Alarming statistics such as only 2% of girls aged 12-17 are getting enough physical activity are hard to ignore. This past weekend a coveted Super Bowl commercial time-slot was dedicated the the Always advertisement #LikeAGirl, a movement to start empowering girls. Phrases such as ‘you throw/run/hit like a girl’ not only degrading to young girls and woman, but harmful to everyone. It sends the message that the space of sports is no place for girls. This message is incredibly harmful. It presents a fallacy that girls are not good at sports and therefore shouldn’t be there when in fact sport and physical activity participation is amongst one of the most rewarding experiences young girls can be a part of. Sport participation and physical activity have been shown to boost self-esteem and confidence, develop new skills, improve performance in school and increase overall happiness.
We need to question why girls aren’t active. We need to start getting serious about the messaging we’re sending to youth about physical activity and sport participation, and we need to start early. As the infographic shows, if a girl is not active before the age of 10, there is only a 10% chance she will be active by age 25. The benefits of physical activity are overwhelming. It’s time to make sure girls are getting their 60 minutes a day. This will only result in happier, healthier, confident and competent girls!
Additional Resources
For more information on how Sports are Empowering Girls and Building their Self-Esteem, here is a great article that outlines five ways! http://ift.tt/1xhqo5G
If you haven’t yet seen the #LikeAGirl commercial...
If you would like more information on the Always #LikeAGirl campaign, you can find it here: http://ift.tt/1jnoE5h
Source: Steve Nash Youth Basketball Blog http://ift.tt/1xhqqur
Infographic by: ParticipACTION