Cheerleaders are athletes final draft PDF

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The Underestimated Athletes

Cheerleading, a sport that is tough like no other. Cheerleaders devote most of their time to cheer even when they still have to go to school. Theses cheerleaders have to take time out of their day to go train and practice their routines. Cheerleaders are athletes because they compete, fulfill coaches expectations, and they have rigorous training schedules to gain skills such as endurance. Attending competitions is a big part of a cheerleaders career. There are many rules that have to be followed and abided by. When going to a competition there are three to five judges and 300 cheer teams that all strive to be first place. When it is time for a team to perform a routine, it cannot be any longer than two and a half minutes, which means once the song is over, they have to stop their routine or there will be a great deduction of points. The judges judge many criteria like the difficulty of the routine and how well the team executed it. Also, when performing they need to make sure that they are not perform illegal stunts for their age group which is major points deducted. Judges also look at tumbling, jumps, tosses, arm and body motions, and the transitions. Not only do they have to keep their routines on point they also have to look the part by following the guidelines. When going to competitions or just having practice they always need to look their best by following the coaches rules. The cheerleads male or female should not wear any type of jewelry because if they fall, they can lead to many serious injuries. Their hair has to be up and out of the way and for competitions if the girls hair is teased to high, they can lose points for it. As for

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nails, they cannot have acrylics or have nail polish, it has to be their natural nail. When it comes to make up it cannot be dramatic, they can use the teams colors and an acceptable color for the lips as long as it is age appropriate. Depending on the coach, they will have the girls keep a tanned look with self-tanner or going to get tanned. For practice, the coach will assign an outfit that they have to wear just like a uniform and if it is not worn then they will be punished, and not allowed to practice for that day. For competitions, the uniforms should be the same from the bows all the way to their shoes and their skirts have to be the appropriate lengths. Along with keeping their appearance they need to work out to stay in shape for their customized uniforms. Being a cheerleader comes a rigorous training schedule to gain many skills such as endurance and balance. All teams should practice the minimum of ten hours a week. According to Goodwin, Adams, Kent, Shelburne, and DeBeliso (2004), “High strength levels are also required to push and hold other cheerleaders overhead when performing stunts” (para.5). It is very important to have the strength to carry another cheerleader, so they do not fall, which is why three days out of the week is working out and weightlifting. The other four days is all about learning their routines and practice on their tumbling and stunts. While practicing it is a group effort because everyone has to connect and work together and know what everyone is doing to help every routine flow nicely. Despite all the evidence, there are many people that think that cheerleaders are not athletes because they look “too pretty”, and they are there to cheer for the team playing as well as entertain a crowd. However, what does looking pretty have to do with cheerleaders being athletes, they perform with the same amount of skill, passion, and energy like any other athlete would use to play their game of soccer, rugby, or football. According to Goodwin, Adams, Kent, Shelburne, and DeBeliso (2004), “… cheerleading is recognized as a sport that requires strength,

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power, endurance, flexibility, agility, balance, and high levels of technical skill and coordination. Furthermore, a. mastery of gymnastics and dance is needed for optimal performance” (para.2). It takes the same amount of skill for a football player to tackle someone as it does for a cheerleader to toss another cheerleader in the air for a stunt. With all the facts above, cheerleaders are athletes. They work so hard to do what they love just like every other athlete. Yet, there should be further research on cheerleaders. For example, they should interview a cheerleader that is still in school and write about what they do. It should be a title “A Week in the Life of a Cheerleader”. They need to record how they manage their time, what type of training they do every day and what their coach wants them to do. As you see there are many more things the world can learn about being a cheerleader and seeing what makes them an athlete.

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References Goodwin, E. P., Adams, K. J., Shelburne, J., & DeBeliso, M. (2004). A strength and conditioning model for a female collegiate cheerleader. Strength and Conditioning Journal, 26(6), 1621. Retrieved from https://lopes.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search-proquestcom.lopes.idm.oclc.org/docview/212531176?accountid=7374...