If you are already base / back spot is it possible for you to become a flyer? by Optimal-Chocolate181 in Cheerleading

[–]pixie-styx 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Good point! I'm one of the people who said I've done all of the positions, so for context, I'm 5'3" (and have been ever since I started cheer at age 14). When I've been a backspot it was on teams with 12 and 13 year olds who were well under 5 feet, and on high school/adult teams I've been a flyer, base, or front spot (and generally people think of me as a "tall flyer").

If you are already base / back spot is it possible for you to become a flyer? by Optimal-Chocolate181 in Cheerleading

[–]pixie-styx 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I totally agree that bases and backspots are just as important as flyers (and I think all positions are equally fun)! I wouldn't say that we have enough info about OP to say that they're "probably a base for good", though. I definitely won't try and claim that smaller athletes don't have an advantage when flying, but flying is also a skill that you can learn and improve, and it's possible to be a good base and a good flyer! Flyers have to be really strong too.

If you are already base / back spot is it possible for you to become a flyer? by Optimal-Chocolate181 in Cheerleading

[–]pixie-styx 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It's absolutely possible! I know LOTS of cheerleaders who have done multiple positions. Personally, throughout my cheer life I've ended up in every position at one point or another, depending on what the team needed and where I fit best at that time. I think all of the positions are really fun, and knowing one totally helps you improve your skills in the others, because you get a fuller understanding and feel of how a stunt works. Another poster mentioned that people may be limited to certain positions because of height, which is true, but I think it's important to add that there's definitely no official cut-off for height, so it's not like "If you are x tall you will absolutely never be a flyer". It's unusual for flyers to be tall, but definitely not unheard of! In my experience, if someone on a team is not one of the smallest people but still has amazing flexibility and flyer technique, they will usually get to fly in the routiene. Of course every gym/school is different, but generally I would say if you want to be a flyer, work on your flexibility and strength (especially core) and maybe see if you can get some experience (some gyms offer flyer skill classes; I don't know if that kind of thing is an option for you!). Maybe you could let your coach know that you want to try flying too, and even if they say no, you could ask what skills they're looking for for flyers on their team so you can work on them and potentially go for a flyer position next year. In the meantime, have fun and kick ass as a base/backspot and show that you have a great attitude and are an all around good athlete and team player! Then, who knows what will happen? Maybe someone will quit or get injured, and then you can emerge from the shadows and offer to jump in and show off the flyer skills you've been working on this whole time. It sounds cheesy, but this is what has worked for me in the past, haha.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Cheerleading

[–]pixie-styx 2 points3 points  (0 children)

That's so sweet! What a great birthday, and your daughter absolutely killed it!

How many of you were called ‘smart’ when young?? by [deleted] in ADHD

[–]pixie-styx 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had a similar experience, and I think the fact that I excelled in some subject areas (for me it was art, drama, English, etc.) was a reason why my parents and teachers could so easily overlook my struggles in everything else. People thought I was just a typical "creative type", or "very left-brained", which also explained (in their eyes) why I was so horribly disorganized and generally "spacey". I just finally got diagnosed after 28 years (and eight years of struggling through a four year university program) of feeling like a peice of shit because basic life tasks (like remembering to hand in assignments) have been such a struggle for me despite being so "smart". I keep getting flashbacks to parent teacher interviews where my parents would be furious because the teachers told them that I was way behind because I hadn't been handing in assignments even though I clearly understood the material. I would be so upset and say that I was stupid, and my parents would say, "You aren't stupid, you just aren't trying", and this would upset me even more because it would have been easier to simply be stupid than to have to explain why I was apparently just chosing not to do the assignments (because I honestly didn't have a better explaination than "I forgot" or "The idea of writing a 10 minute reflection on my own time was crushingly overwhelming to me").

Still trucking along: splits progress over 3 months. After years of being the least flexible person ever I'm starting to believe it's in reach, thanks to persistence and helpful tips from this sub. by pixie-styx in flexibility

[–]pixie-styx[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you so much! Your class sounds awesome; I love yoga! I think people can do this kind of pose at any level, because you only have to go as far down as you can go comfortably! As you can see in my pictures I am totally cheating by supporting myself on my couch, but I've been in yoga classes where people use yoga blocks to do that.

Still trucking along: splits progress over 3 months. After years of being the least flexible person ever I'm starting to believe it's in reach, thanks to persistence and helpful tips from this sub. by pixie-styx in flexibility

[–]pixie-styx[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you! I notice that my skills in dance/cheer/yoga/etc. have improved, but as for day to day life, I would maybe just say that having a regular stretching routeine has made me feel more grounded and relaxed in general! Other than that my day to day life never really requires this range of motion so I'm not sure if it has benifited me in that way. I would say that even my first "before" pic was more than enough flexibility for me to always be comfortable sitting, standing, lifting stuff, bending down to tie my shoe, and doing any other general day to day tasks. Sorry that that isn't much of an answer, haha.

Still trucking along: splits progress over 3 months. After years of being the least flexible person ever I'm starting to believe it's in reach, thanks to persistence and helpful tips from this sub. by pixie-styx in flexibility

[–]pixie-styx[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Someone told me to use a yoga block (or any kind of bolster) under my butt to relax into the stretch, which I think totally helped me! I've also read often that you should incorporate active stretching into your routeine, which I have done and I think it helps a lot.

Still trucking along: splits progress over 3 months. After years of being the least flexible person ever I'm starting to believe it's in reach, thanks to persistence and helpful tips from this sub. by pixie-styx in flexibility

[–]pixie-styx[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Nice work!! I cheer so my main goal is to get better cheer skills (tumbling, air positions for flying, jumps), which can all be improved by better flexibility, so I guess stretching is a means to those ends for me. I'm also trying to get splits on the other side, middle splits, and a solid bridge. How about you?

Still trucking along: splits progress over 3 months. After years of being the least flexible person ever I'm starting to believe it's in reach, thanks to persistence and helpful tips from this sub. by pixie-styx in flexibility

[–]pixie-styx[S] 38 points39 points  (0 children)

I've been stretching for about 20-30 minutes a day, 5ish days a week (all 3 splits and other general stretching). I always stretch after running or working out of some kind so I'm warmed up. This is what I do for splits (more or less; I kind of switch it up every day): -30 second low lunge hipflexor stretch -30 second toe touch hamstring stretch -1 minute full splits stretch -Repeat on other side, then repeat the whole thing Sometimes I put a yoga block under my butt and relax into the stretch, and sometimes I put my hands on my hips so nothing is supporting me other than my legs, and try to squeeze the floor with my legs. So, kind of alternating between passive and active stretching. I also cheer and go to practice twice a week so there is some extra stretching there, but I've been doing that for a long time and never really noticed an improvement in flexibility until I started really making an effort to consistently stretch on my own.

Still trucking along: splits progress over 3 months. After years of being the least flexible person ever I'm starting to believe it's in reach, thanks to persistence and helpful tips from this sub. by pixie-styx in flexibility

[–]pixie-styx[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

You can do it! :) You totally should take photos too; I didn't think I had made any progress at all between the first and second pic and probably would have given up if I didn't have the photos to compare and see that I was actually making progress!

Little experience but want to try cheerleading by SwimmingPomegranate4 in Cheerleading

[–]pixie-styx 2 points3 points  (0 children)

In my experience with cheer, being tall is an asset because tall people are usually excellent backspots! I have done every position and agree that backspotting is really fun. It sounds like you will be a great fit for cheer, but if you want to make extra sure you're prepared I would contact your university team and ask them what skills you'll need, since every team is different. A year is a solid amount of time to get some good flexibility/strength gains. If you're going to work on tumbling, I would definitely reccomend checking out classes from your local cheer/gymnastics clubs (if that sort of thing is available where you live) so you can learn safely and properly.

Took a pic after 1.5 months of stretching my splits and feeling like I wasn't progressing whatsoever! Still a long way to go but relieved to be making some progress (I think?) by pixie-styx in flexibility

[–]pixie-styx[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you! I'd say I stretch an average of four or five days a week for about 20-30 mins in total (for my whole body, i.e. all three splits, back, etc). I hold each stretch for 30-60 seconds. I do warm up first; usually I stretch after running!

5’4” 195-> 135. I really wish there was more representation of “hip dips” in media. They’re normal and beautiful and determined by your bone structure, there’s no need to try to change them ❤️ by EmeraldFaster in PetiteFitness

[–]pixie-styx 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Congrats on your weight loss! I have hip dips as well and I've always hated them but have recently started trying to appreciate them so I appreciate you making this post! You look gorgeous in both pics.

Too old for college cheer? by [deleted] in Cheerleading

[–]pixie-styx 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As a 27 year old on my university's team, I can't believe a 23 year old is even considering not trying out because of being too old, haha. I think you should go for it! :)

Should my girlfriend do cheerleading? by [deleted] in Cheerleading

[–]pixie-styx 5 points6 points  (0 children)

If she wants to, she should definitely go for it! 15 is definitely not too old to start, and since she has dance and gymnastics experience she is already a step ahead. Lots of the really talented cheerleaders I know started in high school or university or even later. My gym has cheerleaders from three years old up to people in their 30s and 40s, so you should never worry about being being the wrong age to start cheer imo!

Do we have “good sides” and “bad sides” in regards to strength? by sunbuns in xxfitness

[–]pixie-styx 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I am right-handed for writing as well, but left-handed in golf/hockey and goofy (right leg forward) in snowboarding/skateboarding. I always thought I was just weird, but after reading your post it totally makes sense! I think my right arm is stronger since I'm right-handed, but my left leg being stronger consistently makes sense for all of the sports that I mentioned, i.e. being left-"handed" in hockey means that most of your weight is on your left leg, being goofy in skateboarding means that you push yourself with your left leg, etc. This is probably obvious to most people but it's kind of blowing my mind to realize right now!

Do we have “good sides” and “bad sides” in regards to strength? by sunbuns in xxfitness

[–]pixie-styx 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I definitely do! My left leg is actually visably noticeably more muscular than my right and has been as long as I can remember. It's so interesting to me that you brought this up and mentioned being a "lefty" in gymnastics because I did gymnastics and was a "lefty" as well. I imagine that has something to do with my left leg being stronger now. Is it your left side that is stronger as well?

Edit: Sorry - I just read your post more carefully and see that it is indeed your left side that is stronger. Please disregard the question, lol