The experts behind the athletes share the science of high performance

As the Olympics draw inspiration and wonder into how athletes manage to achieve such a high level of success and skill, a new podcast series is serving up useful insights into what it takes to optimise performance in sports.

Created by University of South Australia sports scientists, the podcast – The Experts Behind the Athletes – Unpacking the Science of High Performance – is a five-part series featuring the latest insights from sports scientists at UniSA’s Centre for the Alliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity (ARENA).

UniSA’s Associate Professor Kade Davison says the podcast presents a guide to optimising nutrition, injury prevention and management, the psychology of high performance, and more.

“This new podcast series aims to highlight the science and expertise that underpins elite performance,” Assoc Prof Davison says.

“Australia has performed well above its weight in sporting competition for many years. Some of this success is because Australia has world-leading sports scientists working with our athletes. And as sports scientists, we’re committed to sharing knowledge about the topics we research.”

The podcast series covers training, recovery, nutrition, psychology, injury prevention and adapting sport to different abilities, with each episode giving a snapshot on how these areas can influence performance.

The series includes:

• The science of managing and preventing injury in sports: What risk factors contribute to injury?  Which risk factors are modifiable? And, how to reduce the risk of injuries occurring?
• Recovery and wellbeing through exercise and sport: What is it about the power of exercise and sport that inspires recovery and well-being? How does that impact all of us?
• The psychology of high performance: Did you know that potential isn’t all about natural ability? Sports psychology is one way to help push our boundaries and develop performance potential.
• Factor heart rate measurements into your sports training: There’s a fine balance between training stress, fatigue, recovery, and performance. The right balance leads to positive adaptions in the body and increases in performance.
• Optimizing nutrition for sports performance: Find out about the value of good nutrition for your training and note it doesn’t usually require dietary supplements.

“These are easy-to-digest, bite size insights on the science behind sports performance. Whether you are an elite athlete, a coach, or simply a sports lover, these episodes have something for everyone.”

The Experts Behind the Athletes – Unpacking the Science of High Performance podcasts are the latest in a series podcasts provided by ARENA. Available to stream now via Spotify.

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Media contact: Annabel Mansfield M: +61 479 182 489 E: [email protected]

Contact for interview:  Assoc Prof Kade Davison E: [email protected]