40+ Vintage Photos of Cheerleaders That Make Us Feel Nostalgic

This article appeared in sportinal.com and has been published here with permission.

Cheerleading is much different now from what it was back in the day. We have gathered some vintage photos of cheerleaders from yesteryear that will make you wish you were born in another generation!

A Tough Job

Cheerleaders put copious amounts of hours into training to make sure that their routines are perfect. Not only is a lot of training required, but keeping fit and healthy is also another requirement that comes with being a cheerleader. Most coaches back in the day would have their cheer squad on strict diets so they had enough energy for the games!

Bring it Home!

While most modern cheerleading uniforms are skin-tight and made with a certain material to allow cheerleaders to move about freely, this was not always the case. This is perfectly demonstrated by this next vintage photo from an Iowa State cheerleader.

Iowa is a midwest state and thus would get extremely cold during the winter. This would probably explain the thick, woolen Iowa sweater this cheerleader is adorning. If these girls are cheerleading during the summer, they may have to look for an alternative!

Poms Poms Up

You may not recognize her here, but this is actually a still from the 1960 movie Tall Story, with Jane Fonda in her first-ever on-screen role. Fonda plays June Ryder who goes to university to not only study home economics, but to find a husband.

As shown in these photos, the 1960s were a new era for cheerleading uniforms compared to Sandy's cheerleading uniform in Grease. The inclusion of the miniskirt in these uniforms allowed cheerleaders to move freely and perform a number of difficult tricks.

Truly All American

While cheerleading is starting to become a popular hobby and profession around the world, its importance and prevalence in American culture cannot be understated. There are cheerleaders at a high school or college level, and beyond that, people can become professional cheerleaders.

However, people really underestimate cheerleaders. They might think these ladies are dumb just because they're cheerleaders, however, that's certainly not true. Many cheerleaders at a professional level actually have college diplomas and are very skilled in their field.