Playing sports is a great way to get some much needed exercise, but they also allow for personal development and having a good time.

But there is still a big difference in participation numbers between girls and boys when it comes to regular exercise; with up to 70% of boys participating in regular exercise, and some reports suggesting the percentage of girls undertaking regular exercise to be as low as 31%.

Rather than telling girls to do some form of arbitrary exercise, maybe we should be encouraging them to take part in sports, and here are 5 reasons why. There are many benefits for girls who play sports.

1. Better Grades.

Common sense may suggest that using spare time to play sports would eat up time that could be used for studying, and have a negative effect on grades. But research actually suggests girls who take part in sports perform better at school when compared to those that don’t participate in any form of exercise. Sport is known to improve concentration, memory, and learning capacity; these traits all play an active role in school performance giving these girls the edge in the classroom.

2. Teamwork development.

Learning to work as part of a team can be difficult especially when the majority of the day is spent working individually, at a desk, in a classroom. Setting goals alongside coaches, trainers, and teammates, and working towards these goals will facilitate the development of communication skills and teamwork.

Learning these skills on the sports field can then easily be transferred to other situations where achieving a common goal is the desired outcome, and the success of the team is not determined by an individual’s performance but the performance of each individual working for the group. It’s also worth mentioning that a lot of socializing goes on within teams and the social benefits of taking part in a sports team are great for personal development.

3. Enhancing Self-Confidence.

Setting goals, training towards them, and then achieving them is a great way to improve self-confidence, and for this reason girls who take part in sport tend to be more self-confident. By setting and achieving goals it allows for the progression of skills, and the confidence to try new activities that have a higher degree of difficulty.

The greatest influence on sports confidence is performance accomplishments; learning that the biggest changes in performance come from your decisions and actions can significantly increase a girl’s self-confidence. This in turn will lead to the decrease in focus on external factors such as peers or fate, and an increase in focus on internal factors will lead to greater risks being taken on the sports field, in the classroom, and socially, resulting in greater rewards.

4. Stress Release.

Being a teenager can be quite a stressful experience, as many of you may be aware, and the causes of these stresses may seem trivial as an adult but they are very real for a teenager. The pressure on girls to look a certain way is only increasing with the rise of social media, and a recent study discovered that one in three teenagers experience stress at least once a week.

Exercise can reduce the feelings of stress and the physical symptoms by inhibiting the release of the hormone cortisol from the adrenal gland, which acts as part of the bodies fight or flight response as well as suppressing the immune system. Additionally the release of endorphins is increased during exercise, endorphins are the bodies feel good chemical and the release of these chemicals in conjunction with exercise is often referred to as Runner’s high.

5. Long Term Benefits.

Maintaining a healthy weight and improvements to cardiovascular fitness are obvious benefits to taking part in sport, but the long term health benefits should not be overlooked. As girls get older those that participated in sport and exercise at an earlier age are less likely to develop osteoporosis as they will have developed stronger bones.

Research also suggests girls who exercise are less likely to develop breast cancer as they get older. Introducing girls to sport will hopefully keep them interested in exercise and keeping fit, as well as fostering new skills and friends. The long term health benefits should also be remembered alongside the development of skills and teamwork that will be beneficial throughout both their sporting and personal life.

Taken from: kelliworley.com (article, By Simon Howarth), Google (images).

Sports and other physical activities have innumerable physical health benefits, including improved cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness, bone health, increased life expectancy, and coronary health. Sports can also help prevent various types of cancer and weight gain and have positive effects on mental health by reducing depression and improving cognitive function.

1. Weight Maintenance.

Sports can help promote long-term weight loss and help avoid weight gain. Sports increase metabolic rates and can help increase lean body mass while burning calories and getting rid of excess fat. Although the amount of physical activity needed varies by body type and caloric intake, sports can help a person maintain a healthy weight.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, between two and half to five hours of moderately-intensive physical activity can help achieve weight stability. High-intensity sports can help people who want to lose weight or maintain a significant amount of weight loss.

2. Cardiorespiratory Health.

Sports can help people of all ages maintain and improve the health of their heart, lungs and blood vessels. Physical activity can significantly reduce the risk of coronary disease and stroke.

According to the British Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, approximately 40 percent of deaths related to coronary heart disease are related to inadequate physical activity, obesity, stress and raised blood pressure. Sports can help with all of these physical issues, decreasing the risk of coronary disease by about 50 percent.

3. Muscle and Bone Health.

As you grow older, physical activity becomes increasingly important for the health of bones, muscles and joints. Building bone, muscle and joint strength is important for children.

4. Cancer.

Sports can decrease the risk of colon cancer by as much as 300 percent, according to the British Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology. It can also significantly decrease the risk of breast cancer, and might decrease the risk of endometrial and lung cancer.

5. Pyschological Health.

Sports can be a form of mental therapy for people with psychological disorders and depression. Sports may promote self-esteem in the form of positive perception of body image and self-worth. By participating in sports with others, people can also enter in positive social environments to promote psychological health. Physical activity can also decrease the risk of cognitive decline that comes with aging and can reduce anxiety in adolescents.

Tips and Warnings.

Some risk is involved with participating in sports. While little risk is involved in participating in moderate-intensity sports such as swimming or cycling at a moderate pace, the risk of musculoskeletal injury increases with the amount of intense physical activity. People who are normally inactive should start slow and gradually increase the intensity and duration of their participation in sports.

Taken from: livestrong.com (article, By Bradley Cohen), Google (images).

For anyone who's ever wondered why people are swatting an odd-looking object back and forth across a net, here's the lowdown.

You Will Need:

1. Two or four players.
2. A badminton court.
3. A net.
4. A shuttlecock.
5. Badminton rackets.

Step 1. Set up a court.

Set up a court by establishing boundaries of 44 feet long by 17 feet wide for a singles game and 44 feet by 20 feet for a doubles game. Place a net in the middle, with the top 5 feet off the ground.

Step 2. Know the object of the game

Know the object of the game, which is similar to tennis: Opposing players with rackets hit the shuttlecock back and forth over a net trying not to let it hit the ground.

Step 3. Know your faults

Know what constitutes a fault, or an error. A fault is made when the shuttlecock lands outside the boundary lines, does not clear the net, hits the ground before being returned, or makes contact with a player’s body or clothing.

Step 4. Begin with a coin toss

Start with a coin toss; the winner chooses a side of the court and decides if they want to serve first or not.

Step 5. Serve

The game begins with the player serving underhanded from the back of the court on their right side diagonally across the court to the other team. If the shuttlecock doesn’t clear the net or lands outside the service area, the other team scores a point and gains serve. Serve from the right when your score is even, left when it’s odd.

Step 6. Keep score

Whoever wins each rally wins the point, and whoever gets to 21 points wins a game. If players are tied at 20, the team with the first two-point lead wins. If the scores go to 29 without anyone attaining the two-point lead, the first team to reach 30 wins. The match is won by the best two out of three games played.

FACT: Badminton is the world’s fastest-paced racket sport, with the shuttlecock flying across the net at speeds of almost 200 miles per hour.

Taken from: badminton-lessons.wonderhowto.com (article, By Howcast), Google (images).

Golf is not hard, as long as you know the golf swing basics. It is a sport where you always have room for improvement. If you want to improve your game, and produce better golf shots, learn first the golf swing basics.

The secret to having a low score in golf is to get your golf swing right. If you want to score lower, golf swing basics dictate you must gain more distance off the tee. If your distance to the green is shorter, chances or scoring par are higher. Both accuracy and distance are needed in this game.

You probably wonder how those great players manage to make their golf balls do what they like. You should know they have practiced hard on their golf swing basics to reach their current status. Simply striking the ball is not enough, you must evaluate the amount of force you use depending on the distance from the hole. There are other factors you must consider before the ball is teed off.

In golf, the ball must lie on the ground before you play, unless it is for tee shots at the start of each hole. The golf ball rests on the target line, an imaginary line from the ball to the target. The golfer must be on one side of the line when hitting. Golf has many aspects so you must master all the golf swing basics. Here are some techniques you need to know, to better decide which method works for you, and develop your own as you go along:

1. Swing Plane.

This refers to the course your club takes when you are taking a swing. Having a good plane of swing is important if you are aiming to be a consistent golfer. You can also opt to use laser lights during practice to correct your swing plane.

2. Swing Speed.

This refers to how fast you swing your club. Some players find it hard to swing fast. Optimal strength is essential here so the ball cover the intended distance.

3. Exercise.

This is another important reason. If you want to be at your best, condition your body to be at performance level. If the muscles needed in golf are not exercised regularly, it is hard to achieve the correct methods in golfing.

If you have a consistent golf swing you will appreciate the magic it will do to your game. There are no secrets to success in golf. All you need to do is practice, practice and practice.

Taken from: News Straits Times - 8 September 2012 (article), Google (images).

Among the many benefits, swimming for fitness can improve your sleep patterns, lower your cholesterol levels, improve digestion and keep your well-toned. Swimming can also build cardioid-respiratory fitness and muscle mass, help those suffering from asthma or arthritis, help you to lose weight and be used for injury rehabilitation. If you have easy access to suitable pool or swimming area, then staying fit by swimming might be an ideal choice for you.

1. Lookout for swimming locations.

In your area before making your fitness plans. It is important to be comfortable with the swimming location. The place must be reasonably easy for you to get regularly, the price must be affordable and it should feel comfortable to you personally. Choice available include community pools, sports center pools, lifeguard patrolled seaside pools and neighborhood pools.

2. Purchase appropriate equipment.

You will need a good swimsuit -- for women, this should be one piece. For men, choose swimming pants that cling, not board shorts or any other type of shorts. If you try to keep wearing flappy swimming gear, you will find it tends to affect your kick and can lead to bad kicking habits that only make use of the lower part of the leg. Goggles are also essential for most pools if your eyes are affected by chlorine (few people can swim regularly in chlorinated water without goggles on).

3. Plan to swim regularly.

Fitness benefits will only come from regular swimming. While the most benefits will probably result from swimming two or three times a week, even once weekly swims should help to improve your fitness levels. Choose a consistent schedule that you know you will be able to meet each week and mark it on your calendar.

4. Choose your swimming strokes.

According to what you enjoy (an important motivation for staying fit), what you are able to do efficiently and what will benefit you. For most fitness swimmers, a combination of strokes tends to be the most interesting and useful approach.

* Freestyle (front crawl):

This is the most popular competitive swimming stroke and if you are good at it, you can go quite fast. It is good for stretching your entire body, in particular your shoulders and back, biceps, triceps, quadriceps, glutes and hamstrings. But for those with weak arm muscles, it can feel like enormously hard work. Persist though, as this is a good all-round, efficient stroke and it just feels good to go through the water quickly once you have built up your speed.

* Breaststroke:

This can actually feel very relaxing and easy to do because you get to control the pace and still benefit from it as a workout. it is a good stroke for in between the faster swimming laps, when you want to keep going but at a slower pace. It is an ideal stroke for developing all-body strength and increasing your endurance and has the same benefits as freestyle, with the added extra of working out your thighs and pectorals.

5. Get started.

Push your self to do a lap of your favorite stroke to begin with and see how it feels. The idea is to try and swim for 10 minutes the first few visits, and to gradually built up to 30 minutes each visit. When you are comfortable at that level, 45-60-minute swims can then be considered, depending on what time you have available and how much you feel additional time is benefiting you. Regularly increase the amount you are doing each week - it is a good idea to push yourself just beyond what you think you can do each time.

6. Plan fitness workout routines.

Initially, you will want to get into a rhythm of turning up regularly and get moving. However, within a short space of time, it is important to establish a routine. A very basic stater routine would be something like: 2 x laps freestyle; 2 x laps backstroke; 2 x laps breaststroke; 2 x laps with kickboard; 2 x laps freestyle; then do a swim-down. This will provide a complete body workout at an easy pace which can be doubled, tripled, etc., as you improve over time.

Taken from: News Straits Times - 3 August 2012 (article), Google (images).