Girls` periods vs. Badminton
The article aims to make you aware that Coach Frank has a good understanding of this part of a girl`s life and is happy to support you on your hard days.
Female hormones not only affect mood and cause some pain, but they could also weaken a girl`s body on the level of ligaments, leaving them prone to injuries. So knowing how to manage a girl in sport is important to me.
How do periods affect their overall performance? Let`s dive in.
As I mentioned in my previous article about Mindset, we should not look into periods without understanding how it is going to affect the mentality of a person.
Understanding the menstrual cycle is important because it can impact a girl`s body from head to toe.
1. How periods affecting your skills and mindset?
Mental preparation is key to understand that your skills might be not the same at that time of the month which is normal.
Working on accepting and forgiving yourself for your unforced mistakes is vital.
Accept that it is not the best version of you these days.
Whether you are a competitive player or playing for fun and health, it is wise to let your coach know about it to reduce the risk of injury.
You can check out here another article about a major injury that could happen while you having your period.
Picture: planetprudence.com
You might be clumsy, bloated therefore could feel heavier than usual.
You will make more errors at shots you could confidently perform before for years.
Can`t find the focus and then get furious or you want to cry like “This isn`t me”.
You might experience lower back pain that ruins your posture while moving, losing your balance easier which can cause delayed recoveries.
Impatience can cause anger. Anger narrowing or completely takes away focus. Lack of focus can cause injury. Simple and sad as that. So instead of getting too hard on yourself, I recommend this:
If you have training on those days, I recommend you to enjoy moving carefully and being around people. Focus on patience only to avoid an injury.
Naturally, you cannot perform at your best, your coach ought to understand that.
If not then change the coach.
A coach should not lose trust in you and your enthusiasm because once a month your performance fall back a bit or you cannot get out the bed.
This is only the sign of the most precious thing in life, that your body is now preparing to create a new life.
This is a proud moment but I also understand that you want to keep it private.
2. How badminton can help? (or sports generally)
It might sound weird but if you lightly exercise during your period, it may bring away the pain and/or the sensation of being isolated.
Badminton can naturally make you laugh because you could be amazed by the infinite number of unexpected situations on the court.
It is a non-contact, non-violent sport, so no external trauma could get you unprepared on the court.
Hormones could naturally lower a bit quicker due to higher heart rates, water consumption and physical activities could soothe stomach cramps and you also might be less irritated.
Give a chance to badminton, at least once in your life it might be a thing for you during your period.
But at the same time, you should be careful not to overdo exercises because this is the most sensitive period of your body to injuries according to research.
Your ligaments are weakening while Estradiol (the most important form of Estrogen) peaks.
All your joints, ankles, knees, elbows and shoulders are under threat if you put pressure on your body a couple of days before and during your period.
A coach or a youngster who understand the importance of this information could protect a young life from a serious, life-changing injury.
Summary
I am not an expert or a doctor or a tutor of the menstrual cycle. I intend to let you know that I am aware of it in detail and know what a coach needs to know about it.
As a coach, I also understand what can or cannot be done during your menstrual cycles.
If you let me know that “you are having hard times”, I will avoid putting any pressure on you on that week.
I would like to encourage you to come down to our sessions to connect with friends. Even if you are not feeling at your best, it could be a good experience to bring away grief and replace it with a positive thought.
Exercise can help alleviates the cramps and mood swings involved.
Sport england – #thisgirlcan
Here you can find the actual studies I have read:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7910908/
Here are some useful content about how to cope with your periods
My favourite: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/48243310
https://production.sportengland.org/blogs/girl-can-why-periods-dont-have-stop-play
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