What's the Ideal Weight of a Cheerleading Flyer?

Whether a cheerleader can fly is dependent on whether or not her bases are strong enough to lift her. A flyer’s height, and the heights of the rest of her teammates, also play a role in whether she flies.

Those two factors in flying are down to the make-up of the team, their strength, and heights. But the ability to get a flyer in the air—regardless of her size—comes down to much more than just the strength of the team and the fliers height.

The Team Attitude

A big factor in whether or not a cheerleader flies is the attitude of her teammates. Cheerleaders should always have a positive attitude, but we all know that practice can be hard and things sometimes don't go as planned. Maintaining a positive attitude can be hard.

We also know that in order to make any stunt successful, the stunt team must believe that it will hit. If you didn’t know that, have a look online for inspirational cheerleading quotes. You are bound to find one that paraphrases: "If you can believe it, you can achieve it." Sure, it’s cheesy, but it is also true.

To get any flyer in the air, everyone in the stunt group needs to believe that they can get the flyer in the air. That includes the flyer. She must be confident that she can get in the air, as well. If everyone in the stunt group believes they can lift the flyer even if only in a prep, they will be more focused on the stunt which will make it feel more natural and lighter.

Trust

Coaches continuously try to develop trust among teammates through bonding games and events. Flying is possibly one of the most frightening parts of cheerleading. A flyer is putting her safety in the hands of her bases when she stunts. That takes an enormous amount of trust.

So how do you make a flyer trust you enough to let you throw her in a toe touch basket? First, you need to trust yourself. If you are afraid that you won’t be able to catch the flyer, chances are it will show. If you genuinely don’t think you are ready, speak to your coach. Speak to them outside the flyers earshot. Your coach wouldn’t ask you to do something she didn’t think you were capable of doing. Talking to her about your worries could give her an opportunity to let you in on why she thinks you'll be able to do it. It'll help you trust yourself.

Next, always be positive and make your flyer feel good about flying with you. Never say: "You are a lot heavier than our old flyer," or anything to that effect. It's not just bullying. It shifts the flyer’s focus from the stunt to her weight. That means that she won’t be as tight, either. So, she'll feel ten times heavier.

Last, pay attention and don’t talk or mess around. We said it before, and we’ll repeat it: Flying is scary! But it is even more frightening when you don’t trust your bases to pay attention to your safety during the stunt.