This video demonstrates how to do a back handspring. Viewing it has been helpful to some cheerleaders. Here’s a technique from sports psychology to make it even more helpful! (But please…if you’ve never done this before, be safe and work with a coach and a spotter!)

Step 1: As you watch the video, observe the cheerleader intensely and begin to imagine how her body feels as she moves through the routine. Also, imagine how she feels emotionally and how focused she is. Notice every detail. Repeat this several times.

Step 2: View the video again and this time, as you observe the cheerleader carefully, imagine that you are feeling what the cheerleader is feeling (body and mind). Repeat several times.

Step 3: Now, with your mind’s eye, see yourself and feel yourself performing the back handspring. Really feel every detail.

Step 4: Making sure you are using a mat, get in position to begin the back handspring. Take a moment, exhale slowly to get focused and with your mind’s eye, see yourself performing the back handspring perfectly. Now you’re ready to do it!

By doing the above you will have enhanced the learning process by creating connections in your brain. Yep, that’s right. Your brain doesn’t know the difference between visualizing a routine and actually performing it! To your brain, it is one and the same therefore; you can begin to build those important brain maps just by visualizing whatever new stunt or routine you want to learn!

The better you get at changing your thinking from negative to neutral or positive, (which is part of the mental game of cheerleading), the better you will perform at Nationals. 

When you are at the competition itself, you may get caught up in the excitement and the intensity of it all. You will be hyper aware, hyper alert and you will notice the brilliance of some of the other teams.  Watch out for your reactions! 

For example, let’s say you happen to see another team’s performance that is superb. What do you think? Many cheerleaders might think “Gee, they’re so good…we will never be as good as they are. They’ll probably win and we won’t come in first.”   

Are these thoughts good for you or bad for you?  Of course they are bad for you and if you hold on to them, they will adversely affect your performance.  But if you have practiced how to identify and change your thinking  and you can change your time focus, you will not be affected by this!  You will be able to quickly change your thinking and refocus on your own performance in the present. 

See why mental prep is so important?  When you go on stage you have to have a clear head and a positive outlook.

Cheerleading competitions are high stakes, high pressure events. Competitions – especially Nationals –  are exciting, exhilarating, and for some of you – terrifying! Who can deny the thrill of performing in front of hundreds or thousands of screaming fans? 

Who would want to miss the opportunity to show the world the fruits of your months of hard work? The skills and hard work in your routine weren’t just given to you like free stuff on Gumtree or a present when it’s not your birthday.  And it has been hard work – creating your routine, revising it, and practicing it over and over again until you’ve nailed it! 

But rehearsing the routine repeatedly is only part of being a winner.  What is equally if not more important is the mental game of preparation for cheerleading competitions.  As I mentioned before, most pro athletes and virtually all Olympic athletes work with sports psychologists, so why not cheerleaders? 

Winning is the science of being totally prepared and being mentally prepared is essential.  

So what do I mean by mental preparation?  Mental preparation refers to learning how to control your body and control your thinking. It means training your body and your mind to do what you want them to do at the time of your performance to ensure you perform at an optimal level. 

You know, everything you do is dependent on your brain. You become what you think. Let me explain this a bit more so you have a good framework to help guide you as we proceed. 

A competition, although wonderful and exciting, may be perceived as a threatening event. Why threatening? Well there is risk involved. There is uncertainty involved (you may not win, you may not nail your routine, someone may get dropped, and so forth). Plus you are being observed by judges and a huge crowd; your every move is going to be scrutinized. 

In such situations you naturally get at least a bit anxious. Anxiety is your mind’s response to real or imagined danger. 

In such situations certain physical things happen. The grand control center in your brain, the prefrontal cortex which is located just behind the forehead, alerts certain other structures in the brain to flood your prefrontal cortex with stress hormones and neurotransmitters that short circuit brain functioning.  As a result, your attention narrows and your thinking becomes less flexible. Jumping to conclusions and acting precipitously or freezing are common at this point. 

In other words fear and stress can make you stupid! No offense – it happens to all of us. 

If an event is seen as positive or neutral, the prefrontal cortex will release a different chemical cocktail than if it is seen as negative.  In other words, depending on how you perceive a given situation, you will either perform well or poorly. So if you perceive a competition as a positive event and if you have control over your thoughts, your brain will release a slew of chemicals that will help you perform better.  

So, doesn’t it make sense to control your thoughts to make sure they are neutral or positive?  You’ll hear a lot more about this is future posts, so come back for more!

Stay tuned for an exciting new development!  In the very near future, I will be launching a new product – an information-filled CD (maybe 2!) and workbook on the mental game of cheerleading competition preparation. 

Many elite athletes work with sports psychologists to improve their performances, so why not cheerleaders?  Many pro athletes in most sports, including baseball, football, basketball, and soccer either work directly with sports psychologists or have coaches who are well versed in sports psychology strategies.  And virtually all Olympic teams have a sports psychologist on board. 

Seems to me it’s time cheerleaders reap the benefits of what sports psychology has to offer! 

In high level sports it is estimated that 50 – 90% of success can be attributed to mental factors such as confidence, composure, and concentration, to name a few.  These are known collectively as mental toughness.   Mental toughness skills can be strengthened and taught in order to ensure consistently and excellence in performance.  That’s what I do. 

I will be offering excerpts from the CD in future posts so be sure to check in regularly and please feel free to ask questions!