over cheer: in toe touches and hurdlers, in heel stretches and arabesques, and in tumbling. This guide is about one goal: getting your front and middle splits flat, safely. For the basics of when and how to stretch, start with our guide to stretching effectively. The Splits Cheerleaders Use Front splits […]
Balance Training for Cheerleaders: Why It Matters and How to Do It
Flyers balance on one foot above their teammates, bases hold steady under a moving weight, and everyone lands jumps and tumbling. Balance is part of almost every cheer skill, and it can be trained. This guide explains how balance works, what research says about balance training, and how to build it safely for flyers and […]
Self-Care Tips for Cheerleaders: Sleep, Rest, Skin and Stress
Why Self-Care Matters for Cheerleaders Cheer is a year-round sport for many athletes, with practices, games, competitions and school all competing for time. Self-care is how you keep your body and mind ready for all of it. This guide covers the basics that health organizations recommend for young athletes: sleep, rest, skin care, fueling, mental […]
Strength Training for Cheerleaders: A Safe, Position-Specific Guide
Bases press and hold a flyer overhead. Flyers lock their bodies tight in the air. Tumblers push off the floor and land from height. All of it takes strength. USA Cheer’s safety guidelines say every cheer squad should adopt a comprehensive conditioning and strength-building program. This guide covers why strength matters, what young athletes should […]
Cheerleading Warm-Up Routine: A Simple 15-Minute Plan
USA Cheer’s safety guidelines say an appropriate warm-up should come before all cheer activities. A good warm-up raises your body temperature, gets you breathing harder, and moves your joints through the ranges you’ll use in jumps, stunts and tumbling. Here is a simple 15-minute routine you can use before practice, plus a shorter version for […]
How to Keep Your Energy High While Cheering and Performing
Energy is something judges and crowds actually notice. USASF’s all-star scoring has a performance category that looks for high energy, entertainment value, confidence and showmanship. Game days can mean hours in the sun, and competition days mean waiting around and then going full out for a short routine. This guide covers what helps you keep […]
How to Stretch for Cheer: Dynamic vs. Static, Hold Times and a Routine
Cheer asks for more flexibility than most sports: toe touches, heel stretches, scorpions, bow and arrows, splits and back walkovers. But when you stretch, how you stretch and how long you hold matter as much as which stretches you do. This guide covers the basics of stretching well. For specific goals, see our guides to […]
How to Reduce Soreness After Cheer Practice (and When It’s an Injury)
Sore legs after jump drills, sore arms after a long stunt practice, a sore core after conditioning: most cheerleaders know the feeling. Some soreness is a normal response to hard or new training. This guide explains why it happens, what the research says actually helps, and the signs that pain is something more than ordinary […]