What Inspires You?

During the holiday season we always seem to be going further for our fellow man.  Donating to the needy, helping the elderly and even something as simple as singing Christmas carols can bring a smile to those around us.   Inspiration can come from the most unexpected places; it has no restrictions or guidelines and small favors can be just as powerful as the grand gestures.   Many people continue their goodwill beyond the holiday season inspiring others to do the same.  So, what inspires you?  One of a cheerleader’s purposes is inspiration.   Cheerleaders have gone from just a group of girls on the sidelines calling out cheers to leaders in their own right.  While they still lead the fans in rooting for the team they now compete on their own level as athletes as well as working toward making the world around them better.  We here at Cheerzone want to celebrate the way cheerleaders inspire those around them.  We wish to continue our spotlight on those cheerleaders, coaches and squads that go above and beyond.  Each month we feature a team as well as a cheerleader or coach who is going that extra mile and inspiring others to go further.   Do you know a cheerleader, coach or squad that inspires others around them?  We want to know about them.   Help us spread the goodwill by sharing your inspirational stories of the cheerleaders you know.
To submit an inspirational cheerleader, coach or squad that moves you please visit us at https://cheerzone.com/CheerZone_Monthly_Spotlights.aspx

Does Your Squad Have What it Takes?

Ashley Tisdale's got a challenge for you.

Along with got Milk? and American Cheerleader, she's kicking off a cross-country search for one all-star cheer squad to received $5000 and get their own got Milk? ad featured in a national magazine! Just make a video showing how your squad uses low-fat chocolate milk to "Refuel and Be Strong®". 

So… think your squad has what it takes? All you have to do is submit your video to this link.

2011 Cheerleading Shoe Review

Need help choosing a cheer shoe this year? Whether you're an all-star, high school, college, or youth level cheerleading team, deciding which shoe to buy is one of the most important decisions you'll make this season. Cheerleading shoes should not only complete your team look, but also meet the specific needs of the athletes that wear them. Some of the factors to consider when choosing a shoe are the type of training, price, comfort, fit, and style. So we've organized a list to make your search a little easier so that you can get back to what you do best…cheerleading!

Best All Around

Sometimes you just simply need a shoe that can do it all! It's no secret that many cheer teams are preparing for competition season while cheering on the sideline for either their high school local sports. These busy athletes need a shoe that can stand up to sideline weather while offering the flexibility and support for competition season. Here are the top three all around cheerleading shoes for the teams playing double duty.

(1) The Nike One Spirit Cheer is a 9.7 ounce low-profile cheer shoe that features a synthetic leather, breathe hole, upper material that wraps around the foot for great breathability during those long practices. This shoe also offers colored laces to tie in your school colors and is available in ladies and youth sizing.

Buy these Nike Cheer Shoes $62.00

(2) The Nike Sideline II is a multi-surface shoe that is made to last through even the most difficult cheer training. It also comes with color card inserts for customization and is available in ladies and youth sizing.

Buy these Nike Cheer Shoes $40.25

(3) The Nike Cheer Flash was last year's most popular cheer shoe and is still going strong. This 9.8 ounce low-profile shoe features a mid-foot strapping design for better control when performing. 

Buy these Nike Cheer Shoes $40.25

Best for Competition

These half cheerleader/half gymnast competitors are no strangers to putting in long hours practicing on the springboard floor mat to perfect their performances. The shoes listed here are made specifically for the elite all-star cheerleader and use the most lightweight materials perfect for tumbling and stunting. They are designed with better control and flexibility in mind to hit every stunt and nail every back tuck. 

(1) The Nfinity Evolution is a 6.5 ounce low-profile featuring a trademark web and lace design for a more supportive fit great for stunting and tumbling. Nfinity brand shoes are one of the only brands that make ladies, mens, and youth sizes available for unifying both co-ed and youth all-star teams. 

Buy these Cheerleading Shoes $74.99

(2) The Kaepa Stellarlyte is a 6 ounce low-profile shoe designed with an improved finger groove and heel notch technology great for bases that need a better grip. The Stellarlyte is offered in both ladies and youth sizes.

Buy these Cheerleading Shoes $55.00

(3) The Asics Ultralyte is a 5.9 ounce low-profile shoe with rear-foot Gel cushioning and is made with flyers in mind. The upper package features an air-mesh base layer with nylon-mesh overlays for lightweight breathable support. The Ultralyte is available in both ladies and youth sizes.  

Buy these Cheerleading Shoes $45.75

Most Budget Friendly

Sometimes you just need a great shoe at a great price to get yourself started. If you're on a budget or putting together a program for the first time the cost of getting started can sometimes be overwhelming. The shoes listed here will fit perfectly into any budget.

(1) The Kaepa Jump is features an enhanced foot control midsole with full rubber outsole for traction and durability. All Kaepa shoes are available in both ladies and youth sizes. 

Buy these Cheer Shoes $26.50

(2) The Power Freedom is a simple design with your choice of royal, red, gray and black accent colors for the look of expensive customization on a budget.

Buy these Cheer Shoes $21.25

(3) The Zephz Butterfly features a stunt edge sole for a comfortable grip. The Butterfly is available in both ladies and youth sizing.

Buy these Cheer Shoes $21.95

So whatever you may need for this cheer season keep cheerzone.com in mind for the best prices on all of your favorite cheerleading shoe brands!

CheerZone Cheer Coach Spotlight is on Jeremy Nigh

Let’s hear it for Jeremy Nigh, coach of the Tabor College Bluejays Cheer Team.  Jeremy is CheerZone’s Spotlight Cheer Coach for July 2011! Jeremy is a great coach who is all about team work, dedication, and helping his cheerleaders to strive to be their best. Congratulations Jeremy! Check out more about Jeremy and his team below!

Coach's Name: Jeremy Nigh

Team Name: Tabor College

Location: Hillsboro, KS

Program Type: College

Mascot: Bluejays

Team Colors: Blue and Gold

Team/School Motto: Decidedly Christian

How many years have you been coaching? 

6 total, starting into my 2nd year coaching at Tabor College.

How did you get started in cheerleading? 

My best friend was the male cheerleader at Republic High School in MO, he convinced me to tryout for our school's Tiger Mascot in my senior year. I made the team and started tumbling lessons along with the cheerleaders. I became very good in tumbling and grew tired of mascot and craved to do the more fun cheerleading side of things. I went and tried out at Northwest Missouri State University and made the team as a tumbler for my freshman year. There I learned how to stunt and do all other cheer skills (pyramids, baskets, jumps, motions, etc). I then transferred away to Oral Roberts University in my sophomore year. I cheer 3.5 years with ORU and graduate with a degree in Drama/Television/Film Performance before I started into coaching. I am also a Head Instructor with the National Cheerleaders Association having been with them for 6 years.

What is the best part of your job as a coach?

The best part of coaching is that I get to do what I love to do (cheer) and I get paid to do it! I am at a school that values my job as well as my program. They are behind me to grow the team and to be competitive too. I love getting to be able to work with skilled individuals and help them towards bigger and better skills and abilities. I love getting to see their faces whenever they hit a difficult skill and are really excited and happy about hitting it, that is rewarding to me. I get to have fun in my job: the life of a cheer coach is never a dull and boring one there are always lots of things to do, events to plan and preparing for games and competitions.

What important lessons have you learned from coaching cheerleading? 

Being a coach can be hard work, everything is on your shoulder and if something doesn't go right it is because I didn't do the best job that I could do. Being organized is essential to being a coach, because so many things can happen or come up at the last minute, so I need to try to be as organized as I can be ahead of time to make sure that everything will run smoothly and so I don't have to stress my team out.

What is the best cheerleading advice you have ever been given?

Run the Race to Win and Give God all the Glory! Weather the world will admit to it or not cheerleading is a sport and extremely athletic. So as athletes we need to do the absolute best job that we can do ALL the time. We need to train hard and condition ourself so that we shine in our abilities and in all the we do. The absolute most important thing is that we need to remember that God has given us all of our talents and abilities, so whenever we do a great job and accomplish something through our skills and abilities then we need to remember to praise the one who gave us those abilities.

What is your biggest challenge as a coach? 

Overcoming conflicts and drama. I have come to find out the drama is a normal part of cheerleading, no matter how close the team or how well they get along, at some point there will be drama. The biggest challenge for me is when that drama happens is knowing how to overcome it without destroying the framework of the team. Each situation is different and isn't handled the same: the challenge is to solve the situation, still be fair and consistent throughout your decisions. The last thing  that you want to happen is for me as a coach to let things get out of hand with the cheerleaders because that has a tendency to tear your team down more then anything. Sometimes I have to be a coach and aggressively correct my team but I have discovered there is a time and a place for aggressive correction but an even bigger place is needed for positive encouragement!

What team achievements are you most proud of: 

As a team, we did a lot of growing this last year and I really pushed them on to bigger and better things. We competed for the first time in the schools history as a Varsity Sport. We ended up taking 2nd place from all the team at the competition and we lost to 1st only by a small margin. I am very proud of how hard my cheerleaders worked and how much they were able to achieve in their first year as a competitive team. I am very happy with how close my team became as the year went on: they started with not being close at all but slowly they got over their differences and can united together and became a much close and dynamic team!

What are your team’s goals for the upcoming year?

To go and win our conference, the KCAC Cheerleading Competition! We took 2nd in our first year of competing at it and we would like to go back in our 2nd year and take the #1 title!

Do you have any funny coaching stories to share?

Yes, one day in practice I was working with the team on motions. I was demonstrating a T motions and explaining how to be sharp and powerful when hitting motions. I demoed the T and smacked one of my cheerleader who was near to me right in the face! Luckily it was only a glancing blow and she wasn't hurt and didn't get a blackeye.

Your team's favorite cheerleading trend: 

Shiny and sparkly! The girls on my team are all about the bling, sparkly and shine of all cheer stuff.

Are there any changes in cheerleading would you like to see in the future?

I would like to see cheer start to become more recognized as a sport in the college and high school arenas. I have seen several great changes start to happen over the last few years but I want that to continue to grow and for it to change. In the next 5 years I would like to see cheer radically change around and for everyone to finally see what we have know for decades: that cheerleading is a Sport!

Do you have any tips for other coaches, cheerleaders or parents?

Have fun and love what you do! As soon as you stop having fun and are not enjoying it, STOP!!!!

Check out the Tabor Bluejays Website too!

Keeping Your Cool During Cheer Camp

Camp season is upon us and cheerleaders everywhere are preparing for the experience.  Amid the stunts, chants and bonding the heat can be your enemy.  So whether your camp is a day camp or resident camp, beginner or elite chances are you’ll be spending time in the sun.  While you’re having fun with your squad you need to remember to take care of yourself.  The summer sun brings heat that can be dangerous if you are not prepared.   By using a little bit of caution and a few simple tips your camp experience can be a fun and enjoyable time you won’t soon forget.

Just like our mothers always told us, sunscreen is a must.  Even if it’s cloudy a SPF 15 sunscreen is recommended.  You should also avoid vigorous activity during the hottest part of the day, between 10a.m. and 7p.m.  If you have to be active during this time, be careful.  Wear light colors, they reflect the sun’s rays helping to keep you cooler.  Dark colors absorb the heat and can raise your body temperature.  Also choose breathable or moisture wicking fabrics that allow you to move freely.  These help your body to release heat.   Sweat is a good thing.  It’s how your body cools itself off.  So HYDRATE, drink plenty of water or sports drink.  You need to replenish the moisture your body releases during exercise.  It is recommended that you drink 4 to 8 oz. per 15 to 20 minutes of exercise.  Eat right.  Eating helps keep your energy up naturally and fruits are good for hydration.

You should gradually build up the amount of time your active outdoors in the heat.  Don’t start out immediately with two hours of vigorous training.  Start slowly and add time as you get used to it.  You should avoid strenuous activity in temperatures above 90 degrees.  No matter what the temperature is, take frequent breaks.  Breaks allow your body time to cool off as well as giving you time to rehydrate.  Sleep is also important.  If you’re not getting enough sleep your body will be weaker and less able to handle the rigors of the heat.  In general you should listen to your body.  Your body will tell you when it needs to rest.  If you are not feeling well you should avoid strenuous activity.

It is always best to be prepared.  If you’re working to long in the heat your body will tell you.  Muscle spasms and profuse sweating are signs of heat cramps and can occur even after activity is over.  Heat cramps are the beginning signs of heat exhaustion.  Heat exhaustion can cause weakness, nausea, vomiting, headache or lightheadedness.  If you experience any of these symptoms stop what you’re doing and get out of the heat.  Drink plenty of fluids and if the problem persists seek help. 
Just remember your squad needs you.  So take care of yourself and be smart about how you enjoy the summer sun. 
 

CheerZone Team Spotlight is on Desert Storm Elite’s Rage

Let’s hear it for the Desert Storm Elite Rage, CheerZone’s Spotlight Cheerleading Team for June 2011! The Rage is an All-Star cheer team that is very accomplished and always full of energy and cheer. Congratulations Rage! Check out more about them here!

Team Name: Rage Gym

Name: Desert Storm Elite

Location: Scottsdale, AZ

Program Type: All Star

Division: Senior Small Limited Coed Level 5

Team Motto: "How many stunts are we going to hit?"

What team achievements are you most proud of? 1st place Vegas American Grand & 11th at The 2011 USASF Worlds

What are your team’s goals for the upcoming year? Top 5 at The 2012 USASF Worlds

What is unique about your team or anything else you wish to share? Storm has 11 teams in the gym, but there's only one Storm family!

Check out the Desert Storm Elite's Website and Facebook Page!

CheerZone Cheerleader Spotlight is on Hailey Craven

CheerZone’s Cheerleader Spotlight for June 2011 is on Hailey Craven!  Hailey is 13 years old and cheers for the Carolina Pride, a school team at Carolinas Christian Athletic Association in Charlotte, NC.  Hailey is a dedicated cheerleader who knows the value of being a team player and having a positive attitude.  Congratulations Hailey!

What is your Mascot?  Roary the Lion

What are your Team Colors?  Royal Blue, Black, White

What is your position on the squad? Co-Captain/Base

How long have you been cheerleading? Since I was 5.

What do you love most about cheerleading? Cheering at Football games and Halftime performing. 

How do you stay on top of your physical game?  I work out off season.

How do you maintain being a role model?  I put God first and this season I helped coach and choreographed another cheerleading team for their basketball season.

What’s the biggest obstacle you’ve had to overcome?  To work on my tumbling on the off season.

What is the hardest thing about being a cheerleader?  To make sure that people understand it takes dedication, commitment and practice to make everything come together.  This is a team sport that takes a lot of teamwork!

Of all your accomplishments, what are you most proud of?  I would have to say to being co-captain of a really great squad.

What do you like to do in your spare time?  I like to play softball in the off season, go to the beach and hang out with my friends.

I am inspired by…my coach, MJ Marple.

The best advice I ever received was…live life to the fullest and have no regrets.

What is your favorite cheerleading trend? Big Bows

What are your goals for the upcoming year?  To work on my back handsprings.

90-Year-Old Woman Gets Her Varsity Letter for Cheerleading

According to the WLUC-TV, a woman from a tiny town in Michigan's Upper Peninsula finally received her varsity letter for cheerleading… over 70 years after she was supposed to.

Ellen Raymond attended Baraga High School in the late 1930's, a point in time when girls weren't really allowed to letter in sports like their male counterparts. At the time, in addition to being a pole-vaulter, basketball player and valedictorian, she was the school's only cheerleader. And despite the 'boys-only' attitude in regards to receiving varsity letters, school officials promised that she would get one anyhow. But, promise or not, she never did.

Until now.

Seven decades later, in recognition of her commitment to the sport of cheerleading, Ellen was presented with her varsity letter by Baraga High School interim superintendent, Norman McKindles. According to McKindles, "We wanted to make a correction to the error that was made back then and make sure Ellen received the varsity letter she so truly deserved."

It just goes to show that it's never too late to accomplish something great. Or, in this case… to be acknowledged for it.

Have you Joined CheerZone on Facebook?

Have you checked out CheerZone on Facebook yet?  We have a lot going on and we don't want you to miss out!

Join us on Facebook for the latest cheerleading information, tips and products as well as our Freebie Friday giveaways.  You will find up to the minute information on our Cheerleading Spotlights for Teams and Cheerleaders, CheerZone products and specials.  You can share photos of your team and suggest your favorite cheer videos and articles to other cheerleaders.  Check us out today and give us a shout!
 

Cheerleading Camp Video – UCA Cheer Camp

Do you have a favorite video of your team at cheerleading camp? Check out one of CheerZone’s favorite cheer camp videos at the 2009 UCA Cheer Camp in Austin, Texas. Check it out then go to CheerZone’s Facebook page and post a video of your team’s cheer camp video!