Dragonwing Blog
Sideline Chatter: Un-Dee
Who is Un-Dee™ for?
Un-Dee™ light compression shorts are designed specifically for pre-teen and teen girls who play sports. Sporty girls love the breathable, wide mesh side panels (and wedgie-free fit). The longer length stays perfectly in place—so there’s no need for pulling and tugging. Plus, (maybe best of all) Un-Dee™ hides anything potentially visible through white and light-colored uniforms shorts.What is Un-Dee™ for?
Un-Dee™ is for wearing under girls’ sports uniforms. It’s perfect for soccer, basketball, tennis, field hockey, riding, lacrosse, cross-country skiing, crewing—any sport where girls want to focus completely on their game.How I Became a Swim Mom
I never planned on becoming a “swim mom” but my daughter had other plans. She played rec league soccer and was a good goalie but quit early on because she said, “Mom, I get too sweaty.” I thought that was the end of her sports participation because I couldn’t think of a sport where you DON’T get sweaty. And in addition, she wasn’t very coordinated. Anna was the kid that tripped over lint in the carpet. Literally.
But she always loved the water. When Anna turned seven she decided to join our summer rec swim team, mainly because her friends were doing it. And that was my initiation into the culture of swimming. Swim meets are different from other sports competitions in that it is not a “drop off” experience. Rec league meets require LOTS of parents volunteering—timers, starters, place judges, scorers --you name it, it’s done by a parent. And I was that parent. At the end of the season she won the “most improved” award for her age group. With hindsight I believe it was a testament to her hard work.
Fast forward to middle school. Anna was still swimming on our summer team but the stress of 6th grade was taking a toll on her. She had high expectations of herself and no way to release her anxiety. She was a walking ball of stress. She would do cartwheels and handsprings until 10 or 11 pm every night trying to burn off her anxiety. In desperation, I found a fall rec swim league through our city that her friends were also joining. The pool was close, the price was right ($60 for 8 weeks) and it was a good middle step between summer rec and a full year-round program. Her coach was a former college swimmer who had all kinds of creative workouts and worked the kids really hard. At the end of every practice my anxious, tense daughter would be tired, relaxed, and happy. Swimming was her “miracle drug.”
I couldn’t say no to something that made her so happy. And as an athlete myself I knew all the benefits of training and competition—camaraderie, friendships, challenging yourself, making a commitment and sticking with it, dealing with disappointment, taking care of your body and honoring its strength and power.
Thanks to Anna there are damp towels and swim suits all over my house and my car proudly sports the “swim mom” magnet. I wouldn’t change a thing.
Sideline Chatter: Un-Tee
Who is Un-Tee™ for?
Un-Tee™ camis are designed specifically for tween to teen girls (though some moms have been know to 'borrow' them!) It has a stretchy, freeing feel. It's tag-free. Its soft elastic shelf-bra offers modesty, support and comfort. Plus, both outer and inner layers wick moisture for quick-dry comfort. And the wide stretch-fabric straps relieve pressure on shoulders for a secure, non-binding fit.What is Un-Tee™ for?
It's the perfect athletic apparel for all sporting activities—and even great for more relaxed activities. Wear it under your uniform for soccer, basketball, baseball, Badminton, bicycling, volleyball, tennis, field hockey, rowing, horseback riding, lacrosse, skating, skiing, and much more.
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Misty Copeland on Finding Your Voice
Resilience. Strength. Grace.
All characteristics of premier athlete and of barrier-breaker, Misty Copeland. Despite being told her form didn't match historically accepted ballet techniques and that she was too athletic, Misty redefined what it means to be a ballerina. Misty Copeland is the first black female principal dancer with the prestigious American Ballet Theater. She recently spoke with Susan Jaffe, Dean of Dance at the UNC School of the Arts in Chapel Hill, NC, to share her experiences and how she found her voice through her art. Here are our five favorite takeaways from their conversation.- Evaluate the source of comments and opinions, and then decide how much weight they deserve. Negative comments might have derailed Misty's love of ballet, but instead, she chose carefully to whom she would listen and discovered the wisdom of listening to herself.
- Mentors play a significant role. Mentors helped guide Misty through challenges and provided the support network needed for success. Her first dance teacher, Cindy Bradley, was instrumental in setting Misty on the course that would shape her future.
- Resilience is the attitude you use to overcome challenges. It's not enough to keep trying, you have to see setbacks and failures for what they are: opportunities to learn and grow. It can be applied to how you rebound from a bad practice - you choose to focus on what went wrong, or you decide to focus on how you can do better.
- Love who you are because that is the source of your strength. Misty loves her muscular body, and it's what won over critics. What most saw, in the early days, as a negative, she turned into an asset.
- Keep it simple, and it will inform how you control your body (and mind.) When asked how she keeps her upper body so still, Misty shared her philosophy to keep it simple and to not add anything unnecessary to a move. This dance tip can be applied to any sport and really, to any part of our lives.
With these reflections, two more words come to mind when describing Misty Copeland.Celebrating its 15th season, Carolina Performing Arts is amplifying the creative leadership of women through performances and art. Check out their schedule for upcoming events. (Keeping with ballet, Wendy Whelan is on the schedule!) If you enjoyed this article, consider saying or leaving a comment below.
Intelligence. Wisdom.
Intro to Laura
Hi everyone! I'm Laura and I am a new ambassador for Dragonwing girlgear. I am in middle school, and my favorite subjects are Math and Spanish. I have always loved Math ever since I was young because I enjoy solving problems. I have taken Spanish since kindergarten and I really love the language, and I enjoy learning more.
I have played soccer since I was three years old. I love soccer so much for so many reasons. I love hanging out with my teammates because we all become so close over the year or more that we are together. One day I hope to play soccer in college. I play center midfield which means I am in the middle of the field and I run up and down the field constantly. I used to play center back which means that I was the player that was the last line before the goal and goalkeeper. I can't imagine not having soccer after school almost everyday. Soccer has given me so much. It has made me work really hard on my fitness, especially this summer. I would go to fitness 3 days a week for an hour and a half. I think fitness has helped a lot with my confidence and my speed.
Some of my other hobbies are dancing, spending time with friends, sewing and playing with my pets. I have a dog and two cats whom I love very much. I dance mostly at school as an art major, but I really enjoy it.
I'm excited to be an ambassador for Dragonwing and blog about the cute and comfy clothing!
Intro to Billie
Our newest ambassador, Billie, is a competitive twirler who has Nationals this weekend. Billie took a break from practice to tell us more about the sport of Twirl and how she got started.
How did you get involved in twirl?
I started twirling at the age of 3. I lived in New Hampshire, where baton twirling is well-known. and my neighbor twirled. I really looked up to her like an older sister, so I decided to start twirling so I could be just like her. After just a few lessons, I took off with it and have continued to love it ever since
How much do you practice and what kind of practice is that?
I practice every day for about 3-4 hours (more during the summer and before big competitions). Practices are continuously doing the same tricks over and over to catch them consistently. I have multiple routines of which I must practice, so when I am training I run through them repeatedly to get better and better at them.
What kind of skills does twirl require?
Twirling requires a lot of skills. To twirl baton you must have stamina, balance, general coordination, Hand-eye coordination, strength, flexibility, and agility. They all play their own parts in making an amazing twirler. Baton twirling is basically a combination of Dance, Gymnastics, Cheer leading, Color guard, and Running.
Do you think twirlers get enough credit as athletes?
Twirlers definitely do not get the credit or respect they deserve as athletes. More often than not, people either don't know what twirling is or don't think it is a sport. I believe that any physical activity in which you compete or perform should be considered a sport.
How competitive is the sport and how are you feeling about Nationals coming up?
The sport is VERY competitive. If you have ever seen the TV show "Dance Moms".... It is definitely that competitive, if not more. Although being competitive can sometimes affect people negatively, baton twirling is competitive in a positive way, and makes everyone involved want to be the best she can be, which then carries over to real-world situations such as school. I am super excited for Nationals coming up! I get to see all of my baton friends from around the country and perform for a week long!
Thanks for the interview Billie. Good luck at Nationals!
If you want to follow Billie on Twitter, use @billiekathrine.
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Tokyo 2021 Olympics President Makes Remarks That Women Speak Too Much.
February 5, 2021
– All talk. The Tokyo 2020—now 2021—Games had enough problems. The Olympics slated for this summer have already been postponed because of the pandemic, public opinion in Japan is turning against the Games, and it looks like any spectators allowed to attend the event will be banned from cheering. (Claps only, please.)
And then on Wednesday, Yoshiro Mori, head of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics organizing committee, said that meetings with too many women drag on because women talk too much.
Mori explained the phenomenon this way: “Women have a strong sense of rivalry. If one raises her hand to speak, all the others feel the need to speak, too. Everyone ends up saying something.”
He made the comments as the Japan Olympic Committee Council discussed increasing the share of women members on sports organizations’ executive boards. “If we increase the number of female board members, we have to make sure their speaking time is restricted somewhat, they have difficulty finishing, which is annoying,” Mori said, according to Reuters.
Not only are Mori’s comments sexist, research suggests they are wrong. A review of research from 1951 to 1991 found that of 56 studies of mixed-sex interaction, only two said that women talk more than men. A 2012 study from researchers at BYU and Princeton discovered that women spoke much less than their proportional representation, spending roughly 75% less time talking than their male counterparts.
Still, women are perceived as talking more than men, even when they don’t, and while men benefit from talking more—listeners find them to be more competent—women don’t get the same bump.
To be fair, most of that research has studied English language interactions, but it’s hard to imagine the outcomes being much different in Japan, where men dominate politics and corporate settings. Japan ranks No. 166 out of 200 for female representation in parliament, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, well below Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Japan was 121st out of 153 nations on the World Economic Forum’s global gender gap report last year.
Of the 24 members on the Japan Olympic committee, five are women.
Kaori Yamaguchi, a former judo champion, accused Mori, 83, of undermining the Games’ goal of promoting equality and inclusion. “Gender equality and consideration for people with disabilities were supposed to be a given for the Tokyo Games,” she said, according to the Kyodo news agency. “It is unfortunate to see the president of the organizing committee make a remark like that.”
Mori later acknowledged that his comments ran counter to the Olympic spirit, but he rejected calls to resign. And when asked if he really thought women talk too much, he said, “I don’t listen to women that much lately so I don’t know.”
Media coverage of his remarks mention that Mori, a former prime minister, is prone to gaffes like making insensitive references to AIDS and insulting his country’s Olympic athletes. He was one of the least popular prime ministers in Japan’s history and resigned after a year with an approval rating in the single digits.
It would be easy to read that history, roll your eyes, and think, ‘Well, what did they expect?’ But instead, perhaps we should be asking how he got his job in the first place.
Claire Zillman
claire.zillman@fortune.com
@clairezillman
