Why I Love Girls In Sports

Participating in a sport is the one thing that I consistently find myself recommending to almost all of my clients looking for help building their confidence. I’m a firm believer of the benefits in participating in sports. I love to see girls in sports! And that’s what I’m sharing in this month’s blog post….

I spoke to my husband about because he was a professional athlete and is still very involve in sports. I asked him what he thinks is the biggest benefit to having a teenager participating in sports. Now, he and I have different answers to the same question, so I’m sharing both. Here are our top 2 reasons why we believe girls should be in sports:

1. To experience being part of a team

The lifelong relationships that develop from the sisterhood formed with teammates give your daughter a strong support system. A lot of parents come to me with girls who are having trouble making friends or who don’t have any friends at all. Sports provide an opportunity to have relationships with people who your daughter may not necessarily have chosen to be her friends. Being a part of a team can give your daughter a sense of belonging with her teammates. The shared experiences, highs of winning and the lows of losing all create a close bond within that group of girls. It brings families together. It brings the community together. That’s the support system that you want for your daughters to help her feel secure and to help her know she has a place where she is valued.

2. To develop an appreciation for their bodies

They are tackling a physical goal. The teen years are all about constantly working towards something, sometimes it’s a grade on an exam or it’s a long-term, major goal like a college acceptance. But there’s just something different about when it’s a physical goal. Whether it’s a team goal or an individual goal, your daughter has a chance to experience using her body in a very positive way. She is pushing it to a limit that otherwise she wouldn’t experience. There’s this confidence that comes from seeing your body reach new levels of high performance, confidence that comes from building physical strength, and knowing that you have it because you worked for it.

Girls in sports have a healthier body image and tend to be more successful in maintaining a healthy weight and managing stress. We all know the health benefits of exercise. Those body image issues are real for girls, it’s a huge issue. Consistent exercise from participating in a sport while she is younger makes it more likely for your daughter to incorporate exercise into her routine throughout her life.

My best experience with being in tip top shape was as an adult. I remember having the feeling that I could do anything I put my mind to once I was able to get in great shape. 5 years ago, I was in the absolute best shape of my entire life. I wanted to do an amateur boxing fight, so I was working out constantly. And I wasn’t much of an athlete in high school, I was involved in and played sports, but I was never close to being a superstar on any team. So when I started lifting weights for the first time, I discovered what it meant to be physically strong. I felt like I could face the world in a completely different way because being strong made me feel like no one could beat me, at anything. If you haven’t experienced that, I recommend even for you now as an adult to build your strength, it’s the greatest part of being in shape!

I also remember sitting in a seminar with my husband for pro athletes. The purpose of the seminar was to help support them in their endeavors after they retired from the NFL. The advice given to them was really eye-opening for me. Players were recognized for excelling in their dedication, work ethic, leadership skills, and ability to work in a group and team. All of the attributes that made these men great athletes that made it to the NFL would also translate into anything that they wanted to pursue when their playing days were over.

The same is true for your daughter. The skills that she can learn from being part of a team, or even a more individualized sport like boxing, swimming, etc, will translate into other areas of her life. The experience will build her confidence. She may realize that she is able to get along with a group of girls she never would have chosen to hang out with. She will learn leadership and teamwork, skills she can carry into a workplace.

She will learn the importance of goal setting. Coaches will have a vision and set long-term goals. Watching and being a part of the plan being executed allows her to see first-hand how all the different pieces come together to accomplish the goal. Getting better and better along the way is building her confidence and that’s the whole point.

I would really love to know what kind of sports you put your daughters in, or if you haven’t yet maybe you will now? Let me know and how it is working for her. And if you don’t know how to approach this, if it’s a new idea for you, let’s talk about it. Grab a spot on my calendar and we’ll talk more so that I can help you figure out the best way to incorporate the benefit of sports into your daughter’s life.