Cheerleading Flyer Training
If you’re considering working toward becoming a flyer or you’re already a flyer and you want to improve, there are many ways you can enhance your technique. Being a great flyer is about more than just one skill; you need to blend flexibility with strength, balance, control, and trust in your team. Wondering how to be a flyer in cheerleading? Learn more about what it takes to perform your best with this guide from Omni Cheer!
1. Strengthen Your Ankles
The first thing you should work on as you learn how to be a flyer is foot and ankle strength. You need a ton of stability in order to balance when there’s no ground beneath you to provide safety. Even if your team is supporting both your feet during a basic cheerleading stunt, you need to move as little as possible, as every shift could cause them to lose the stability in their hands that provides a base for your feet. Here are some of the best exercises for ankle strength that you can do every day:
- Spell out the alphabet with your feet
- Standing calf raises
- Lie down and flex your feet as hard as possible for two minutes
- Balance on each foot for 20 seconds x3
- Tight rope walk forward and backward across a room x3
2. Work On Your Core
Next on your list for improving balance and stability is working out your core. If you want to learn how to be a flyer in cheerleading, core work is essential. Your abdominals should always be engaged, whether you’re walking around with your friends or practicing a routine. Some of our favorite core exercises to do each day include:
- 30-second planks
- Glute bridges x15
- Flutter kicks x25
- 30-second swimming superman
- Russian twists x20
- Dragon flag x5
3. Practice Your Balance
Once you’re done with ankle and core exercises, it’s time to put your balance to the test. This part of cheerleader flyer training is all about gradually challenging yourself from practicing on the floor to less and less stable objects. Once you feel solid enough doing your skills on the ground, it’s time to move up to pillows, balance beams, balance discs, wobble boards, and Bosu balls. Test each one until you feel secure doing a full series of movements on all of them. How you become a flyer in cheerleading isn’t something you can do overnight—you’ll need to practice your technique over and over again until you’re as strong as possible.
4. Prioritize Flexibility
Now that you’ve got strength and balance in check, it’s time to turn to the next skill you need when learning how to be a flyer in cheerleading: flexibility. The reason you want to be super flexible is about more than just enhancing your routine and looking cool doing a toe touch! The more flexible you are, the easier it is to pull a move without disrupting your stability and the stability of your supporting team members. Less movement when getting to each position means you minimize wobbles, making you less likely to fall. You should practice both dynamic and static flexibility stretches.
Check out a few of the best flexibility exercises for shoulders, hamstrings, quads, and hips:
- Leg swings front to back and side to side
- Arm circles forward and back
- Dynamic bridge stretch
- Pike stretch
- Butterfly stretch
- Front and side splits
- Backbend stretch
- Wrist stretch
5. Stay Strong
With this list of exercises, you’re well on your way to learning how to be a flyer in cheerleading. Now, it’s time for a few performance tips that will keep you at the top of your game throughout a routine. Whether you’re in practice or at a competition, you must hold your body tight and strong during a routine. When you engage all of your muscles, you’ll feel tighter for your bases and be better at holding your own balance. Engage everything from your feet up during cheerleader flyer training to build strength and control.
6. Be Confident
Moving with confidence ensures your breathing stays steady and your mind is sharp—both are essential for maintaining control during your routines. A lack of confidence is also apparent in your posture and on your face. You don’t want judges to see how nervous you are during a competition. Confidence is key for learning how to become a flyer in cheerleading!
7. Don’t Look Down
Looking down can be a big problem for a flyer. The weight of your head can throw you and your bases balance off, but it can also affect your perception and cause you to misjudge distances. Looking toward the crowd and keeping your posture lifted ensures you feel lighter for your bases and helps you maintain your engaged muscles.
8. Practice On The Ground First
We’ve already talked about working your way up to smaller and smaller platforms during balance training, but it’s really important to do all your poses on the ground before attempting them in the air. You should be practicing on the ground in front of a mirror to see how you look, correcting your posture and placement until everything is just right.
Flyer Myths
These training tips on how to become a flyer in cheerleading are really important. However, cheerleader flyer training is only one part of the deal. You should also be wary of flyer myths that may prevent you from even trying to become one. Take a look at the most common flyer myths here.
Only Small People Can Be Flyers
Everyone thinks that only short, light people can be flyers, but control, balance, and strength are far more important than size. While short people have a natural advantage in balance due to a lower center of gravity, taller people can also be successful flyers with the right balance and strength training.
You Only Need to Stretch at Practice
False, false, false! You should be stretching and doing strengthening practices every single day to maintain your form and improve as much as you can. The minute you start slacking, you’ll see your performance start to dip.
Being a Flyer is Easier Than a Base
If you’re thinking about learning how to be a flyer in cheerleading because it’s easier than being a base, you’re making a big mistake. Flyers must develop far more control and flexibility than bases. The exercises you’re doing to develop your skills may be different, but the effort is the same.
Start Practicing!
Now that you have a better idea of how to be a flyer in cheerleading, you can train smarter to improve your skills. Get ahead of your competition and give stellar performances at every competition when you incorporate these exercises and tips into your everyday training.
And when you need workout and warmup gear to keep you comfortable during practice, check out the selection at Omni Cheer for top-quality products.
