England’s Lionesses roared (sorry. Not sorry) to victory in the European Championships and suddenly women’s sport – and specifically women’s football – is in the spotlight, on the front pages, and being hailed as the conquering heroine of feminism.
Now whilst all of that is true, how do we ensure that this remains the case as we slide through August. In many ways, it’s a shame that the tournament concluded during the school summer holidays, as I fear that for many younger girls, enthusiasm may have waned by the time they return to school in September.
The Lionesses brought it home. It’s our job to keep it here – this is how we do it…
Take one more step than you did yesterday
I’ve said it before, and I’ll keep saying it until everyone knows: if your goal is to increase your level of physical activity, every step or movement or session counts, and you get to take them one at a time. Trying to increase your step count? If you take one more than yesterday, you’ve nailed it. Because that’s an extra seven or more by the end of the week.
When I took my first steps in fitness five years ago, I targeted myself with one running session per week. With the encouragement of a coach, that became my one group training session plus one solo run (of 30-minutes at a mix of running and walking) and, by the time our programme ended, I was going twice per week by myself. Two months after that, when I joined a gym for the first time ever, I set myself the intention of going once per week.
Warning: it can be a slippery slope… can’t say I’m mad about it myself. The point is: you don’t have to go all the way in one go. One step at a time is plenty.
Encourage each other
You’ve cheered on the Lionesses. You’ve supported your kids in signing up for that new thing they want to try. Your friend has texted you saying, “I think I’m going to give pole fitness a go”. The only appropriate text back is: “good for you, can’t wait to hear all about it!” or, “is there space in the class for me to come with you?”
We all deserve and want encouragement. Half of my job is cheering my clients on, reminding them that they’re capable, pointing out when they’re ready for more. Just because we grow up into adults, doesn’t mean we don’t want or need the support of our mates. It costs nothing, so throw that shit around like glitter.
Keep consuming
Professional sport happens all year round, every year. The sad fact is that, for women’s sport, it can still be more challenging to access it via TV and in person. However the opportunities are improving, and some of that is already Lioness Legacy.
Just as one example, Brighton and Hove Albion has already announced that Women’s team games will now be played at their main home ground, rather than at a different venue – the women are getting playing field parity with their male colleagues. Many clubs have reported huge jumps in purchases of women’s season tickets – PS, they tend to be significantly more reasonable in price, as stated by this person who compared the cost of a Manchester United Women’s season ticket with a single ticket to a men’s game.
If you can’t access competitions in person, and there isn’t any TV coverage, keep making noise via social media. The algorithm doesn’t care if you’re not actually into a sport (though I can’t promise it won’t fuck up any targeted ads you see…), it just knows that you’re sharing things, so I challenge you to like, comment, retweet, share, or forward any link you see. Give it some free love to keep boosting the profile.
We’ve finally got the world’s attention. Let’s keep it, and use it to push forwards.
Like what I’ve said? Please take the above advice and share or comment to let me know! You can follow me on Twitter and Instagram, and if you’re interested in working with me via personal training sessions, get in touch