Find Your Balance

People were always shocked when I told them I was working full-time in the lead up to winning the Commonwealth Games. At present, I work 30 hours a week which people still find surprising.

I think it is vital to have goals outside of athletics and this generally means either studying or working in some capacity. For me, work provides a different focus in my life. You could actually be negatively impacting on your performance if you only focus on your sport. I find if can over-dramatise injuries if I don’t have anything else to focus on.

Financial pressure can have you focussing on outcomes rather than how to achieve your goals. It’s not healthy to become fixated on trying to achieve a certain distance or time.

Realistically, there are very few professional athletes who are internationally competitive past the age of 35 years. Admittedly if you are very successful and invest your money very wisely, you could live the remainder of your life on your winnings. However, people tend to spend within their means – which means you’ll spend as much money as you make – so your winnings won’t take that long to dry up. So there is a high probability that you’ll need an alternate source of income once you are no longer competing.

In terms of how many commitments you have, it’s important you have enough time for training, recovery, injury prevention, injury management and some socialising. Rest and relaxation is very important to help clear your mind and optimise your motivation and desire. Therefore, working part-time is likely to suit more athletes. It’s also important to find employers who are flexible and allow you to take time off for competitions and other unexpected sporting commitments.

For certain times of the year, it may be important to have a break from work. For example, I don’t work when I travel overseas for athletics. Even during my time travelling I ensure I develop other interests to distract myself.

I had a three year break from competing while I was at university as my course was not very flexible plus I found myself working three jobs simultaneously whilst at university. In 2000, I secured myself permanent employment finding satisfaction with my vocational / mental situation, I was settled emotionally with long-term partner Jason and I felt spiritually content. It was at this time I started to excel physically with my sport, fulfilling my first major sporting goal – representing Australia at the Olympics.

Find your balance through holistic health to help you achieve your goals!