Think Like Kids
March 21, 2022 | Words by Liz Francis
To celebrate Women’s History Month, every Monday and Friday during the month of March, we’re highlighting just some of the many women that are a crucial part of NCFIT. Today, we highlight Liz. Liz is on the Sales & Marketing team at NCFIT, holds her CF L1 certification, and coaches kids classes at her local gym in Oklahoma. She uses fitness to empower herself and others to reach their fullest potential and crush their goals.
Growing up, my older brother played a lot of sports.
If he wasn’t at the ballpark playing a game, he was in the backyard playing catch with our dad. For me, this meant hours of watching a ball be thrown back and forth. Naturally, I picked up on a few things.
I remember the pure joy I felt when I mastered the crow hop before throwing the ball. At such a young age, I never thought of playing catch as a “boy’s sport.” All I knew was that my brother did it and I was going to do whatever he did.
When I was in the first grade, I qualified for my school’s track meet through tremendous feats of athletic ability. Having played a lot of catch in my day, I was especially excited for the Softball Throw Event. On the day of the meet, I was ready to put that crow hop to use when I noticed that none of the girls were throwing the ball very far. In fact, they were barely throwing it at all while the boys launched it downfield. This presented a conflict in my 6-year-old mind:
MAYBE GIRLS AREN’T SUPPOSED TO BE GOOD AT THIS. WHEN IT WAS MY TURN, I DECIDED I NEEDED TO BLEND IN. I ACTED LIKE I COULDN’T THROW THE BALL FARTHER THAN A FEW YARDS — ALL THAT PRACTICE FOR NOTHING.
This memory has always stuck with me. Not because I was some sort of child prodigy when it came to softball, but because I realized I was probably not the only girl who faked it that day.
WHY IS THIS?
Whether we realize it or not, young girls are faced with a lot of pressures surrounding the sports that they play. In a world where strength, speed, and stamina are commonly associated with the male gender, it can be hard for a young girl to believe she is capable of those same things.
The sport of fitness introduced me to a community where female strength is celebrated and bench days aren’t just for the guys. It kills me to think that my 6-year-old self was embarrassed to be strong.
As a coach for youth fitness classes, I have the opportunity to use my experiences to teach those girls that they can do anything they set their mind to. I’ve gotten to watch girls get their first handstand push-up, climb to the top of the rope, and jump fearlessly into head-to-head workouts against the boys — and win.
Because of our community, girls have a chance to embrace their muscles and push themselves to do things they didn’t think were possible. A little girl should not have to worry that the sport she loves is meant only for boys or that her arms could get too big if she does push-ups.
The good news is we have strong women paving the way for the future. There’s a girl playing college football. There’s a girl coaching in the NBA. There’s a girl at all of our gyms that makes everyone go, “Damn, she’s strong.” With the right role models, young girls will know that they can run fast and lift heavy as long as they work hard. It’s our job to show kids that strength doesn’t have a gender.
SOMETIMES WE JUST NEED TO THINK LIKE KIDS.
Let’s help these girls grow up in a world where they are encouraged to do what they love, chase their dreams, and pick up heavy things.
