90-Minute Beginner Cheerleading Practice Plan

Bring them in on the mat or a clean sideline space in a tight semicircle so everyone can see you. Keep bags off the working area.

• Cover today: counts/finishes, no jewelry, hair up, athletic shoes tied, and no stunts without a coach call.
• Cues: “Freeze your finish.” “Wait for my count.” “If you’re not spotting, you’re not close.”
• Watch for: who listens and resets fast—those athletes become your count leaders in later periods.
• Common issue: athletes talking while you demo. Fix: stop, re-circle them closer, and restart with “Eyes on me for 20 seconds, then we move.”

Use one long line moving down and back: light jog, high knees, butt kicks, side shuffle, then arm circles and shoulder rolls. Finish in a circle for leg swings and ankle rolls.

• Cues: “Quiet feet.” “Tall chest.” “Land like you’re on thin ice.”
• Watch for: knees tracking over toes on squats and lunges—this sets up safer jump landings.
• Adjustment: if they’re stiff, add 30 seconds of calf raises and hamstring sweeps before you jump.

End with 2 quick 20-second core holds (hollow hold, then plank) to introduce “tight body” language you’ll use in stunts.

Mark spots with flat discs so athletes are spaced an arm’s length apart in 4–5 rows. You coach from the front, then walk the lines.

Teach and rep: clean (feet together), clasp, high V, low V, T, broken T, touchdown. Demo once, then run on an 8-count with a 2-count freeze on each picture.

• Cues: “Hit, stop.” “Squeeze your fists.” “Elbows locked.” “Chin up—eyes front.”
• Watch for: straight wrists and consistent angles across the row (not one arm higher).
• Common issue: bent elbows on T and broken T. Fix: have them press arms into an invisible wall for 3 seconds, then immediately re-hit the motion.

To speed it up once they’re consistent, remove the freeze on every other rep and demand the same sharp stop.

Stay on mats if you have them. Set two lines so you can see landings from the side. Everyone jumps together on your count—no one-at-a-time lines.

Progression: arm swing + dip (no jump) → straight jump with stick → tuck jump → toe touch attempts only after the landings look safe.

• Cues: “Swing low, jump fast.” “Knees over shoelaces on landing.” “Stick it—don’t wiggle.”
• Watch for: quiet, balanced landings with hips back slightly and chest up.
• Common issue: athletes throw head and chest forward. Fix: make them hold a “proud chest” squat for 2 seconds before the next rep.

If toe touches are messy, keep them on tuck jumps and focus on speed to the top and clean landings.

Get water fast and return to a knee in your stunt area. While they drink, tell them exactly what’s next: “We’re learning grips, counts, and safe downs—height is not the goal today.”

• Coach move: assign pods now (3–5 athletes) and point to their mat space so you don’t waste time after the break.

Each pod gets a square of mat and one cone behind them as their “reset line.” Start with no lifting—just positions.

1. Teach base stance (feet under hips, knees soft), hand placement, and how to keep the flyer close.
2. Teach back spot position with hands ready at the waist/hips area and eyes up.
3. Walk through a “load in” at ground level and freeze.

• Cues: “Close to your body.” “Eyes up.” “Hands ready before the dip.”
• Watch for: everyone moving on the same count—if counts aren’t together here, they won’t be together in the air.
• Common issue: spotter drifting behind or watching from far away. Fix: physically mark their toes with a disc and require them to stay inside that box.

If a pod is struggling, keep them on grip-and-freeze reps while other pods progress.

Pods stay in their mat squares. Run it like a circuit: on your whistle, every pod does one rep, then resets behind the cone and waits for the next whistle.

Goal is a clean prep: dip together, drive up, hold tight for 2 counts, then a controlled down on your call.

• Cues: “Dip together.” “Drive with legs.” “Hold 2.” “Down on my count.”
• Watch for: flyer staying tight (no bent hips) and bases keeping eyes up through the down.
• Common issue: bases re-grip mid-lift. Fix: stop that pod, re-set grips, and do 2 dips without lifting before they try again.

If pods are solid, let them add a tiny “pop” to reset to the ground only after the hold is consistent; if not, stay at slow holds and perfect downs.

Bring everyone back to spots on discs facing you. Teach a short 8-count motion sequence into one jump on count 7, then stick the landing and freeze.

• Example flow: clean → high V → T → low V → clasp → touchdown → jump → clean.
• Cues: “Sharp pictures.” “Breathe before the jump.” “Stick, then smile.”
• Watch for: timing—arms hit together and the jump happens on the same count across the group.
• Common issue: athletes rush the jump early. Fix: clap the count rhythm and make them speak counts out loud for 2 reps, then repeat silently.

If they’re nailing it, add volume: have them call one strong word on count 1 and keep faces up through the landing.

Quick water, then straight back to a knee. Use this as your correction window: pick one motion fix and one jump fix you want everyone to own next practice.

• Coach script: “Next block is clean reps only. If I say ‘freeze,’ nobody moves until I release.”

Circle up on the mat. Light stretch: calves, quads, hamstrings, shoulders. Keep it moving—no long hold lectures.

• Review questions: “What does ‘freeze the finish’ mean?” “Who calls ‘down’?” “What’s a safe landing?”
• Watch for: athletes answering with the exact words you used—this tells you what stuck.
• Send-home assignment: 20 clean motion reps in front of a mirror (high V/T/low V) and 10 perfect jump landings (straight jump, stick 2 seconds).

Finish with a quick team break so they leave organized and on time.