WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.080 And we use the phrase, especially at a high performance 00:00:03.080 --> 00:00:06.179 level, is, you know, knowledge is power. So the 00:00:06.179 --> 00:00:08.820 more you understand about the simple elements 00:00:08.820 --> 00:00:11.619 of your physiology and being healthy, and we 00:00:11.619 --> 00:00:15.259 optimise that health and prioritise that health, 00:00:15.359 --> 00:00:17.140 well then it helps them to optimise their performance 00:00:17.140 --> 00:00:20.829 as well. Hi Sharon, it's my pleasure to have 00:00:20.829 --> 00:00:22.730 you on Evidence Strong Show. If you could briefly 00:00:22.730 --> 00:00:25.070 introduce yourself. Hi, my name is Sharon Kearney. 00:00:25.190 --> 00:00:28.489 I live in New Zealand in Christchurch. I am a 00:00:28.489 --> 00:00:31.690 physiotherapist by trade. Currently, I work for 00:00:31.690 --> 00:00:34.609 Netball New Zealand in two capacities. I'm the 00:00:34.609 --> 00:00:38.649 high performance physio for the leading team, 00:00:38.729 --> 00:00:40.509 which is called the Silver Ferns. But I also 00:00:40.509 --> 00:00:43.289 work in the Netball Smart program, which is the 00:00:43.289 --> 00:00:45.670 injury prevention program for Netball New Zealand. 00:00:45.750 --> 00:00:47.850 And the injury prevention program is more based 00:00:47.850 --> 00:00:50.990 towards the community. side of netball within 00:00:50.990 --> 00:00:53.350 our country. Awesome. So that's the topic of 00:00:53.350 --> 00:00:56.070 our conversation. Netball Smart and additional 00:00:56.070 --> 00:00:59.189 frameworks you guys develop look amazing and 00:00:59.189 --> 00:01:02.770 hopefully they do a lot of good in female sport 00:01:02.770 --> 00:01:05.909 from the community to high performance. So I'm 00:01:05.909 --> 00:01:08.769 keen to learn, where are you in this journey 00:01:08.769 --> 00:01:11.049 of improving female sport? Wow, that's a good 00:01:11.049 --> 00:01:13.349 question, Alex. I think when you're on this journey, 00:01:13.430 --> 00:01:16.129 you are always at the beginning because there 00:01:16.129 --> 00:01:19.269 always is so much more. to do and the more you 00:01:19.269 --> 00:01:20.870 do the more you feel like you're still at the 00:01:20.870 --> 00:01:23.189 beginning I suppose if we go back to the beginning 00:01:23.189 --> 00:01:26.489 Netball Smart was funded by ACC which is our 00:01:26.489 --> 00:01:29.390 insurance company in New Zealand and the idea 00:01:29.390 --> 00:01:32.849 behind that was they wanted to decrease significant 00:01:32.849 --> 00:01:35.450 injuries our significant injuries in netball 00:01:35.450 --> 00:01:38.049 are ACLs and ankles but they also gave us three 00:01:38.049 --> 00:01:40.849 objectives so it was decrease significant injuries 00:01:40.849 --> 00:01:45.209 it was increase awareness of Netball Smart and 00:01:45.209 --> 00:01:48.799 then the third one was approved player welfare 00:01:48.799 --> 00:01:52.040 is what they called it at the time. So I suppose 00:01:52.040 --> 00:01:55.439 what that... Those three key objectives generated 00:01:55.439 --> 00:02:00.000 an environment for us to develop a holistic program. 00:02:00.480 --> 00:02:02.879 With the key outcome, because it's an insurance 00:02:02.879 --> 00:02:05.799 company, we have to decrease the cost of ACL 00:02:05.799 --> 00:02:08.939 and ankle injuries, but it also gave us almost 00:02:08.939 --> 00:02:12.560 poetic license to look at other elements of supporting 00:02:12.560 --> 00:02:15.759 females and female health, really. At the beginning, 00:02:15.979 --> 00:02:19.460 ACC said that if we did a neuromuscular warm 00:02:19.460 --> 00:02:22.259 -up based on maybe the FIFA warm -up, we would 00:02:22.259 --> 00:02:25.930 decrease... ACLs by 50%. Wow. If we're thinking 00:02:25.930 --> 00:02:28.530 about that in a community space, we understood 00:02:28.530 --> 00:02:31.969 that they were exaggerating that stat because 00:02:31.969 --> 00:02:35.210 the evidence tells us that if you have a very 00:02:35.210 --> 00:02:39.150 tailored program, which is monitored, which is 00:02:39.150 --> 00:02:41.889 delivered by experts, yes, you will potentially 00:02:41.889 --> 00:02:44.930 get that outcome. But our community netballers, 00:02:44.949 --> 00:02:48.289 community coaches coaching in a community environment, 00:02:48.349 --> 00:02:50.629 and they don't have access to physiotherapists 00:02:50.629 --> 00:02:53.789 and streets and conditioning coaches. So then 00:02:53.789 --> 00:02:56.409 we decided. that for us to try and achieve that 00:02:56.409 --> 00:02:59.469 outcome, we needed a far greater program, not 00:02:59.469 --> 00:03:02.770 just a neuromuscular program. We needed to educate 00:03:02.770 --> 00:03:05.889 our coaches and our athletes and their extended 00:03:05.889 --> 00:03:09.349 whānau or family around the key elements of an 00:03:09.349 --> 00:03:11.770 injury prevention program. So that would be, 00:03:11.789 --> 00:03:13.990 yes, the neuromuscular warm -up, but yes, what 00:03:13.990 --> 00:03:16.590 we call smart movement, which is your ability 00:03:16.590 --> 00:03:20.229 to jump, land, decelerate well and effectively. 00:03:20.610 --> 00:03:25.039 Smart training, it's a strength. aerobic -based 00:03:25.039 --> 00:03:28.199 sports. So we need to educate our coaches and 00:03:28.199 --> 00:03:29.939 our athletes that you need to be fit and strong 00:03:29.939 --> 00:03:33.180 to play our game. Smart injury management. We 00:03:33.180 --> 00:03:35.680 will have injuries and we try to mitigate and 00:03:35.680 --> 00:03:38.120 decrease. But then also when you get an injury, 00:03:38.199 --> 00:03:40.960 how do you mitigate or decrease the impact of 00:03:40.960 --> 00:03:42.580 that injury? So that's the smart management. 00:03:42.780 --> 00:03:45.199 And then preparation. So smart preparation. How 00:03:45.199 --> 00:03:48.159 can you prepare for an event like training? So 00:03:48.159 --> 00:03:51.280 that's about hydration, nutrition, shoe selection. 00:03:51.699 --> 00:03:53.639 You know, our game is a really challenging... 00:03:53.639 --> 00:03:56.159 game and if they choose a poor shoe to do it 00:03:56.159 --> 00:03:58.340 and then potentially they're more likely to be 00:03:58.340 --> 00:04:00.699 injured so that's the smart preparation focus. 00:04:00.939 --> 00:04:03.759 The last piece that was added to the pie was 00:04:03.759 --> 00:04:07.759 player welfare or well -being and initially we 00:04:07.759 --> 00:04:10.360 looked at that from quite a holistic you know 00:04:10.360 --> 00:04:13.479 like load perspective how do we educate our parents 00:04:13.479 --> 00:04:16.579 and our coaches that load management is important 00:04:16.579 --> 00:04:19.540 that going through adolescence peak height velocity 00:04:19.540 --> 00:04:22.660 knowledge is really important and then delved 00:04:22.860 --> 00:04:25.459 little bit further because a very close colleague 00:04:25.459 --> 00:04:29.360 of me Kylie Cox came to me and wanted to do some 00:04:29.360 --> 00:04:33.199 research into understanding females knowledge 00:04:33.199 --> 00:04:36.579 of their menstrual cycle in relationship to health 00:04:36.579 --> 00:04:38.839 and well -being and performance and initially 00:04:38.839 --> 00:04:42.019 she said well I'd like to do it in triathletes 00:04:42.410 --> 00:04:44.509 And I said, hang on a minute, we've got a captive 00:04:44.509 --> 00:04:47.629 audience here. Netball is the most popular women's 00:04:47.629 --> 00:04:50.529 sport in New Zealand. Why don't we do it in netballers? 00:04:50.629 --> 00:04:53.829 So I pulled Kylie into the fold and we did some 00:04:53.829 --> 00:04:56.050 research at a secondary school level. And it 00:04:56.050 --> 00:04:59.149 came across quite glaringly that our young females 00:04:59.149 --> 00:05:03.610 had no real sound knowledge of female physiology. 00:05:04.730 --> 00:05:07.970 understanding of their own health and well -being 00:05:07.970 --> 00:05:11.069 and an understanding of how the menstrual cycle 00:05:11.069 --> 00:05:13.670 might be a barometer of their health and well 00:05:13.670 --> 00:05:18.449 -being. So once we found that out, then we decided, 00:05:18.470 --> 00:05:21.670 well, okay, if that is the case, clearly they're 00:05:21.670 --> 00:05:25.290 not being educated well about being a female 00:05:25.290 --> 00:05:27.949 and a healthy female. We do know in a school 00:05:27.949 --> 00:05:30.790 setting, they get their sex education. So it's 00:05:30.790 --> 00:05:34.009 more around you're a female, you're made to reproduce. 00:05:34.060 --> 00:05:36.420 reproduce. This is how you reproduce. And this 00:05:36.420 --> 00:05:38.699 is how not to get pregnant, but not stepping 00:05:38.699 --> 00:05:41.839 back and going, this is what a female is. This 00:05:41.839 --> 00:05:44.600 is why you have hormones. This is how to be a 00:05:44.600 --> 00:05:48.339 healthy female. So we decided that we would develop 00:05:48.339 --> 00:05:51.660 some resources to begin with, as you will see 00:05:51.660 --> 00:05:55.740 on our website, and then have taken those resources 00:05:55.740 --> 00:05:59.279 to the community. And we use our Netball Smart 00:05:59.279 --> 00:06:02.019 developers who are based around New Zealand to 00:06:02.019 --> 00:06:05.660 start delivering some simple workshops on being 00:06:05.660 --> 00:06:07.860 a healthy female and what does that mean but 00:06:07.860 --> 00:06:10.319 we also tie all our other messages in as well 00:06:10.319 --> 00:06:12.920 about jumping and landing about neuromuscular 00:06:12.920 --> 00:06:16.079 warm -ups about being fit and strong enough to 00:06:16.079 --> 00:06:20.439 play our game so we try to continue to have that 00:06:20.439 --> 00:06:24.100 strong holistic overall program to support our 00:06:24.100 --> 00:06:27.019 young females in their sport so that's sort of 00:06:27.019 --> 00:06:29.779 that's how we started and it's been quite a journey 00:06:29.779 --> 00:06:32.569 but I suppose if I take put my other hat on I 00:06:32.569 --> 00:06:35.310 work in the high performance space. So I'm the 00:06:35.310 --> 00:06:37.470 lead physio and medical coordinator for Netball 00:06:37.470 --> 00:06:39.610 New Zealand. So I have the luxury of working 00:06:39.610 --> 00:06:42.569 in the high performance space and in the community 00:06:42.569 --> 00:06:45.680 space. And I used to be the high performance 00:06:45.680 --> 00:06:47.660 physio for Netball New Zealand for a long time, 00:06:47.660 --> 00:06:49.860 a number of years ago. I moved out to move into 00:06:49.860 --> 00:06:52.459 Netball Smart and then I moved back in because 00:06:52.459 --> 00:06:55.040 I saw there was a wonderful opportunity for us 00:06:55.040 --> 00:06:57.339 to connect the high performance physiotherapy 00:06:57.339 --> 00:07:00.360 program and medical program with our Netball 00:07:00.360 --> 00:07:03.959 Smart program from the community up. So the ideal 00:07:03.959 --> 00:07:07.339 scenario is if our athletes navigate through 00:07:07.339 --> 00:07:09.689 their community netball. they're healthy and 00:07:09.689 --> 00:07:12.829 well in the present and for the future but if 00:07:12.829 --> 00:07:15.209 they have the sheer joy of becoming an elite 00:07:15.209 --> 00:07:17.509 athlete the messages they're getting at a community 00:07:17.509 --> 00:07:20.670 space are the same messages that they're getting 00:07:20.670 --> 00:07:23.449 at a high performance space but at a high performance 00:07:23.449 --> 00:07:26.970 space it's just more concentrated so just overall 00:07:26.970 --> 00:07:31.889 trying to improve the female athlete health literacy 00:07:31.889 --> 00:07:35.930 of our population that play that play netball 00:07:35.930 --> 00:07:39.120 so that's sort of I came back into the high performance 00:07:39.120 --> 00:07:41.100 space because I just saw that there was this 00:07:41.100 --> 00:07:43.699 gap and I have the luxury of working in Netball 00:07:43.699 --> 00:07:46.300 Smart and how can I marry those two together 00:07:46.300 --> 00:07:49.819 to continue to improve our education and health 00:07:49.819 --> 00:07:52.199 literacy. Because one of the big things, Alex, 00:07:52.259 --> 00:07:55.199 is we want our athletes to enjoy being a netballer. 00:07:55.240 --> 00:07:57.779 We want them to have a quality experience in 00:07:57.779 --> 00:08:00.300 netball. We want to use it as a vehicle to help 00:08:00.300 --> 00:08:02.699 educate them about looking after their health 00:08:02.699 --> 00:08:05.300 and wellbeing. And we want them to leave netball 00:08:05.300 --> 00:08:08.449 having had a positive experience. and... from 00:08:08.449 --> 00:08:10.509 a health perspective, you know, hopefully be 00:08:10.509 --> 00:08:13.509 in as good or a better place as they navigate 00:08:13.509 --> 00:08:16.189 out and then want to come back into our sport, 00:08:16.290 --> 00:08:19.430 whether it be coaches or umpires or just a parent 00:08:19.430 --> 00:08:21.430 who's supporting their young netballer because 00:08:21.430 --> 00:08:23.990 they've had a really positive health experience 00:08:23.990 --> 00:08:26.810 within our sport. It's a lofty goal. But anyway, 00:08:26.949 --> 00:08:28.870 I suppose you've got to be driven by lofty goals 00:08:28.870 --> 00:08:31.290 or otherwise you'd just sit at home on your couch 00:08:31.290 --> 00:08:33.750 watching Netflix. It sounds amazing because it 00:08:33.750 --> 00:08:36.309 sounds like you're building a framework that 00:08:36.309 --> 00:08:41.370 gives every... education for years because if 00:08:41.370 --> 00:08:44.389 you think about even community sport, the little 00:08:44.389 --> 00:08:46.710 girl enters the team when they're in primary 00:08:46.710 --> 00:08:49.090 school and they can play as long as they want. 00:08:49.210 --> 00:08:51.330 They can leave and they can come back to their 00:08:51.330 --> 00:08:53.690 recreational community or competitive netball. 00:08:54.190 --> 00:08:58.190 and they have this tricking in education and 00:08:58.190 --> 00:09:01.330 hopefully gaining skills for life, whether they 00:09:01.330 --> 00:09:04.309 will decide to go pro or not, that what they 00:09:04.309 --> 00:09:06.830 learn, all the skills with the sport itself, 00:09:07.289 --> 00:09:10.090 we know that this is valuable in itself already. 00:09:10.289 --> 00:09:13.730 But if they can gain some additional skills in 00:09:13.730 --> 00:09:15.909 terms of health management, fitness management 00:09:15.909 --> 00:09:18.710 and so on, understanding of their own physiology, 00:09:19.029 --> 00:09:22.509 they are so much ahead. Yes, that's exactly right. 00:09:23.500 --> 00:09:25.919 Use the phrase, especially at a high performance 00:09:25.919 --> 00:09:29.019 level, is, you know, knowledge is power. So the 00:09:29.019 --> 00:09:31.639 more you understand about the simple elements 00:09:31.639 --> 00:09:34.460 of your physiology and being healthy, and we 00:09:34.460 --> 00:09:38.080 optimize that health and prioritize that health, 00:09:38.200 --> 00:09:39.960 well, then it helps them to optimize their performance 00:09:39.960 --> 00:09:42.659 as well. So a healthy athlete at a performance 00:09:42.659 --> 00:09:46.200 level who is on the court training, who is in 00:09:46.200 --> 00:09:48.860 the gym training, who is on the court performing, 00:09:49.039 --> 00:09:51.460 is going to get better at their sport versus 00:09:51.460 --> 00:09:55.100 sitting. on the sideline, either ill or injured 00:09:55.100 --> 00:09:57.860 because they haven't been able to manage things 00:09:57.860 --> 00:10:00.120 well. It also gives them a little bit of autonomy 00:10:00.120 --> 00:10:03.200 because we do know in a high performance environment, 00:10:03.720 --> 00:10:07.139 our athletes are pushed to the edge to be the 00:10:07.139 --> 00:10:09.820 best that they can be. But we want them to do 00:10:09.820 --> 00:10:13.139 it in a way that they understand what that could 00:10:13.139 --> 00:10:16.399 mean. And you'll know as well, we deal a lot 00:10:16.399 --> 00:10:19.019 within sport, especially at a performance and 00:10:19.019 --> 00:10:21.340 even recreational level with LEA, low energy 00:10:21.340 --> 00:10:25.360 availability. But if our athletes actually understand 00:10:25.360 --> 00:10:29.240 that the fueling needs for them is not just around 00:10:29.240 --> 00:10:31.860 training, I need to fuel to train, but I need 00:10:31.860 --> 00:10:34.460 to fuel to run my physiological systems in my 00:10:34.460 --> 00:10:37.600 body. I need to fuel to support my ability to 00:10:37.600 --> 00:10:40.240 concentrate, to be able to study. I need to fuel 00:10:40.240 --> 00:10:42.980 to be able to be a social human being. If they 00:10:42.980 --> 00:10:45.039 understand that in a bigger picture and they 00:10:45.039 --> 00:10:47.679 understand that earlier, then hopefully we are 00:10:47.679 --> 00:10:50.659 going to prevent some of these scenarios where 00:10:50.659 --> 00:10:52.389 we have these young athletes that end up... in 00:10:52.389 --> 00:10:56.350 LEA and then ultimately in REDS and then with 00:10:56.350 --> 00:10:59.049 ongoing health issues as they navigate out of 00:10:59.049 --> 00:11:01.409 our sport and decide that they want to have children 00:11:01.409 --> 00:11:04.610 but they have challenged their system for so 00:11:04.610 --> 00:11:07.850 long that their physiological systems have shut 00:11:07.850 --> 00:11:10.730 down and it's hard to reactivate those if it's 00:11:10.730 --> 00:11:13.009 been happening for such a long period of time 00:11:13.009 --> 00:11:15.590 so we're really trying to increase the awareness 00:11:15.590 --> 00:11:18.590 of our athletes particularly in a high performance 00:11:18.590 --> 00:11:21.759 space around that so they're making some decisions 00:11:21.759 --> 00:11:24.740 about what they do based on knowledge, not just 00:11:24.740 --> 00:11:27.100 because they're told they need to run harder, 00:11:27.220 --> 00:11:30.779 jump faster, be fitter, be leaner. They understand 00:11:30.779 --> 00:11:33.759 how that impacts on their body as well. Right. 00:11:33.840 --> 00:11:37.580 Very important. Could we go into the details 00:11:37.580 --> 00:11:40.919 how the education actually is implementing from 00:11:40.919 --> 00:11:43.740 the community to high performance level? So at 00:11:43.740 --> 00:11:47.419 a high performance level, for example, I'm presently 00:11:47.419 --> 00:11:50.940 traveling the countryside with Kylie Cotts. our 00:11:50.940 --> 00:11:53.940 specialist in smart health, and we're delivering 00:11:53.940 --> 00:11:58.279 workshops into our top domestic competition athletes. 00:11:58.620 --> 00:12:01.299 So, and okay, we have an hour in front of them. 00:12:01.340 --> 00:12:03.740 That's all we have because they have timetables 00:12:03.740 --> 00:12:05.899 that are bottlenecked. But what we're doing, 00:12:05.940 --> 00:12:08.440 and we did it last year as well, so we talk about 00:12:08.440 --> 00:12:11.820 smart health performance. So this is understanding 00:12:11.820 --> 00:12:15.379 being a female, understanding your health in 00:12:15.379 --> 00:12:17.480 a performance setting where you are going to 00:12:17.480 --> 00:12:20.129 be challenged consistently. That's one element 00:12:20.129 --> 00:12:23.269 of what we do. The athletes also have their PHEs 00:12:23.269 --> 00:12:25.970 or their performance health evaluations. So they 00:12:25.970 --> 00:12:28.330 have a medical, for example. We're trying to 00:12:28.330 --> 00:12:30.210 help them understand that when they're having 00:12:30.210 --> 00:12:32.669 blood tests, why are you having blood tests for? 00:12:32.870 --> 00:12:34.809 And what does that mean in terms of your health 00:12:34.809 --> 00:12:36.889 and well -being versus I just did some blood 00:12:36.889 --> 00:12:39.230 tests. I don't know why I did them, but I just 00:12:39.230 --> 00:12:42.070 did them. So just trying to help them understand 00:12:42.070 --> 00:12:45.269 how their performance health evaluation is about 00:12:45.269 --> 00:12:47.850 evaluating their health and how they need to 00:12:47.850 --> 00:12:51.100 ask. good questions and we arm them with some 00:12:51.100 --> 00:12:54.039 information to help them ask those questions. 00:12:54.179 --> 00:12:56.980 We link in very closely with the nutrition program 00:12:56.980 --> 00:13:01.179 so the athletes have a nutritionist and so if 00:13:01.179 --> 00:13:04.899 we have any concerns when we're delivering workshops 00:13:04.899 --> 00:13:07.720 around some of the questions the athletes might 00:13:07.720 --> 00:13:11.200 ask around LEA or REDS we link them back into 00:13:11.200 --> 00:13:15.159 the nutritionist. workshops in the ideal world 00:13:15.159 --> 00:13:17.940 we have the sncs the physios and the coaches 00:13:17.940 --> 00:13:20.500 and the athletes all in the and the nutritionists 00:13:20.500 --> 00:13:24.580 all in the room together so not only is the athlete 00:13:24.580 --> 00:13:26.919 learning about female athletic health but so 00:13:26.919 --> 00:13:30.179 is the coach so is the snc can't say hand on 00:13:30.179 --> 00:13:33.139 heart we're 100 we're doing that 100 well at 00:13:33.139 --> 00:13:36.139 the moment because still in our setting sometimes 00:13:36.139 --> 00:13:39.559 the coaches or the snc will go oh that's their 00:13:39.559 --> 00:13:41.539 their journey that's their knowledge but we're 00:13:41.539 --> 00:13:43.899 trying to encompass everybody so that they all 00:13:43.899 --> 00:13:46.840 fully understand it. So that's where we're starting 00:13:46.840 --> 00:13:48.879 at that high performance space. We could do a 00:13:48.879 --> 00:13:51.620 better job if we had more time. We're developing 00:13:51.620 --> 00:13:55.139 some online learning. So if someone asks some 00:13:55.139 --> 00:13:58.360 questions, then we can gear them towards some 00:13:58.360 --> 00:14:00.940 online learning modules that we've developed. 00:14:01.039 --> 00:14:04.340 And we're sort of like growing that library because 00:14:04.340 --> 00:14:07.159 we are fully aware that we can't give them everything 00:14:07.159 --> 00:14:10.159 in one hour. We're fully aware they'll have some 00:14:10.159 --> 00:14:12.139 other questions, but then how How can we help 00:14:12.139 --> 00:14:14.259 them understand where to go? But I think the 00:14:14.259 --> 00:14:16.820 face to face thing, Alex, is really, really important 00:14:16.820 --> 00:14:19.710 because it's that. connection and that relationship 00:14:19.710 --> 00:14:22.230 that you develop with your athletes by bringing 00:14:22.230 --> 00:14:25.909 female athletic health forward into a conversation 00:14:25.909 --> 00:14:28.629 that then encourages them to go and look more 00:14:28.629 --> 00:14:30.690 for it. Whereas if you just go, oh, here's a 00:14:30.690 --> 00:14:33.110 whole lot of resources, go and navigate your 00:14:33.110 --> 00:14:35.350 way through our website and look at these modules, 00:14:35.649 --> 00:14:37.690 they don't connect enough with it to understand 00:14:37.690 --> 00:14:40.070 that that's a really good idea. So we do believe 00:14:40.070 --> 00:14:43.389 that the face -to -face modules are really important 00:14:43.389 --> 00:14:47.909 to catalyst, to kickstart their curiosity. wanting 00:14:47.909 --> 00:14:50.830 to find out more about their overall health and 00:14:50.830 --> 00:14:53.309 well -being and help them then navigate where 00:14:53.309 --> 00:14:55.830 they may need to go if they're having some concerns, 00:14:55.970 --> 00:14:58.509 you know, the nutritionist, the endocrinologist, 00:14:58.669 --> 00:15:01.419 the doctor. So that they do start generating 00:15:01.419 --> 00:15:04.659 that understanding, knowledge and power to be 00:15:04.659 --> 00:15:06.840 autonomous in their overall health. High performance 00:15:06.840 --> 00:15:11.039 space. I think it's having the in -person workshop 00:15:11.039 --> 00:15:14.580 with someone outside coming in and providing. 00:15:14.840 --> 00:15:16.960 I'm not sure whether it's a safe place, but it 00:15:16.960 --> 00:15:19.399 shows that this is an important topic. This is 00:15:19.399 --> 00:15:22.240 to be considered and gives almost permission. 00:15:22.460 --> 00:15:25.259 Because high level athletes sacrifice to some 00:15:25.259 --> 00:15:29.039 degree their health for performance. But I think 00:15:29.039 --> 00:15:31.080 it is. is important to bring the health into 00:15:31.080 --> 00:15:34.220 the conversation so they are one aware that they 00:15:34.220 --> 00:15:37.919 are doing it and two that they can prevent some 00:15:37.919 --> 00:15:40.539 of the things be it with low energy availability 00:15:40.539 --> 00:15:44.379 or you know the consequences if you prolongly 00:15:44.379 --> 00:15:46.960 in this phase when you're not fueling your body 00:15:46.960 --> 00:15:49.340 properly you may end up here these are the risks 00:15:49.340 --> 00:15:52.159 so they are can balance being an athlete professional 00:15:52.159 --> 00:15:55.539 athlete with being a healthy human being knowledgeably 00:15:55.539 --> 00:16:00.090 and with a lookout to the future Just what professional 00:16:00.090 --> 00:16:04.669 athletes are amazing in is in suffering and compromising 00:16:04.669 --> 00:16:07.730 their health and almost ignoring the health issues 00:16:07.730 --> 00:16:10.350 sometimes for this better performance. And we 00:16:10.350 --> 00:16:12.409 praise them for that and they are rewarded for 00:16:12.409 --> 00:16:15.649 that. And that's how they become heroes. That's 00:16:15.649 --> 00:16:19.350 the job. But we want them to last long. We want 00:16:19.350 --> 00:16:22.549 them to be amazing human beings and healthy and 00:16:22.549 --> 00:16:25.169 then moving on from being a professional athlete 00:16:25.169 --> 00:16:28.889 to other roles in sport or outside and being 00:16:28.889 --> 00:16:31.429 productive and so on. So because they have amazing 00:16:31.429 --> 00:16:34.110 skills after, we don't want them to just fade 00:16:34.110 --> 00:16:38.230 away. So this conversation, making it important, 00:16:38.490 --> 00:16:42.570 is also, I think, part of what is needed in professional 00:16:42.570 --> 00:16:44.970 sport. I completely agree. And that's the thing. 00:16:45.899 --> 00:16:47.340 increasing their knowledge and understanding, 00:16:47.759 --> 00:16:51.159 then we want them to have some autonomy in terms 00:16:51.159 --> 00:16:53.200 of that decision -making about pushing themselves 00:16:53.200 --> 00:16:56.720 to the edge and sacrificing. So if I sacrifice... 00:16:57.450 --> 00:16:59.830 my health at this moment to be the best that 00:16:59.830 --> 00:17:02.710 I can be I'm doing it and I understand and I 00:17:02.710 --> 00:17:05.049 know that I can pull myself back so it might 00:17:05.049 --> 00:17:07.910 be for example you know like triathletes who 00:17:07.910 --> 00:17:10.589 may feel that they perform really well at a certain 00:17:10.589 --> 00:17:14.450 weight but they live on that edge understanding 00:17:14.450 --> 00:17:17.009 that it is challenging their body but then also 00:17:17.009 --> 00:17:18.970 they know once they've competed they can pull 00:17:18.970 --> 00:17:21.750 themselves back into possibly a healthier state 00:17:21.750 --> 00:17:24.089 but if they don't understand that and they haven't 00:17:24.089 --> 00:17:26.529 got that sort of underlying knowledge then they 00:17:26.529 --> 00:17:29.509 all almost like unwittingly go down trajectory 00:17:29.509 --> 00:17:33.630 of less than optimal health for their performance. 00:17:33.849 --> 00:17:36.490 And as you know, Alex, until they get to that 00:17:36.490 --> 00:17:39.029 tipping point where that less than optimal health 00:17:39.029 --> 00:17:41.670 actually has a significantly negative impact 00:17:41.670 --> 00:17:44.849 on their performance. Yeah. So yeah, that's our 00:17:44.849 --> 00:17:47.609 sort of like underwriting philosophy is how do 00:17:47.609 --> 00:17:49.710 we just help them understand this? Because we 00:17:49.710 --> 00:17:51.670 want them also, you know, there's quite a lot, 00:17:51.690 --> 00:17:53.269 there's been quite a lot of media in New Zealand 00:17:53.269 --> 00:17:55.930 around female athletes finishing their performance. 00:17:55.950 --> 00:17:58.009 professional careers, their high -level careers, 00:17:58.269 --> 00:18:00.150 and then deciding that they want to move into 00:18:00.150 --> 00:18:01.789 the next part of their life, which is having 00:18:01.789 --> 00:18:04.410 a family, and being really challenged by it because 00:18:04.410 --> 00:18:06.970 they have compromised probably their reproductive 00:18:06.970 --> 00:18:10.430 system for a while by living on that edge. And 00:18:10.430 --> 00:18:13.930 it doesn't happen as readily and as easily as 00:18:13.930 --> 00:18:16.369 they thought it might. And that can be really 00:18:16.369 --> 00:18:19.650 psychologically challenging for any female or 00:18:19.650 --> 00:18:22.029 any high -performing athlete who then wants to 00:18:22.029 --> 00:18:23.529 make a decision about the next part of their 00:18:23.529 --> 00:18:25.519 life. I wanted to ask you whether it would be 00:18:25.519 --> 00:18:28.240 all right for you to go roughly what you are 00:18:28.240 --> 00:18:31.140 able to squeeze within this one hour workshop 00:18:31.140 --> 00:18:33.940 so what we have figured out having done these 00:18:33.940 --> 00:18:36.180 workshops over a while through the community 00:18:36.180 --> 00:18:38.839 space and at a high performance space is how 00:18:38.839 --> 00:18:42.839 we deliver it so what we squeeze in is giving 00:18:42.839 --> 00:18:45.559 them an idea about hormonal balance like what 00:18:45.559 --> 00:18:48.579 are hormones what are female hormones what are 00:18:48.579 --> 00:18:50.720 the other hormones that we have within our body 00:18:50.720 --> 00:18:54.700 system what they're for and then how those hormones 00:18:54.700 --> 00:18:58.539 influenced by lifestyle so lifestyle be whether 00:18:58.539 --> 00:19:02.240 that your training intensity your recovery your 00:19:02.240 --> 00:19:06.000 nutrition and other lifestyle stresses so helping 00:19:06.000 --> 00:19:08.859 them understand that how their body works is 00:19:08.859 --> 00:19:11.920 influenced by all of those things and then delve 00:19:11.920 --> 00:19:14.799 a little bit more into the female hormones we 00:19:14.799 --> 00:19:17.279 discuss the menstrual cycle and what happens 00:19:17.279 --> 00:19:21.059 and and how it happens but how from a at a brain 00:19:21.059 --> 00:19:24.809 perspective if we're thinking about FSH and LH. 00:19:25.130 --> 00:19:27.569 Hormones come from the hypothalamus in the brain 00:19:27.569 --> 00:19:30.329 and then how the ovaries generate hormones as 00:19:30.329 --> 00:19:32.490 well. So just trying to get them to understand 00:19:32.490 --> 00:19:36.259 a little bit of that. And then what then can 00:19:36.259 --> 00:19:39.859 impact on that? So we talk a lot about energy 00:19:39.859 --> 00:19:42.980 in versus energy out. So if you're training at 00:19:42.980 --> 00:19:45.339 a really high intensity, obviously your energy 00:19:45.339 --> 00:19:48.079 out is greater. So therefore your energy in has 00:19:48.079 --> 00:19:51.359 to be greater to maintain that body homeostasis. 00:19:51.720 --> 00:19:53.559 And so for a lot of them, you know, when they 00:19:53.559 --> 00:19:55.880 go and talk to their nutritionist, they listen 00:19:55.880 --> 00:19:58.720 to it as a very mechanical approach sometimes. 00:19:58.859 --> 00:20:01.319 This is what you just need to do to fuel. But 00:20:01.319 --> 00:20:03.980 when we delve into it and understand help them 00:20:03.980 --> 00:20:05.559 understand it from a health perspective and a 00:20:05.559 --> 00:20:08.809 hormonal perspective then they figure out Some 00:20:08.809 --> 00:20:10.690 of them that, yes, that mechanical eating is 00:20:10.690 --> 00:20:12.750 really important. I've just got to get that fuel 00:20:12.750 --> 00:20:15.609 in because I'm expending so much here. And if 00:20:15.609 --> 00:20:19.630 I don't, then some system in my body will have 00:20:19.630 --> 00:20:22.750 to compromise. And what would that system, you 00:20:22.750 --> 00:20:25.130 know, what could that system possibly be? It 00:20:25.130 --> 00:20:28.269 might be an immune system. It might be your reproductive 00:20:28.269 --> 00:20:32.109 system. So we try to educate them in a way that 00:20:32.109 --> 00:20:36.029 your menstrual cycle is a barometer of, can be, 00:20:36.210 --> 00:20:38.329 not always, can be a barometer. of what you're 00:20:38.329 --> 00:20:41.829 actually doing to your body by challenging it 00:20:41.829 --> 00:20:44.769 with high energy output and then And then we 00:20:44.769 --> 00:20:48.430 sort of evolve into how your PHE is really important, 00:20:48.670 --> 00:20:51.390 how your nutrition consultations are really important 00:20:51.390 --> 00:20:54.210 to support your overall health and wellbeing 00:20:54.210 --> 00:20:56.910 at that performance level. What often happens 00:20:56.910 --> 00:20:59.150 is they'll, then they'll start asking questions, 00:20:59.210 --> 00:21:02.190 especially those ones who are at the end of starting 00:21:02.190 --> 00:21:04.829 to evolve into the end of their career about 00:21:04.829 --> 00:21:08.430 how can they ensure that they are maintaining 00:21:08.430 --> 00:21:11.829 optimal hormonal health. And then we help them 00:21:11.829 --> 00:21:13.950 sort of like navigate through that around. okay, 00:21:14.029 --> 00:21:16.170 well, here's where you can go, here's where you 00:21:16.170 --> 00:21:18.509 can go and get some consultations to understand 00:21:18.509 --> 00:21:22.250 where you're at in terms of your overall hormonal 00:21:22.250 --> 00:21:25.769 health. That's sort of general. It's quite general, 00:21:25.809 --> 00:21:28.109 but it's just sort of like continuing to open 00:21:28.109 --> 00:21:31.210 up their ideas. But ideally moving forward, because 00:21:31.210 --> 00:21:33.390 we're working in the community space, so in the 00:21:33.390 --> 00:21:35.650 community space we deal in a secondary school 00:21:35.650 --> 00:21:39.470 level, but any athlete that's on a pathway, so 00:21:39.470 --> 00:21:43.059 it might be the top secondary school kids. that 00:21:43.059 --> 00:21:45.160 are in a netball program, the New Zealand secondary 00:21:45.160 --> 00:21:49.500 school team, the under 21 teams, the NNL team, 00:21:49.619 --> 00:21:51.859 which is the team that sits underneath our top 00:21:51.859 --> 00:21:54.660 domestic competition, they are all getting smart 00:21:54.660 --> 00:21:58.730 health. workshops. So the ideal scenario moving 00:21:58.730 --> 00:22:01.970 forward is that as they navigate into this performance 00:22:01.970 --> 00:22:04.869 space, they've had some education, they've already 00:22:04.869 --> 00:22:07.109 started thinking about their health, they've 00:22:07.109 --> 00:22:09.490 already started understanding it. So when we 00:22:09.490 --> 00:22:12.650 get to the top end, it's fine tuning it because 00:22:12.650 --> 00:22:14.569 they've got some background and understanding. 00:22:14.849 --> 00:22:17.490 That's ultimately where we're moving forward 00:22:17.490 --> 00:22:21.109 and why the workshops in the community space 00:22:21.109 --> 00:22:24.950 is really important for Joe Brogg's average net. 00:22:25.099 --> 00:22:28.640 but also any of those kids that are hoping to 00:22:28.640 --> 00:22:32.000 aspire to be a Silver Fern and be in that performance 00:22:32.000 --> 00:22:34.740 space moving forward. And I think the thing is 00:22:34.740 --> 00:22:37.019 we're pretty early on in the piece. It's, you 00:22:37.019 --> 00:22:39.579 know, like we're three years down the track. 00:22:39.880 --> 00:22:43.339 We've learnt a lot. We are revisiting our resources 00:22:43.339 --> 00:22:45.579 that we've developed and changing them because 00:22:45.579 --> 00:22:47.960 what we started with what we thought was the 00:22:47.960 --> 00:22:50.059 right track is not quite the right track and 00:22:50.059 --> 00:22:52.279 we're subtly changing that. So how have you changed? 00:22:52.500 --> 00:22:56.059 Just the way we approach it. So more around that 00:22:56.059 --> 00:22:58.640 when sometimes it can be really confronting if 00:22:58.640 --> 00:23:01.660 you stand in front of a group of young females 00:23:01.660 --> 00:23:05.140 and go menstrual cycle because of, you know, 00:23:05.160 --> 00:23:07.220 you start with the menstrual cycle. So what we 00:23:07.220 --> 00:23:09.500 don't is we start with exactly. There are some 00:23:09.500 --> 00:23:12.660 people in NZ that are developing, that are working 00:23:12.660 --> 00:23:14.319 in the space as well. And they, you know, they 00:23:14.319 --> 00:23:16.380 talk about the power of the period and having 00:23:16.380 --> 00:23:18.700 your period is amazing. Well, our young athletes 00:23:18.700 --> 00:23:22.900 are no way in anywhere near that thought process 00:23:22.900 --> 00:23:27.230 to them. it's actually an inconvenience so what 00:23:27.230 --> 00:23:29.609 we've figured out is that when we talk about 00:23:29.609 --> 00:23:31.690 hormonal balance we talk about being healthy 00:23:31.690 --> 00:23:34.009 we talk about energy and energy out and how the 00:23:34.009 --> 00:23:36.190 system works and that your menstrual cycle is 00:23:36.190 --> 00:23:38.869 a barometer of that it's a far more pleasant 00:23:38.869 --> 00:23:41.650 way to navigate through it and a far less confronting 00:23:41.650 --> 00:23:44.529 way to navigate it than confront them initially 00:23:44.529 --> 00:23:46.869 with a discussion about the menstrual cycle because 00:23:46.869 --> 00:23:49.890 rightly or wrongly as a female population we 00:23:49.890 --> 00:23:52.950 still don't we there's there is still stigma 00:23:52.950 --> 00:23:55.930 about talking about the menstrual cycle. So that's 00:23:55.930 --> 00:23:58.170 what we've learned. So our workshops are quite 00:23:58.170 --> 00:24:01.329 different to what they used to be. So therefore 00:24:01.329 --> 00:24:03.890 our resources will reflect that as we just evolve 00:24:03.890 --> 00:24:06.630 and change them. I think the messaging as such 00:24:06.630 --> 00:24:09.470 is the same, but it's just how we package that 00:24:09.470 --> 00:24:11.890 messaging to help our athletes navigate through 00:24:11.890 --> 00:24:13.809 the resources in a way that's not so confronting. 00:24:13.970 --> 00:24:17.490 But communicating and discussing the menstrual 00:24:17.490 --> 00:24:19.569 cycle from a Polynesian and Maori perspective 00:24:19.569 --> 00:24:22.359 is very different from a Western European. So 00:24:22.359 --> 00:24:24.859 we're working very closely with a colleague of 00:24:24.859 --> 00:24:28.099 mine to help us understand how we can co -design 00:24:28.099 --> 00:24:31.039 and co -deliver female athletic health, but in 00:24:31.039 --> 00:24:34.160 a culturally sensitive way. So that's our next 00:24:34.160 --> 00:24:37.180 sort of like, as we revamp and review what we're 00:24:37.180 --> 00:24:40.039 doing already, how can we then link in to the 00:24:40.039 --> 00:24:42.420 indigenous population and support their needs 00:24:42.420 --> 00:24:45.900 as much as, I suppose, the Western side of medicine. 00:24:46.000 --> 00:24:47.759 So that's pretty, that's going to be a pretty 00:24:47.759 --> 00:24:51.039 interesting space. And it's just very new. It's 00:24:51.039 --> 00:24:53.380 ideal timing because we are revamping what we're 00:24:53.380 --> 00:24:56.240 doing and what our approach is. So, but it's 00:24:56.240 --> 00:24:58.759 a big job. Will you have like separate version 00:24:58.759 --> 00:25:01.759 or will you blend both together? How do you go 00:25:01.759 --> 00:25:04.660 about it? Really good point. So we will look 00:25:04.660 --> 00:25:08.180 at all spectrums because we have within New Zealand, 00:25:08.220 --> 00:25:12.059 we have kura who are full Maori immersion teaching 00:25:12.059 --> 00:25:16.299 environments. So how we would present in that 00:25:16.299 --> 00:25:19.039 environment would be very different to how we 00:25:19.039 --> 00:25:22.799 present made. be in a combined Māori and Western 00:25:22.799 --> 00:25:26.460 view versus a very Western view. So we're just 00:25:26.460 --> 00:25:28.640 navigating that at the moment. We haven't come 00:25:28.640 --> 00:25:31.240 with a conclusion, but I think what we will find 00:25:31.240 --> 00:25:34.380 is that we will have quite a number of different 00:25:34.380 --> 00:25:37.500 ways to deliver it. So we're very mindful of 00:25:37.500 --> 00:25:39.920 meeting the needs of the community that we are 00:25:39.920 --> 00:25:42.680 working with. So co -design and co -delivery 00:25:42.680 --> 00:25:45.940 has to be forefront. We're very much in the translation 00:25:45.940 --> 00:25:49.740 phase. So buttoning down on what we've... not 00:25:49.740 --> 00:25:52.880 go exploring too far. I'm really good at exploring 00:25:52.880 --> 00:25:55.500 to the detriment of myself. But understanding 00:25:55.500 --> 00:25:58.140 that now it's more about the exploiting. It's 00:25:58.140 --> 00:26:00.359 more about the connection. It's more about delivering 00:26:00.359 --> 00:26:04.640 what we've got in variable different ways because 00:26:04.640 --> 00:26:06.920 there's still a big part of the community that 00:26:06.920 --> 00:26:09.839 we haven't connected with yet. So that's where 00:26:09.839 --> 00:26:13.039 Netball Smart's going now is less about developing 00:26:13.039 --> 00:26:15.940 you, but more about developing the connections. 00:26:16.259 --> 00:26:19.180 And less about exploring. More about connection. 00:26:19.700 --> 00:26:22.420 Yeah, exactly. More about taking what we have 00:26:22.420 --> 00:26:25.200 developed and ensuring that we are delivering 00:26:25.200 --> 00:26:28.140 to the community, helping the community understand 00:26:28.140 --> 00:26:31.559 the importance of Netball Smart. And yeah, working 00:26:31.559 --> 00:26:34.380 with the coaches, the players, anybody and everybody. 00:26:34.759 --> 00:26:36.519 Thank you for your work. Thank you for your service. 00:26:36.779 --> 00:26:40.019 Other sports are watching. So I wish you all 00:26:40.019 --> 00:26:43.019 the best and hope to learn from you in the future. 00:26:43.160 --> 00:26:45.599 One more question before we finish. Where people 00:26:45.599 --> 00:26:48.269 can find you if they want to connect? see your 00:26:48.269 --> 00:26:52.289 org see where what you're up to and maybe ask 00:26:52.289 --> 00:26:57.250 a question so the website so it's www .netballsmart 00:26:57.250 --> 00:27:00.630 .co .nz all our resources go onto our website 00:27:00.630 --> 00:27:04.609 the joy of ACC is they fund us to do this and 00:27:04.609 --> 00:27:07.829 we deliver workshops we develop resources for 00:27:07.829 --> 00:27:10.849 free so we don't charge for anything that's because 00:27:10.849 --> 00:27:13.809 netball because ACC want us to decrease injuries 00:27:13.809 --> 00:27:16.690 and so therefore so anything on our website is 00:27:16.690 --> 00:27:19.150 free available so there's the videos there there's 00:27:19.150 --> 00:27:21.609 the resources and somewhere in amongst those 00:27:21.609 --> 00:27:24.430 resources there'd be my email address sharonk 00:27:24.430 --> 00:27:27.990 at netballnewzealand .co .nz so that's where 00:27:27.990 --> 00:27:30.430 the brains trust of netball smart sits on our 00:27:30.430 --> 00:27:33.170 website so i suppose go and go and have a look 00:27:33.170 --> 00:27:35.569 and download and use whatever you like thank 00:27:35.569 --> 00:27:37.630 you so much it was a pleasure okay hey thanks 00:27:37.630 --> 00:27:38.710 alex nice to see you bye