Last week, I had the opportunity to participate in a camp that focused on the empowerment of women in sports. US Speedskating hosted this weekend camp for women of all ages, and it was a great experience.

Until last week, I’d never fully realized how lucky I was. In most sports, younger avid athletes can usually only imagine meeting their Olympic idols; but speedskating is such a small community meaning that most skaters get to meet and talk to at least one Olympian or even national team skater in their career. I’ve always taken this fact for granted, but seeing the look of awe on the little girls’ faces when they got to meet an Olympic gold medalist was eye-opening.

This realization made the entire weekend an even more special and exciting experience because I finally realized how special this opportunity was. I got to go bike riding with one Olympian in particular who shared something interesting that I will never forget.

First, she told me to pick my favorite color. Then, she asked me to pick 3 words to describe that color. After I’d picked my 3 words, she told me that those 3 words I picked were words that described me. I thought this was super interesting because it was a way of describing myself without any bias. By this, I mean that usually when I’m asked to describe myself, I choose very generic descriptions that I feel other people would agree with. Being asked to choose these descriptions without knowing what you’re describing eliminates any pressure that may be felt and any prejudices held against one’s self.

Even though this little quiz doesn’t prove anything, I recommend testing someone close to you who is too hard on themself. Thinking of myself in terms of the words I picked still makes me happy because they are words I’d never have chosen to describe myself, but somehow they fit perfectly.

Back to the camp. Not only was it surreal that we got to meet such phenomenal athletes, but it was also really awesome getting to listen to the athletes as well as other guest speakers talk. For the athletes, I learned that not only do they show incredible sportsmanship on the ice, but they are an unbelievably kind group of people off the ice as well. As for one of the other guest speakers, I as well as many other girls learned about the importance of getting a period. It was very empowering talking to a specialist who was a speed skater herself. She provided us with multiple ways of handling our periods and taught us in a way that made us feel no shame for being who we were. She also taught us how to take care of our bodies which was a special experience since many girls are never taught how to take care of their specific needs as females.

Here are two tips I will share that I think are vital to our health as athletes and females: 1. Don’t be afraid to talk to a specialist. They will NOT judge you. Your doctor likely went through something similar, and they only want to help. 2. It is CRUCIAL that you take vitamin E and calcium supplements as you grow older. Many sports put a lot of stress on your bones, so you must do everything in your power to keep them strong. Taking calcium and vitamin E supplements can help prevent your bones from becoming too brittle, and they increase your bone density. In short: learning how to take care of your body is the first step in becoming a successful athlete.

All in all, I am so grateful that I got to be a part of such an amazing experience. I am so thankful for US Speedskating as they took the time to host this incredible event. I hope that by reading this post, you learned something or at least read something interesting. Thanks for reading!