What makes a great coach? Championing body confidence

The environment surrounding the world of sports can be intimidating – and that’s where the positive influence of a great coach comes in.

The benefits of sports are far-reaching. Young people who take part in physical activity during their teenage years experience higher body confidence and better mental health as they grow up. But 45% of teenage girls are quitting sports – and body dissatisfaction is the #1 reason why.

Positive coaching for women and girls in sports is an invaluable part of keeping them playing the games they love and we know that coaches can be key in building body confidence. Our research shows that 74% of girls say their coach was why they felt more confident. Yet,  71% of girls said they’ve also felt discouraged by their sports coach – showing the impact coaches can have on girls’ self-esteem – and just how important coaching education really is.

So, what makes a great coach?
If you ask us, a great coach is someone who empowers and encourages young people to celebrate the amazing things their bodies can do, rather than what they look like. Together with Nike, experts at the Centre for Appearance Research, and the Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport, we created the Body Confident Sport program to support coaches with the tools and training they need to champion body confidence in young athletes.

Our free, evidence-based tools are designed to help coaches make sport a positive space for girls to shine. As part of this, Body Confident Athletes is an in-person program that can be delivered by coaches and PE teachers, covering a number of topics from body talk and the impact of appearance ideals in sports to listening to our bodies.

And it works.

Body confidence coaching in action
We asked some of the coaches who’ve used Body Confident Athletes to tell us how it’s helped them inspire girls in sports to feel more body confident, here’s what they said:

"I have a 9-year-old daughter in various athletics [and so I] appreciate the time and effort spent on this topic.... Great for general inclusion conversations as well.  Thank you for what you're doing!" – Tad, High School Coach

"This can be a difficult topic for males to handle when dealing with our athletes and I loved the insight and insider knowledge." - Cole, Middle School Coach

"There's tremendous value in just discussing the topic, it keeps it front of mind [especially] the importance of not commenting on students' appearance, even if in a positive way” –  Marian, Middle School Coach

Calling all coaches
As part of our commitment to empowering women and girls, we want to reach girls all around the world with the Body Confident Sport program. Are you with us?

If you’re a coach looking to improve body confidence in your young athletes, you can access our free tools and resources here.