Despite my horrible knowledge of Australian hockey, I felt like I could’ve talked with Keira for many hours! Keira speaks of how she retains a sense of home, no matter where she is in the world. Being from Canada, she has grown up playing the sport of Hockey, and later states that she likes to ‘go where the sport is’. Retaining her love for the sport of Hockey has helped her during the transition to living down in Australia. She believed that she needs to be immersed in an uncomfortable environment in order to grow and progress professionally. Keira shares some of the struggles she went through in traveling abroad and how she keeps a good reputation and respect amongst her athletes in what is considered a tough sport. Now having lived in Australia for many years now, she is flourishing in her the industry, having worked for many hockey teams in Australia, and now owner a training facility in Melbourne.

@keira_dunwoody @weareinsideedge

https://www.linkedin.com/in/keira-dunwoody-152a68111/

https://www.insideedge.net.au

This episode is a very raw chat with Dr Peter Braun as he shares his own experiences as a student where he was overwhelmed with stress and anxiety, to a point where he didn’t know how to deal with it. We also touch on the hardships he has had to overcome in his career to date. There are so many lessons to take out of this discussion!

Being overwhelmed as an intern in a hospital was a very prominent experience for Dr Braun. At the time, he didn’t recognise these episodes as panic attacks that were caused by anxiety, and his way of dealing with it was to just ‘muscle through it’. He describes it as being paralysed and being overwhelmed with fear and panic. We discuss how times have changed since then, and how he would have received more help if he had known. He admits that his biggest mistake was not seeking advice for help. Because of the way that mental health was spoken about back then, Dr Braun felt like he was on his own and he was forced to fix the issue himself. Many people can still relate to this feeling of loneliness when dealing with mental health issues.

We also touched on his fear of not being in control. Dr Braun has always been comfortable when he is in control but has become better at being comfortable when not being in control. He deals with it through his confidence in his experiences and having the right resource on hand. As the CMO, Dr Braun treats mental health as equally important as physical health for the winter Olympic athletes. Dr Braun shares a few tragic experiences during his time in the Winter Olympic Team, and how he could only be in control of certain things at a time.

And on top of this, Dr Braun has an unreal story about being stuck in the middle of the ocean a few years ago. Speaking on anxiety triggering events and building resilience! What was amazing about this story was how Dr Braun and his friend delt with this trauma. They just spoke about it, together, and wrote down each other’s events of the days at sea.

https://www.absolutehealthperformance.com.au/948-high-street-armadale

[email protected]

Kurt and I could have spoken for hours. I was very grateful for his time in the early hours of the morning, with what I’m sure will not be our only encounter on this format. We initially spoke about how Kurt’s job has taken him around the world and what that experience is like for an S+C coach who has a family. Now having returned to Australia, Kurt is excited to re-establish his roots and find a sense of community again.

Kurt is a firm advocate on Holistic Development, which can mean for an S+C coach to be able to really tap into the different areas of the emotional, mental, physical and spiritual aspects of the athlete and the person. Addressing all of these results in getting the best out of the athlete or person for the purposes of boosting performance and overall quality of life. Or as Kurt puts in, ‘being seen for who you are’.

He picked up the love for breath training at an early ago, having been exposed to meditative practices and slow deep breathing techniques within his family as he grew up. Having applied some of these techniques in his own sporting performance, Kurt realised the power of mindfulness and meditation, that has the potential to instil both an excitatory and inhibitory effect on his body. This would help him rise to the demands required on the sports field, as well as tap into the parasympathetic nervous system to calm down and let the body relax and recover.

We talked briefly about the concept of CO2 tolerance development, meaning the ability to tolerate carbon dioxide, and how this can not only benefit the performance of athletes, but also become a measure used more regularly as a measurement of health and wellness. This concept has been getting more attention recently, and practitioners such as Kurt, who’re now implementing this form of assessment into regular practice, will help perfect its use and application within a high-performance setting.

Instagram - Kurt.tropiano

Email - [email protected]

Joel talks about his experience from drinking a 6 pack of beer and just choosing the courses he enjoyed most, to now being one of the most respected physiotherapists in the greater Melbourne area. He shares the struggles of once owning his own business, and how he bounced back from some rough times in the business.

One of Joel’s specialties is dealing with pain and explaining exactly where pain comes from. We know that we feel pain when the brain perceives danger based on the information it has received. It’s fascinating to realise that experiencing stress and immense emotional distress can light up the same pathways that are involved with physical injury. In explaining this, Joel talks about how we create neural pathways from injury and what the long-term impacts of these neural pathways have on the body. We talk about how factor such as fear and focusing too much on specific pain can fuel it, but confidence in the body and person can be a way to overcome it. Joel himself can relate to this as he shares his experience of being stood down at work due to the pandemic, and how the pain from a previous injury came back. Unexplained pain can be explained!

Joel and I also discussed the state of flow. A new term to Joel, but the feeling and experience of being in ‘a flow state’ was not uncommon for him. It’s a state of being lost in time with what you’re doing in the present. Time passes by while you have such immense focus and concentration. He relates this to his experiences with his clients, as he gives them his complete concentration.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joel-laing-a581a922/

[email protected]

I could spend hours talking with these two! They’re a good laugh and have a lot of interesting things to share from their own experiences as both performers/athletes and now as practitioners. This episode really shines a light into the very exciting and intense life inside the Australian Ballet and the world of dance.

Both Sakis and Sam experienced major injuries that accelerated their transition out of their own careers. From a Dancer to Strength Coach, and a Footballer to Welfare and Development Coordinator, these two have the very valuable trait of being able to empathise with their athletes as both Sakis and Sam can understand what it is like to push through the hard days at training, how to get through tough rehabilitation, and how to build a life outside of the sport/artform itself.

We talked about current and past player welfare and development systems. Today, athletes have access to so much in terms of physical preparation, recovery, and mental preparation, which is a large difference from a few decades ago. Especially in the field of mental wellbeing. It is an important part of Sam’s role, to make sure his athletes are planning to have a backup plan from sports, and how other hobbies can increase performance rather than be a distraction. A big topic we all discussed was that of an athlete being defined by the sport. Some athletes get lost, when they cannot perform their sport for injuries, illnesses, etc. Today, more and more athletes and performers are taking up studies and other hobbies, so they have a life outside their sport. This helps them stay focused and provides a purpose, rather than the sport being the only option.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sakis-michelis-1144a068/?originalSubdomain=au

@sakismichelis

@sam_wright19

[email protected]

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-wright-308849124/?originalSubdomain=au

https://australianballet.com.au/the-artists/artistic-health-team/meet-the-artistic-health-team

I really enjoyed talking with Ryan and getting an insight into his philosophy on physiotherapy and movement in general. Ultimately, Ryan aims to bridge the gap between rehabilitation and performance. This podcast aims to find the gap between those within a performance setting and their own vulnerabilities, so I’m all about building bridges. His motivation and purpose come from the joy and satisfaction that he gets from giving a successful and new service to his clients. Additionally, Ryan and I spoke about reference points, and how we should really be measuring our success/happiness. True and long-lasting happiness doesn’t come from the new car or good grades in a degree, it comes from simply giving others, and doing it consistently. Studies show that this can be as simple as a gift as little at $5 to a loved one or even a stranger. Ryan is in the business of serving people and helping them become better. We talk about this being a reference point for his own job satisfaction, rather than his yearly wage. 

Insta: dr.ryanchow

Website: https://www.reloadpt.com/ryan-chow-pt-dpt

Individual sport can be so rewarding, and yet so punishing. Alex has built a career in an individual sport that requires such deep focus in the present. A focus that is constantly being battled by internal pressures.

Alex and I spoke about his long-term relationships with athletes. Building a relationship with an athlete for such a long time can be hard. Alex has known a few of his top contending athletes for about 13 years. It’s tricky to build these relationships as you must the success rate or acceptance is so much harder to achieve when compared to a group of athletes in a team. Alex touches on both the highs and the lows of such a relationship that occur both on and off the track. Alex considers himself lucky and privileged to be able to guide someone for such a long period of time. He admits that these relationships are far from being smooth all the time. But Alex links that to life outside of sport, we cannot be perfect all the time, and we work on bettering ourselves and each other through collaboration and fixing it together.

We then discuss the topic of the mindset of an individual athlete. Alex main point surrounds the idea of being dismissive. No matter what the last attempt/point looked like or ended up like, whether it was a positive or negative result, the athlete must dismiss that attempt and focus on the present. We talk about how these can transfer into life outside of competitive sport and the difficulty of trying not to bring things from outside the track into training. A common theme of those I have talked to in the past is compartmentalising. Alex likens this to learning a specific skill. Alex admits how he has had his share of bad days and he has carried heavy loads with him during some sessions. This is something that Alex really wants to improve on.

Lastly, Alex talks about the importance of curiosity. He believes that staying curious with people, occupation, and the world will lead a practitioner to success. Curiosity needs to be paired with truth. Even if the truth may be harsh or difficult, it will always lead you to the best outcome.

‘I am where I am because I chose to be here’

@alexstewart81

stewartalex_

[email protected]

Spending 25 years at Athletic Club Bilboa, Maria certainly has a lot of stories to tell. She discusses how her time at Athletic Club has been a personal journey, as well as a professional one. She has learned to develop people, not just players and coaches. Maria grew within the club with help from the coaches and people she was involved with. She shares how important it was for her to develop herself in order to develop others.

‘Develop means to learning, to learn means to change, and in change we always lose something’.

Maria shares how change can initially be confronting, but if the goals and purposes of the organisation are aligned with all the stakeholders, the change is inevitably for the best and allows for further opportunity.

Maria is the Guru for Leadership. She believes that is is important to questioning yourself as a leader. In being comfortable, we become complacent. And we must never assume that we know everything. Always looking to improve, build and learn from others are strong characteristics of a leader. Another important characteristic is showing vulnerability. We discuss how vulnerability is a HUMAN characteristic, and no matter your experience, we are all vulnerable in certain ways. Maria shares how she is vulnerable every day in her role. She also reflects on the feelings she had as a teenager when she got her first role in a sporting organisation.

Finally, we touch on the topic of having difficult conversations and how this is important as a practitioner within elite sport. It is essential not to make the topic personal when addressing hard conversations. Speaking in first person is key, avoiding putting blame on others. Maria shares some great ideas on how to deal with hard conversations for us all to take into our own workplaces.

Beatrice and I talked about her experience playing at the highest level of AFL for women while also balancing study and work. She recalls being in the AFLW and working at subway as a ‘sandwich artist’ at the same time. This shows the one of the many differences between the men’s and women’s game. However, being proactive and getting a lot done while at school and University helped her keep her options open. After her injury, she realised there was a lot more to life than just sport and study and is now grateful for her past experiences.

We also briefly talk about the future of women’s sport and what that looks like. We agree that there has been a lot of progress in cricket, soccer and AFL, but there still needs to be much more done.

Now as a practitioner, Beatrice discusses the topic of female strength coaches within the high-performance industry and how they are commonly depicted. We talk about being judged on image vs character, and also on not caring what other people think

I was keen to talk to Beatrice about how her experiences as an athlete have helped her empathise with her clients/athletes while working in the industry. How not only experiencing the physical struggles (injuries, etc.) but also the mental battles (being able to talk to someone). She admits to being someone who would consistently adopt the common ‘I’m fine’ mindset and shrug some things off when she was struggling internally. Now she understands that it’s okay not to be fine, and it is important to find someone you trust or who will at least listen in order to get through certain mental struggles.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/beatrice-devlyn-b3081b161/

https://open.spotify.com/show/1bKkvaEA6pdJwu1AT62NwR?si=rWqSfLtZTd2ygrPf7H8gPQ

https://instagram.com/bea_devlyn?utm_medium=copy_link

https://instagram.com/sheba_the_dobermann?utm_medium=copy_link

[email protected]

Ashley and I discuss how having experiences and studies in other fields can be beneficial. For example, Coaches getting sport science courses or a strength coach getting a coaching course, etc. This proactive mindset can help practitioner’s emphasis with others within their organisation. Ashley has a sport science degree which he believes has helped him immensely while working in a high-performance setting.

We also talk about the experience that a physiotherapist must undergo while being the first responder on the field, assessing for issues/pain/consciousness with athletes. We touch on topics such what they need to prepare for, any possible feelings of anxiety that arise, etc.

Ashley paints a good picture of what it is like in the day-to-day operations within high-performance sport. There are stressors that you become immune to, particularly the dynamic and fast paced environment. The whole day rushes by as there’s so much going on. And it the culture set in the club that helps deal with such immense loads throughout the day. Ashley mentions how he treats everyone in the club with the same amount of respect, from the star athletes to the kitman, creating relationships instead of creating assumptions based on labels. Ashley also shares how trying to achieve a balanced life is hard to achieve in his industry. It’s different from working Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm with weekends and holidays off. This industry demands a lot from him, which he acknowledges and is doing his best to deal with it now. Another part of regular life within the industry is change. Ashley and I discuss how he best deals with change and how it shouldn’t always be feared. Change can take up energy but may be worth it in the long run with the right resources. Refer to Claes Janssen Four Room Apartment Model for change.

http://www.fourroomsofchange.net.au

We also discuss the relationships that are built within high-performance settings. Being the middleman between athletes/clients and employer/coach for practitioners such as strength coaches, sports scientist and physiotherapists can e a confronting and confusing situation. Ashley shares his opinions on what you should filter, get involved with or avoid, discuss etc. as some things can ‘chew you up’ if you’re not careful.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashley-lynch-732a54121/

[email protected]