Back in my day (yes, I said it!) having your period automatically meant asking your mum to write a note to the P.E teacher excusing you from taking part in the lesson. Unless you were comfortable using tampons (I wasn’t and am still not a fan!) swimming was an obvious no-go, gymnastics required tight clothing that showed off the prominent lump of a pad in your undies (hell no!), and on heavy days the threat of leakage was just too much for a self-conscious preteen/teen to cope with. So, instead of joining in with the fun you’d have to sit on the sidelines watching, which, unless you had a visible injury, was akin to waving a giant flag above your head announcing to all and sundry that you were on your period!

Fortunately, menstrual products have come a long way since the nineties and the naughties. In addition to the basic and disposable tampons and sanitary towels, there are now more sustainable options such as menstrual discs, menstrual cups, reuseable cloth pads and period underwear. Personally, I haven’t looked back since I discovered periodwear ten years ago. So, when my daughter started her period at 12 years old, the first thing I did was go through the different options with her and buy her some period undies to try.

But, as anyone who has experienced periods can attest to, they can be very unpredictable for the first few years until they settle (if indeed they do at all). Whilst the period undies were my daughter’s first preference, some days her flow is so heavy she’d have to wear a pad with them for extra peace of mind and she began to carry a hoodie to school in her bag (even in the midst of summer in Queensland) to wrap around her waist in case of an embarrassing leakage. A few times she has asked me to email her teacher to excuse her from taking part in the sports lesson because she had her period, and another time was forced to sit out of some water activities on a school camp that she’d normally have loved to have been involved in. It’s clear that although there were more options available, many young girls like my daughter, are still battling the same old period-related issues when it comes to physical activities.

Eltee Sydney Period Undies — Necessity is the Mother of Invention!

Noticing that starting her period had a huge impact on her daughter’s confidence and enthusiasm for sports, Aussie Mum Sarah Greenaway decided to take matters into her own hands.

“I’m a swim mum with a girl who was rocked by her period and lost her love for squad for a while there,” explains Sarah.  “Seeing her enthusiasm wane and her confidence get knocked inspired me to design a solution that would protect her completely and keep her comfy. What started as a tween and teen innovation has grown into a much-loved product that’s worn by women and girls in Australia, New Zealand and throughout the world.”

Eltee Sydney focuses on ensuring that girls can confidently engage in the activities they love, no matter what time of the month it is. Their innovative-packed periodwear helps girls overcome common period related obstacles so that the fun and love of sports doesn’t have to stop when periods start. The products seamlessly integrate into a girls’ daily life, offering advanced protection, comfort and discretion to bolster her confidence and safeguard her active lifestyle.

The Significant Impact That Menstruation Has on Girls’ Participation in Sports & Physical Activity

“Puberty, especially menstruation, has an enormous impact on girls’ participation in sports but even we were shocked by what our survey participants told us. Our results revealed that an alarming 63.9% of teens and tweens girls quit or avoid sports or physical activity due to their period,” said Sarah.

“According to the data we gathered, swimming tops the list with a staggering 67.6% (994 girls) opting out due to period related concerns. On a similar note, gymnastics sees 35.1% (517 girls), while dancing has 28.4% (418 girls0 and netball encounters a 25% (368 girls) dropout rate. These numbers highlight a significant trend — the more revealing the sports uniform, the higher the abandonment rate.”

“Interestingly, sports with less form-fitting attire, such as cricket, hockey, Aussie rules, and tennis show markedly lower avoidance rates. This suggests that unform design plays a crucial role in a girl’s comfort and confidence during her period.”

We Tried Eltee Sydney’s Period Undies—Here’s What You Need to Know

Was I intrigued to know more about Eltee Sydney’s period undies? Yes.

Did I wish they’d been around a million years ago when I was a teen? Yes

Did I volunteer my daughter as a human guinea pig of sorts so that we could put them to the test? Also yes!

As you can imagine, I was only too willing to volunteer to review Eltee Sydney’s products – anything that promises to make life easier for my daughter during her period and allow her to continue life as normal is worth a try in my book! Eltee Sydney offers a diverse range of periodwear products tailored to various activities, including (but not limited to) Bumper Briefs (for everyday use), UnderSwim (designed to be worn under swimwear, and UnderDance (ideal for dance and activewear).

Bumper Briefs

As we already own two prominent brands of periodwear, I was very interested to understand how Eltee Sydney’s Bumper Brief differed and the extra protection they provide. As I discovered, Eltee Sydney’s exclusive ‘Bumpers’ innovation features leak-locking side barriers that prevent leaks during high movement activities like dancing, gymnastics, and swimming. This design ensures the wearer can engage in all their normal activities without the worrying about leaks.

Importantly for those who experience a heavy flow, they absorb the same as 2-3 tampons or 4 regular pads which equated to around 10-15ml. To put that into perspective the average amount of blood loss over a 4-day period is 10-35ml.

The Bumper Briefs feature 4 layers of protection: a quick-dry, poly cotton layer for freshness, dryness and zapping odour, a high absorbency layer, a leak-proof layer and a soft bamboo exterior layer for comfort and support.

It’s also worth mentioning that they are 5% Spandex and 95% sustainable Bamboo, meaning you are doing your bit for the environment and preventing disposable pads and tampons from being sent to landfill.

The Verdict

After having more than her fair share of leakages over the past couple of years, my daughter was understandably nervous when she first donned the Bumper Briefs for a day at school. Let’s just say she packed that trusty hoodie and some emergency pads in her bag…just in case!

Despite having a heavy flow day she was delighted when she came home and told me that the day had been incident free and is happy to report that it has been the same every time she has worn them since. Not surprisingly, they are on high rotation, so it’s a good thing that washing them is easy. We simply rinse them in lukewarm water until they run clear, machine wash them in cold water and then dry them on the line. If you normally throw your clothes in the dryer, you’ll need to grab your undies out first. I’m not entirely sure of all the technical ins and outs, but the heat will kill whatever it is that’s makes these so magical! So, just don’t do it!

At $24.95 per pair, some parents may balk at the cost, but don’t be fooled. They are actually a far more cost-effective alternative to disposable menstrual products (costing less than half of what disposable pads do over 2 years), and they are better for the environment. Lastly, you can’t put a price on having the confidence to carry on and do the things you love even though you have your period!

UnderSwim

There is nothing worse (as a tween/teen) than planning a day out with your friends to the beach or the local water park and waking up on the morning of and discovering your period has arrived. My daughter, like most teens her age, has huge FOMO (fear of missing out), and it can be hugely disappointing when they have to miss out on water activities because they are menstruating.

Eltee’s UnderSwim are Swimming Australia Official Period-Safe Swim Underwear. The seamless design means that they can be worn underneath any swimwear (they also come in G-string design for cheekier cuts) unseen. They are waterproof and chloring resistant with a built-in leak-proof lining that absorbs and locks in the equivalent of 3-4 regular pads worth of blood.

Verdict

Well, there is a reason why these UnderSwim undies have sold out 7 times already! Not only are they totally invisible under my daughter’s bikini bottoms (no unsightly and telling VPL), after gaining her confidence with the Bumper Briefs, she had no qualms about going swimming with a mixed group of girls and boys — which ordinarily would have been an automatic “NOPE!”

If your child regularly swims for fun or for sport this are a must-have!

UnderDance

Sadly, my daughter’s foray into the dance world was extremely short lived, when she hung up her little pink tutu at the tender age of 3 and a half. Despite asking to go to ballet class she found after several classes that she much preferred to freestyle because, and I quote “I’ve got better moves!”

However, whilst she doesn’t have to wear dance costumes, putting on activewear to go to the school gym can also be figure-hugging, so she loved the option of wearing the UnderDance undies on these days during her period. The flattering Brazilian cut makes them suitable for wear under high cut dance costumes, but they are also perfect for a seamless look under tights and booty shorts.

Like the Bumper Briefs, they feature the leak-locking side ‘Bumpers’ for extra peace of mind even when wearing the skimpiest of costumes/outfits.

The Verdict

My daughter loved these for wearing to the gym under her activewear. As she does experience heavy periods some of the other period underwear, we have bought in the past has been a bit bulky in the absorbent area, which can leave her feeling self-conscious when wearing tight leggings. This wasn’t an issue with the UnderDance undies at all, which is pretty impressive when you consider that they can also absorb the equivalent of 2-3 tampons or 4 regular pads.

If your child plays sports or engages in other physical activities that require them to wear itty-bitty clothing, the UnderDance is a game-changer!

We are super-impressed with the Eltee Sydney range and highly recommend checking it out if your child is navigating the first few years of her cycle. I’ll even be getting myself a pair of the UnderSwim undies for next time we go away on holiday! It’s time we stopped letting our periods make us miss out on all the fun!

Eltee Sydney are offering Mums lounge readers 10% off period wear that passes the real-life test! Simply use code MUMTESTED at the checkout. 

Please note: It is a one use code and cannot be combined with any other codes. Code is valid on all products except discounted product bundles.

Head over to www.elteesydney.com.au and check out their entire range for yourself.

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