If you need a reminder that cheer seasons do not care about your plans for the season… hi. Welcome. 🙃

This year has felt like what I called the “absence trifecta”: injury, illness, and weather. And if you’re a coach or gym owner, you already know what that means in real life:

  • attendance that changes by the hour

  • routines that look different every single practice

  • a to-do list that grows while your patience shrinks

  • and the constant pressure of “We only have ___ practices left.”

So in Part 2, Allie Loomis and I finished the conversation about illnesses and then get into the third thing heavily affecting attendance for half the country this year – weather.

But before we even get there, I need to say this loud for the people in the back. The flu sucks. Last weekend 12 of my 14 Youth 1 kids had the flu. Half flu A and half flu B.

Illness is real, and you don’t need to prove it

The flu (and everything else floating around) has been intense. And I’m going to say something that feels obvious, but coaches still get stuck in a weird mental tug-of-war:

If a kid has a 102 fever, I do not want them in the gym.
 Not to train. Not to “just watch.” Not to “mark through.”

They can learn the changes when they come back. I am not running a cheer gym and a germ distribution center at the same time. Plus, are we making big changes every single practice or are we focusing on technique and drills to improve our scores where there is usually the biggest gap?

Now, that doesn’t mean you ignore attendance standards. It means you separate illness from the normal “scheduled vs. unscheduled” categories.

Allie shared how their absence system works through Jackrabbit, including scheduled and unscheduled absences — and then clarified that illness doesn’t get lumped into that same bucket. If a kid is truly sick, you don’t have much of a choice but to believe them. If it’s lasting longer than a practice or two, then yes, you might start asking for a doctor’s note. I’ll be the first to say, I’ve been sick three times since Dec. 7 (yes, I remember where I caught it) and I haven’t been to the doctor once, so even a doctor’s note can be tricky sometimes.

But the bigger point here is what I want you to take away:

Your policies don’t create consistency. Your systems do.

You can have the best handbook in the world, but if parents don’t know how to notify you effectively, you’ll still be standing there at practice like… “Where is everyone?”

Allie and I talked about common breakdowns:

  • the parent who emails 20 minutes before practice

  • the coach who doesn’t see it until after practice starts

  • the front desk getting blindsided

  • and a whole team warming up without key athletes

A clean system solves that.

Examples of systems that actually help:

  • A required portal submission (so it’s not scattered through emails, DMs, and texts)

  • Notifications that go directly to coaches, not just one shared inbox

  • A simple process for uploading a doctor’s note

  • And yes… follow-up phone calls when someone is absent without notice

(Allie’s gym does this through Jackrabbit. My gym is using Next Gen Engine for this next year.) 

Because here’s what happens when you don’t follow up: Parents learn they can disappear and nothing happens – or – they think you don’t care. Even worse, if my high schooler just got her license and doesn’t show up on time, the gym better be calling me to ask where she is or I may not know she didn’t make it!

And it’s not about being harsh. It’s about creating a rhythm where families respect the commitment because the expectation is clear.

Also, side note: follow-up calls magically reduce lateness, too. Suddenly the “traffic” excuse feels really lame when you live in a town with three stoplights. 🙃

Speaking of things that make you late for practice – let’s take a second to talk about the weather half the country just got done dealing with:

Don’t take weather advice from someone who lives 600 miles from you

I saw people asking in Facebook groups:
 “What do you do for snow closures?”
 “Would you cancel practice?”
 “Would you still compete?”

And I get why you’re asking. You’re trying to make the best call for your athletes and families.

But here’s the problem: weather decisions are not universal.

If you ask someone in a place where snow is just… Tuesday… you’ll get one kind of answer. If you ask someone in a place where half an inch of snow or ice shuts the town down, you’ll get a totally different one.

Allie and I talked about it like this: she can have a ton of snow on the ground and still have dry roads. In my area? We can get ice, pipes freeze, buildings aren’t equipped for it, and suddenly you can’t even find bread at Walmart (why is it always the bread??).

So no, it’s not “bad” to ask for advice. It’s just that when you ask, you need to ask the following.

Ask:

  • “Where are you located?”

Maybe even follow up with:

  • “What’s the driving comfort level of your families?”

  • “What time do you decide by?”

  • “How far do athletes drive in from other towns?”

Because “What do you do for snow?” is not a helpful question unless we know what “snow” even means where you live.

Weather has been tough for half the country this year, but illness has been tough for all of us!

Weather closures: pick a decision time, and stick to it

At my gym, we announce by 2 p.m. if we’re closing. That is based heavily on the start time of our evening classes and how far people are traveling. Make your decisions wisely. You don’t want bad weather happening, and people are getting the email after they’ve already left the house. They’ll be annoyed, and I don’t blame them. 

That’s a great example of how to lead through weather without panicking:

  • decide by a specific time

  • communicate clearly

  • and use options besides “open” or “closed”. We offer those recorded Zoom videos from 2020 or even a live class like we did in 2020 so we don’t have to do a thousand make up classes the following week.

You have options. If 2020 taught us anything, it’s that you can teach tumbling and cheer on Zoom. 🤷‍♀️

The heart of this whole episode: remember who you’re coaching

At the end of our conversation, Allie said something I don’t want you to miss:

This is a hard season. But we coach children.

And when injuries pile up or absences stretch on for weeks, it’s easy for us to go into problem-solving mode:

“Who can fill in?”
“How do we fix this routine?”
“What do we do now?”

That’s not wrong. That’s leadership.

But if you’re wired like me and that empathy piece doesn’t always come first naturally, you need to build a system that forces you to remember it.

  • Text the injured athlete.

  • Email mom or dad.

  • Send a quick “thinking about you” message.

  • Tell them you can’t wait until they’re cleared.

Those little touchpoints make athletes feel seen — and that changes everything.

One last mindset shift before you go back to your routine chaos

If you feel like your season is falling apart… you’re not alone.

This is the part I want to remind you of when you’re frustrated and exhausted:

You are on a level playing field right now.

Everyone is dealing with it. Injuries. Illness. Weather. Unpredictable attendance.

Yes, bigger gyms may have more fill-in options. But smaller gyms often have something huge on their side:

  • strong community

  • personal connection

  • and the ability to rally together when things get hard

This season is forcing a lot of programs to get more strategic, more flexible, and more mentally tough.

And honestly? That’s not the worst thing.

Because routines change. Seasons get messy. Plans fall apart.

But the coaches and gym owners who keep progress moving anyway?

Those are the ones who build athletes who can handle anything — on the mat and off it.

 

📺Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/JFcrYnkIIkw 

🎧Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0cP2ypVV25OBUQY79H5DrJ?si=298cc41ecbd94ec4 

🍏Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fullout-cheer-podcast/id1763244914