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Striking a balance - Looking at the performance lifestyle team's contribution to preparing athletes for Delhi and beyond

Everyday, people come up with a multitude of reasons to forego physical exercise. “I’m too busy at work” or “I’m too tired” being just two of the more common excuses.

However, Scotland’s elite athletes don’t have the option of simply deciding they will ‘do it tomorrow’. 

For while these talented sportsmen and women have one eye on achieving sporting success, they must also find a way of juggling training and competition with family, work and study commitments. 

This everyday need to strike the right balance between competing priorities in an athlete’s busy life can create added pressure – especially during a Commonwealth Games year where participation in qualification competitions is required before they’re even selected.

Fortunately, help is at hand in the shape of the sportscotland institute of sport’s Performance Lifestyle team.

Led by former PE teacher and lecturer Susie Elms, the seven-strong Performance Lifestyle team has proven indispensible in helping athletes to manage all the factors – both in and out of the sports arena - that can affect performance.

Whether it involves Performance Lifestyle advisor Tracy Rea organising leave for a swimmer in full-time education or Susie herself working with the hockey support team and coaches to adapt a training plan and tapering it to fit with players’ free time outside of employment, the aim  is maintain the health and wellbeing of their charges – and so fulfil their sporting potential in Delhi.

There is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach.  Performance Lifestyle works with athletes on a one-to-basis to create solutions best-suited to each individual.  While the athlete may be helped to become more effective with their time management, he or she also has the added benefit and reassurance of being able to turn to the performance lifestyle adviser at any time for confidential advice.

Importantly, the support provided by Susie’s team is integrated with that undertaken by their colleagues in sports medicine, physiology, performance nutrition, psychology, physiotherapy and strength and conditioning.

This holistic approach – one that currently involves those hoping to compete in Delhi in archery, athletics, aquatics, badminton, gymnastics, hockey, lawn bowls, shooting weightlifting and wrestling – is designed to minimise the factors that may prevent athletes performing to their highest level.

After more than a decade of working in her post, Susie says: “I continue to be humbled by the extraordinary commitment and dedication athletes give to their sport.  Their attitude, self belief and desire is truly inspiring.”

Thanks to Susie and her team, so too is an ability to strike the right balance!