If your athlete is competing at AASCF Winterfest this year, you already know the drill. End of term 2, routines that are still taking shape, nerves that have been building for weeks, and a competition day that somehow always feels like it arrives too fast.
Winterfest is the first major AASCF cheer competition of the Australian cheer season. For a lot of athletes - especially newer ones - it's their first time stepping onto a competition floor. The routine might not be perfect yet. That's completely normal. Winterfest routines are always at a skeleton stage. The skills are there. The polish comes later in the season.
What actually separates athletes who perform well at Winterfest from those who struggle isn't always the routine. It's how prepared their body and mind are when they walk onto that mat. Here's what I tell every athlete and parent heading into cheer competition preparation.
💪 Nerves are normal -
and they're manageable.
Every athlete gets nervous before competition. Even the ones who look completely calm on the outside. The difference between nerves that help you perform and nerves that make you fall apart usually comes down to one thing - preparation.
When an athlete knows they've done everything they can to be ready, the nerves become energy instead of anxiety. They still feel it. But they can use it.
The problem is that most of the preparation focus goes on the routine and almost none goes on the body. What the athlete ate the night before. Whether they slept properly. Whether they're actually hydrated when they walk into that venue. Those things matter more than most people realise.
🌙 The night before
AASCF Winterfest.
This one gets overlooked every single time. Athletes and families get caught up in the excitement of competition eve - staying up late, eating whatever's convenient, skipping the water because it's a fun night.
But what your athlete eats the night before directly affects how they feel on the floor the next day.
In the 24 hours before competition, the goal is protein and slow-release carbohydrates. Think spaghetti bolognese, lasagna, chicken with sweet potato and vegetables, stir fry with rice, eggs on toast. These meals give the body steady energy that lasts - not a quick spike followed by a crash at exactly the wrong moment.
What to avoid the night before
- Greasy or fried food
- Overly spicy meals
- Large amounts of sugary desserts
- Energy drinks
- Anything brand new the body hasn't had before
New food before competition is always a risk. Stick to what's familiar and easy to digest. And please - go to bed at a reasonable time. Sleep is genuinely one of the most powerful performance tools available, and it costs nothing.
🥣 Competition day food -
what actually works.
Competition day should not look dramatically different from a normal training day when it comes to food. That's the most important thing to understand.
Start with a balanced breakfast - protein and carbohydrates together. Eggs on toast, yoghurt with fruit, or even a bowl of oats with some protein on the side. The goal is to feel fuelled but not overfull. An athlete who's bloated or heavy is not going to perform the way they can.
Pack familiar snacks for the day. Things the athlete eats regularly and knows sit well. Bananas are my absolute go-to for cheer comp day food - easy to digest, quick energy, portable, and almost every athlete will actually eat one. A small handful of almonds or pistachios, yoghurt, fruit, rice cakes with peanut butter - these are all solid options.
Between routines
If your athlete is competing more than once with more than 30 minutes between routines, treat the gap like a normal recovery window - get some protein in, keep grazing, keep hydrated.
Less than 30 minutes between routines? Keep it light. Something easy to digest that won't sit heavily.
🗓️ A typical Winterfest comp day -
hour by hour.
Balanced breakfast + first water of the day
Protein + carbs together. Eggs on toast, oats with yoghurt, something familiar. Sip water as you eat - don't chug it before you leave.
Steady sips, no fizzy drinks
Pack a marked water bottle. The athlete should be drinking from it the whole journey. No energy drinks, no sports drinks - just water.
Land, settle, dynamic warm-up
Get checked in, find the team, stay calm. Light dynamic movement - don't sit cold for an hour, don't burn out warming up too early.
Last small snack
Banana, rice cake, half a sandwich - something familiar and easy to digest. Not a full meal. Keep sipping water.
Trust the work.
Everything that's going to happen has already been built. Walk on, do the routine they trained for, walk off.
Protein snack + rehydrate
Yoghurt, jerky, a protein bar, a small can of tuna. This is the recovery window. If they're competing again, it matters even more.
Refuel properly + early sleep
A real meal, not just venue snacks. Get them to bed at a reasonable time. Comp days are exhausting - sleep is part of the recovery.
The competition day checklist worth actually using
💧 Hydration -
the thing everyone forgets.
If your athlete arrives at the venue already thirsty, they're already behind. Cheer athlete hydration needs to start the day before competition, not on the morning of.
Water is the answer. Not sports drinks, not flavoured water, not energy drinks. Just water, consistently throughout the day.
During competition day, encourage small regular sips rather than big gulps. Drinking a large amount of water right before competing can cause discomfort and cramping. Steady intake throughout the day is what keeps the body functioning properly under pressure.
Energy drinks spike heart rate, disrupt sleep, and create habits around caffeine that have no place in youth sport.
Already thirsty when arriving at the venue · drinking only at meal times · sipping flavoured water or sports drinks instead of plain · downing a big bottle right before competing · skipping water because the bathroom queue is long.
📅 The two weeks
before Winterfest.
Consistency is everything here. The worst thing you can do in the two weeks before a competition is suddenly change what your athlete eats. The body needs time to adjust to new foods - competition day is not that time.
Keep training snacks consistent. Keep meals balanced. Make sure protein is going in within 30 to 60 minutes after training sessions - this is when the body repairs and rebuilds muscle. Skipping it means athletes show up to the next session more tired and more sore than they need to be.
After-training snacks that work
- A Primo snack pack
- An Up & Go
- Milk
- Chicken
- Eggs
- A small can of tuna
- A protein bar if dinner is still a while away
The habits built in the two weeks before Winterfest will show up on the competition floor. They always do.
💭 What families try on comp day -
vs what actually works.
Energy drinks help athletes feel ready and sharp on comp day.
They spike heart rate, then crash performance. Steady food and water beat caffeine every time, especially for young athletes.
Eat extra in the morning to "fuel up" for the day.
Treat it like a normal training day. A bloated, heavy athlete cannot perform the way they can. Balanced beats big.
Try a new pre-comp meal or supplement that worked for someone else.
New food before competition is always a risk. Comp day is not the time to experiment. Stick to what their body knows.
Drink a big bottle of water right before going on, just to be safe.
Causes cramping and discomfort on the floor. Steady sips all day beats one big chug pre-routine.
🏆 What Winterfest
is actually about.
Yes, the routine matters. Yes, the skills matter. But Winterfest is the start of a long season - and the athletes who come away from it feeling strong, regardless of the result, are the ones who carry that confidence into every competition that follows.
Preparation doesn't start on the competition floor. It starts long before it.
Feed your athlete well. Hydrate them properly. Let them sleep. And then trust the work they've put in.
The rest takes care of itself.