Jump, Jump, Jump! The What and How of Cheerleading Jumps.

Cheerleaders jumping around on the sidelines may seem arbitrary and random, but really, jumps are skills that require athleticism, flexibility, and strength.  Jumps are used to accentuate a point in a cheer or chant, grab your attention during a routine, show spirit at the end of a great play or show of spirit from the crowd.

There are eight different jumps that cheerleaders perform.  Tuck, Star (also called a straddle or spread eagle), Left and Right Side Hurdlers, Toe Touch, Left and Right Front Hurdlers, and Pike.

All of the jumps are performed the same way with the difference being the body position at the top of the jump.  The performance of the jumps can be broken into 4 parts; The Approach, Height, Form and the Landing.  I’ll go through each of these, with some input from the NCA & UCA staff on technique.

Approach

The approach creates the momentum to follow through and help get height when jumping off the ground.  It is controlled and distinct in the movement.

Start your up with your feet together and arms in a High V position.  On a designated count, swing both arms downward in front of your face.  As your arms cross dip down a little with your legs.  Timing is key here.  Your arms should be at their lowest point of the swing when the legs are at the deepest part of the dip.  This allows the arms and legs to quickly explode into the air at the same time. 

Height

You should try to jump off the ground and get as much height as possible to give your body time to hit the jump and land safely. This happens when you get an explosive jump timed with the lift of the arms.

Form

Proper jump technique puts your chest up with your shoulders slightly in front of the hips.  The arms (for most jumps) should be in a strong T motion.  Make sure that leg muscles are flexed and straight and toes are pointed.  As flexibility increases, allow your legs to extend as high as possible and relax the hips.

Landing

If you have given yourself enough height to hit the motion at the top of the jump, you should have enough time to land properly.  When landing, you should land with both feet together at the same time.  If you don’t land even you can put unnecessary stress on your knees and ankles.  If you are not landing with your feet together lower the height of the skill at the top of the jump until the flexibility and strength have been developed to maintain safety.

Here is a definition of each of the eight jumps:

Cheerleading Jump Positions

Tuck

At the top of the jump, pull your knees up to your chest and point your toes.  The arms should be in a High V.

Straddle / Star / Spread Eagle

At the top of the jump, the legs should come out to a Low V position with the shoelaces pointed at the crowd.  The arms should be in a tight High V.

Left and Right Side Hurdlers

At the top of the jump, raise either the left or right leg to a straight position out to the side of the body.  The other leg will be in a bent position to the other side parallel with the ground.  The arms should be in a T motion and the chest up.

Toe Touch

In a toe touch, you do not actually touch your toes.  You want to reach for the instep of the shoe.  Bring both legs up and out to the sides.  Try and roll the hips back so that the shoelaces are pointed behind you.  The arms should be in a T motion and the chest up.

Left and Right Front Hurdlers

This jump is performed at a 45-degree angle to the crowd in the direction of the straight leg.  At the top of the jump, raise either the left or right leg to a straight position in front of the body.  The other leg will be in a bent position with the knee stretched out almost like the splits.  The foot of the bent leg will try to kick the seat of the jumper.  The arms should be in a Touchdown motion and the chest up.

Pike

This jump is also performed at a 45-degree angle to the crowd in either direction.  At the top of the jump, lift both legs to a straight position in front of the body.  The arms should be in a Candlestick motion and the chest up.

Please remember that stretching before these types of strenuous activities are KEY!  Make sure that you have warmed up all the muscles and worked the ankles, knees, and shoulders.

Flexibility and Core strength training will play a key role in improving the height and extension of your jumps.  Practice them EVERY DAY!

CHEERS!

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CW3

Jump Around

Last year my post on Jumps was the most popular for my blog for the A to Z Challenge.  I decided to keep with that topic for the "J" theme for today.  

So many people watch cheerleaders and see them jumping around on the sidelines and don’t realize that the jumping they are doing are very specific movements and require quite a bit of athleticism.  In all, there are 9 different jumps that cheerleaders perform.  The tuck, star (straddle), tabletop (hook), left and right side hurdlers, left and right herkies, toe touch, left and right front hurdlers, pike and double nine. 

Jumps can be broken down into three parts.

The approach or the prep, the execution of the jump and the landing.

The approach is where we set up for the jump.  Usually we start with the arms in a high v or high clasp position and swing the arms toward the ground while bending our knees. 

The execution starts from the end of the prep and is where we actually leave the ground.  Swinging the arms back up to a T or high V position and lifting the legs off the ground into one of the positions listed above.

The landing is one of the most important pieces of the jump.  Once we have finished with the execution part, we snap the legs together and land on the ground on the balls of our feet.

Here is an example of how to do a toe touch jump.
JUMP - The Toe Touch

In order to achieve the beautiful jump shown here, it takes quite a bit of stretching and conditioning.  Jumps use leg and core strength, hip stability and flexibility.  My team works on circuit training, dynamic training and stretching during pre-season and summer to improve these skills.  Here is one of out workouts:

Dynamic Warm-Up (60 Yards Each)

High Knees

Butt Kickers

Grapevine/Karaoke

Frog Leaps

Walking Lunges

Walking High Kicks

Inch Worms

Mario’s/Bounds

Spiderman Crawl

Leg Swings (on Fence)

Circuit Training (Do the Circuit Two Times)

Straddle Ups (15)

Right Kicks (20 Kicks)

Left Kicks (20 Kicks)

Crunches – Straight Legs (30 Crunches)

Jumping Jacks – High V Low V (20 Times)

Push-Ups – From The Ground (15 Push-Ups)

Lunges (15 On Each Leg)

Squats (20 With A 3 Second Hold)

Continuous Whip Jumps (20 Times)

Planks (20 Seconds At A Time, Bent Arms)

Hip Flexors (20 Seconds On Each Leg And Middle)

Wall Sits (30 Seconds, Arms Over Head)

 

Cool-Down Stretch (Stretch from Head to Toe)

Roll Head To From And Back

Roll Shoulders Front And Back

Right & Left Arm Across Your Chest

Right & Left Arm Behind Your Head

Hands Clasped Behind Your Back And Straighten Arms

Standing Pike Stretch

Left & Right Quad Stretch

Standing Straddle Left, Right & Middle

Squat Stretch

Left And Right Batgirl Stretch

Sitting Straddle Left, Right & Middle

Sitting Left & Right Hurdler Stretch

Sitting Pike, Flex Feet & Lift Heels Off Ground

Sitting Pike, Pointed Toes

Butterfly, Legs In Tight

Butterfly, Legs Out

Cover Girl Left & Right

Pigeon Pose, Left & Right

Splits, Left, Right & Middle

Roll Ankles & Wrists

Bridge Stretch

I hope this helps you in your team quest for better jumps!

CHEERS!

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CW3