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Girls and physical activity: what you need to know

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Physical activity brings many benefits.

Yet, only 1 in 4 teenage girls is sufficiently active.

Among teenage girls, there are several barriers to engaging in physical activity.

Move more… and have fun doing it! That’s the main message to share with teenage. When they enjoy being active, they are more likely to keep it up.

This sheet presents tips and strategies to help make that happen.

To better understand

Despite years of efforts trying to make sports more gender-inclusive, this field continues to be awash in stereotypes and divided according to biological sex.

Several activities and physical abilities are attributed to one sex or another. These are stereotypes. For example, you may have already heard someone say, “… runs or cries like a girl”.

Comments like these have consequences:

  • They shake teenage girls’ self-confidence. Not because of what they are doing, but because of what they are: girls.
  • Such comments influence how young boys behave with their female peers.

Puberty also have an impact on physical activity. Some body changes  can affect self-confidence and feeling at ease moving in their bodies.

There are several benefits to regularly practising physical activities. Some particularly benefit girls.

Did you know that…

60 minutes per day of moderate- to high-intensity activity is the goal for your teenage daughter to be considered physically active.

For a physical activity to be moderate to high in intensity, breath rate and heart rate must be fairly or very rapid. Finding it difficult to say a few words during an activity indicate that you have reached that intensity.

However, it should be noted that every minute your teen is active is a step in the right direction for their health.

Be there for your teen

Practical resources and tools

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