Miami Dolphins Cheerleader Reveals the Unexpectedly Shocking Amount of Time It Takes to 'Fluff' Their Pom Poms

Mar. 15, 2025

Miami Dolphins Cheerleader.Photo:Joel Auerbach/Getty

Joel Auerbach/Getty

No two pom poms are alike.

In aTikTok videoexplaining “things you wouldn’t know” about being an NFL cheerleader,Miami Dolphins squad member Bella Denton revealed a fascinating fact about their pom poms.

While she revealed that her team has to “fluff” their own pom poms throughout the season, the most surprising detail was the amount of time it takes to prep a singular pom pom.

“We fluff our own poms and fluffing one palm takes me like two-and-a-half hours,” Denton said in the TikTok clip where she rattles off “things that you might not know” about NFL cheerleaders.

However, the athlete assured that the time-consuming process was worth it in the end.

Miami Dolphins Cheerleaders.Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty

Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty

“It takes so long to fluff,” reemphasized Denton, adding, “But once it’s done it’s so rewarding because they look so pretty and new.”

First, DiLorenzo showed her viewers what her pom poms looked like before they were fluffed and then explained how she makes them look “fluff and fabulous” for game day.

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Miami Dolphins Cheerleaders.Rich Storry/Getty

Rich Storry/Getty

Since each strand has to be individually tended to, DiLorenzo’s tutorial backs up Denton’s claim about why the pom-pom fluffing process takes so long.

“With our poms specifically, they are very big and have many different sections and different colors,” she says in the clip, displaying her team’s iconic orange, aqua, white and silver props. “It’s definitely time-consuming, especially if you’re new to it.”

Miami Dolphins Cheerleader.Peter Joneleit/Icon Sportswire via Getty

Peter Joneleit/Icon Sportswire via Getty

Despite the lengthy time it takes to fluff each pom, Denton explained the process in a three-minute clip.

“You see the bar in the middle that we grab while we’re dancing and using them and then all the little pieces? Usually, we will work on one side at a time — and the side we’re not working with, we’ll take a little hair tie and just tie that section off… just to get it out of the way,” she began in the clip.

Denton then demonstrated “the method,” which involves “splitting and tugging and pulling,” that she and her fellow Miami Dolphins Cheerleaders do to achieve the perfect prop.

She explained, “Basically the tugging and pulling in opposite directions makes the fluffing effect.”

source: people.com