Sometimes it’s easy to get wrapped up in the competition and rising levels of expectation this time of year, but don’t forget to enjoy yourself, too! Stress and anxiety have a way of creeping in and keeping you from seeing the fun aspects of competition, like spending time with your friends doing what you love; and unfortunately, this tension can also cloud your performance. Check out our squad stress busters to help your team get on the same page and have the best competition season ever.
Agree on the same goals.
Instead of making every practice about perfection, make room for error and practicing these errors. Come together as a team and discuss realistic goals that will keep you focused on the right things, and reaffirm the positive after you reach a goal.
Relax and breathe as a team.
We’ve all heard that yoga can be a sure way to fitness and relaxation, so why not incorporate this into your team’s conditioning routine? Whether it’s a group yoga class once a week or a few poses at the beginning of each practice, it’s important to relax as a team before you really hit the mats!
Make time for fun.
Don’t forget that you’re on your cheer squad because you enjoy cheering, and so does the rest of your team! You will go through things with your teammates that will bring you closer together than you might have ever thought, so it’s important to spend time with them outside of practice and game days, too. Here are a couple of our favorite cheer team bonding activities!
Have a local culture day!
Explore the best of what your area has to offer as a team. Take a tour of one of your town’s most famous attractions and remember how cool it is that you’re representing a school from your great city.
Positive Reinforcement!
Take a half hour and have all of your teammates sign squad tee shirts or greeting cards and leave short encouraging notes to each other. Make sure to focus on how much each of you has impacted your team for the better.
For more tips and ideas, go to page 48 in the December issue of American Cheerleader!
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1 response so far ↓
Madelyn Dec 4, 2012 at 11:02 pm
This is exactly what every team needs and this really helped my team. No way this doesn’t work
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