Hello!

I’m Deryn, a former allstar cheerleader, coach, MSc graduate and Registered Kinesiologist. I created The Cheer Kin for two reasons: 1) To help cheerleaders reach their goals, and 2) To act as a credible source of information to educate athletes, coaches and parents on the science behind cheerleading.

With this blog, I hope to improve the cheer industry by changing the approach to athlete development, skill progression and competition preparation. My wish is for cheerleading to be pushed in a more safe, positive and productive direction so it can finally be recognized as a competitive sport!

My Story

During my years as a cheerleader, I developed an interest in the human body and was curious about how it functioned in relation to cheer. I wanted to know how exactly conditioning and stretching resulted in improvements in strength and flexibility, why I was sore after practice and why mental blocks existed. This led me to pursue a BASc in Kinesiology, a Diploma in Fitness & Health Promotion and a MSc in Sports Science & Rehabilitation.

When entering university, I had been coaching competitive cheer for 2 years already. Looking back, I can see I had absolutely no idea what I was doing! Sure, I completed a certification program for cheer coaches, could put together routines and felt pretty comfortable teaching skills, but becoming certified as a cheer coach really taught me nothing in terms of how the body moves, the biomechanics of tumbling and stunting, how to develop safe and effective conditioning and flexibility programs, or anything related to athlete psychology.

During my time in school, I also began working with a former National Team Gymnast (now a coach) who introduced me to a whole new world of tumbling, stunting, conditioning and flexibility training. This approach to training and the mindset towards developing oneself/others into top-notch athletes was completely unlike what is taught in cheerleading.

Fast forward a few years later and it’s clear to me that there are a tremendous number of gaps in how the cheer world approaches skill progression, competition preparation, strength/flexibility development and a whole lot more. I really wish I had known the things I do now when I was younger, or that I had a coach who did, because it would have made a world of a difference in my skills, abilities and confidence.

Although I was unable to reach my full potential as a cheerleader, I want to help the next generation of cheerleaders find success and surpass all expectations they have of themselves. This begins with knowledge and understanding (from athletes, coaches and parents) of the foundations of cheerleading skills and proper approaches to athlete development, followed by implementation of progressive training programs according to age and skill level. With these tools, there’s no doubt cheerleaders can reach all their goals and coaches can create winning teams!

Values