Strengthen Dance Moves And Cheer Stunts | Hold, Stretch, And Jump Combo

Creating a great exercise combo involves finding and pairing exercises which progressively work the body in different ways. In the Hold, Stretch, And Jump Combo athletes are required to progress from slower balanced Arabesque Holds, into a quicker Heel Stretch, followed by an explosive Toe Touches. This variety of speeds and intensities challenges the muscles of the legs, hips, and core to be worked efficiently.

With such a wide variety of dance moves and cheer stunts, which are performed at different intensities and speeds, it is important for cheerleaders to use a good combination of strength, speed, and explosive exercises. Using actual dance moves and cheer stunts during strength or explosive training is a great way to practice sports specific movements while improving overall athleticism. The incorporation of the Kbands Leg Resistance Bands into the cheer stunts and dance moves training enhances the effectiveness of the drills by applying resistance at key points on the thighs. Since the resistance is placed at the top of the knee it is at the lowest part of the thigh and applying pressure as far away from the muscles responsible for moving the thigh. This forces greater muscle activation in those key areas of the legs turning regular toe touches into a super effective training exercise.

Strengthening Dance Moves And Cheer Stunts

To perform the Hold, Stretch, And Jump Combo Cheerleaders will need to be capable of performing the Arabesque, Heel Stretch, and Toe Touches. For training tips on how to perform these cheer stunts go to the Cheer Section. Athletes will find detailed descriptions on how to perform each of the cheer stunts in the Hold, Stretch, And Jump Combo.

To perform the Hold, Stretch, And Jump Combo athletes will need a set of Kbands Leg Resistance Bands attached just above their knees. Once attached cheerleaders will perform 8-10 Arabesques with each leg, holding 2-3 seconds at the top of the movement. While performing the Arabesque athletes need to remember to keep a straight leg and back by squeezing the abs and the glute of the raised leg. Athletes will then move into the Heel Stretch and perform the cheer stunt 8-10 times on each leg, holding the foot for 2-3 seconds at the top of the movement. Cheerleaders need to make sure they have performed the Best Stretching Exercises For Cheerleaders before performing the Heel Stretch portion of the Hold, Stretch, And Jump Combo. For the final portion of the Hold, Stretch, And Jump Combo athletes will perform 8-10 explosive toe touches. Cheerleaders can take 20-30 second rests in between sets but should try to limit rest time as much as possible. The goal of the cheer stunts drill is to slightly fatigue the legs before moving into the most explosive movement of the series. This challenges the legs and hips to use larger portions of the targeted muscles and muscle groups.

After performing 2-3 resisted rounds of the Hold, Stretch, And Jump Combo cheerleaders and dancers will remove the Kbands Leg Resistance Bands and perform one more round of the Hold, Stretch, And Jump Combo unresisted. During the unresisted rounds cheerleaders will increase the hold time on the Arabesque and the Heel Stretch movement to 3-5 seconds. Athletes should focus on using great form and trying to increase the range of motion of the movements in the Arabesque, Heel Stretches, and Toe Touches.

Improve Dance Moves And Cheer Stunts With Flexibility Training

Flexibility in cheerleaders and dancers is imperative to increasing performance in individual dance moves and cheer stunts, as well as improving execution during competition or performances. The Best Stretching Exercises For Cheerleaders is an excellent series of flexibility stretches which can be performed both before and after training sessions. The Cheerleading - Lower Back Stretch Routine, and PNF Stretching Technique are also great ways to target individual muscle groups using different stretching techniques.

Cheerleaders and dancers will see greater height on their kicks and greater length and extension on toe touches by utilizing these stretching exercises and routines. Improving flexibility is just as important as perfecting an Arabesque or mastering a Liberty Stunt. Flexibility not only allows cheerleaders and dancers to improve on dance moves and cheer stunts, but also allows athletes to remain healthy and limit set backs due to injuries.

As cheerleaders use the Best Stretching Exercises For Cheerleaders and similar stretches to increase flexibility and reduce injury risk, the use of the Recovery Foam Roller will play a crucial roll in keeping the muscles of cheerleaders and dancers healthy. Stretches for every part of the body can be performed with the Recovery Foam Roller. The Rejuvenating Stretching Sequence is an excellent series of stretches which can be used with the Recovery Foam Roller. Utilizing both flexibility and foam rolling techniques will keep cheerleaders training intensity high and keep them from missing any time due to injuries.

Perform Specific Dance Moves And Cheer Stunts In A Workout

Performing a variety of cheer stunts or dance moves in an elongated sequence has many benefits to overall fitness. This is a great way to work a number of different body parts in a short amount of time, as well as elevating the athletes heart rate and increasing cardiovascular performance. Running and cardio specific training are great ways to improve cardiovascular strength in cheerleaders, but utilizing a multitude of different exercises at different intensities and targeting different parts of the body, effects the body in much the same way. When cheerleaders elevate their heart rate and perform both explosive and strength based exercises, they are able to keep their heart rate up with slower strength or flexibility oriented exercises, and then spike their heart rate with an explosive movement like toe touches. Cheerleaders should use circuit style workouts in coordination with cardio based exercises and workouts.