Power to Play, Period.

Power to Play, Period.

Sport + menstrual health education

Our mission is to create supportive, inclusive education on menstrual health in sport and physical education. We provide lessons, seminars and resources for coaches, teachers and leaders in sport.

Studies show a dramatic drop-off in sport participation among adolescent girls (Women in Sport, 2018) . In Scotland, across all sports, girls’ participation drops from 69% (ages 11-12) to 45% (ages 13-15) (Rowe, 2019, p.42). This dramatic decrease occurs just as girls often begin menstruating. Research shows that coping with menstruation is a significant barrier for athletes (Brown et al., 2020; Zipp, 2019; Bruinvels et al., 2017).

We design tools to help coaches, athletes and sport organisations understand the impacts of menstrual health on athletes so they can better support them to stay in the game.

What we do

Lessons

Lessons for coaches, PE teachers and parents about menstrual health and sport/physical activity. Lessons include: the complete menstrual cycle, busting menstrual myths, menstrual product guidance and supporting emotional needs for adolescents. Each lesson is designed to be inclusive: LGTBQI+, diverse ethnicities, people with disabilities and various religious backgrounds. In person seminars, webinars and consultations available.

Resources

Our lessons are built on in-depth research from around the world. We have collected key resoures, including reports, books, videos, networks/groups and supplemental materials. Further resources are available through our lessons and consultations.

About us

Dr Sarah Zipp is a leading researcher on sport, gender and menstrual health. She has taught at universities around the world and hosted the UK’s first academic workshop on sport and menstruation in 2020. Dr Zipp designed these menstrual health lessons based on published research, with guidance from a diverse group of expert advisors and input from adolesent girls.

Contact

sarahzipp@powertoplayperiod.com