​Performance lifestyle support
Our team of performance lifestyle advisors support the development of our student-athletes on a personal and academic level so that they are able to achieve during their Loughborough journey and beyond.
What is performance lifestyle?
“Performance Lifestyle is a personalised support service specifically designed to help each athlete create the unique environment necessary for their success.” (UK Sport)
The Performance Lifestyle team here at Loughborough aim to support development and empower our student-athletes to obtain the highest possible level of performance both during their Loughborough journey and beyond.
The performance lifestyle service
The services holistic approach often takes a reflective stance, providing the opportunity to review goals and plan components of academic, sporting and wider life; the ultimate aim is to enhance performance by maximising opportunities. The baseline offer consists of a number of one hour meetings each academic year with a Performance Lifestyle Mentor. These sessions are one-to-one and offer the opportunity for reflection with professionals experienced in supporting student-athlete ambition.
The Performance Lifestyle Mentor service is available to all on WCP, Loughborough Sport and TASS scholars as well as our wider performance sport athlete pool on a needs defined basis.
Our team
Simon Wombwell
Education and Development Manager
Programme lead for Performance Lifestyle since 2013 Simon drives the development and delivery of the holistic support programme for performance level student athletes. Simon is a member of the TASS National Lifestyle Advisory group and actively involved in European and national level research. Alongside this role Simon also holds the honorary role of Warden at Falkner Eggington Hall which provides excellent insight into wider student society and a strong partnership with University central support services.
Previously Simon worked to facilitate high performance environments as an Events Manager working in partnership with the RFU, LTA, UKA and MCCU for 3 years alongside with coaching within Athletics to a senior international standard and mentored within the Loughborough Sport Performance Lifestyle programme. Simon studied at Loughborough graduating from the Geography with Sport and Leisure Management BSc in 2007 completed alongside the avid pursuit of 110mH – Athletics.
Laura Piekarski
Performance Lifestyle & Wellbeing Coordinator
Laura joins the team as the Performance Lifestyle and Wellbeing Co-ordinator following extensive sports management experience with national sporting organisations in Australia. This includes 12 years in high performance cricket managing international events, pathway tournaments and delivering programs enhancing the holistic development for participants.
This experience is underpinned by a passion for wellbeing and providing experiences and education that support the holistic development of athletes, officials, and staff. The aim is to provide an environment that enables you to thrive in all areas of your life and sets you up for success after your sporting career.
Sabrina Cox
Performance Lifestyle and Wellbeing Officer
Sabrina joined the team in January 2024 as a Performance Lifestyle and Wellbeing Officer at Loughborough University.
Sabrina began her Coaching Career working for a Coach Training Company, supporting the delivery of a Postgraduate Certificate in Business and Personal Coaching. Following this she worked as an Associate Executive Coach, working mostly with Heads of Service or Managers within large corporate organisations, to support the implementation of a coaching culture and strategy.
She holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Business and Personal Coaching and a Postgraduate Diploma in Coaching Supervision and is currently completing a Level 4 in Careers Advice and Guidance. Sabrina also holds a strong passion for sport, personally completing many long distance running and Triathlon events, having previously worked as a PT.
Academic Support
We understand that sometimes specific interventions will be required to facilitate the balance of dual attainment in academia and performance sport, and can offer unrivalled support for our student athletes. Below are examples of the ways we offer academic support:
- Review – The University aims to capture as many lectures as possible for retrospective online viewing. We are able to make additional requests, especially to support athletes away on international duty
- Assessment Flexibility - If you find yourself with an international sporting commitment or major games trial event that clashes with an assessed element of your academic programme assessment flexibility can be accessed. The options if a clash occurs would normally consist of moving the deadline, sitting an assessment remotely or taking a first attempt in the Special Assessment Period
- Stretch Degrees - We recognise that the time commitment as individuals reach or strive to reach senior international level or equivalent in their sport alongside a world class educational programme will not come without challenges. If a point is reached where proactivity and effective planning cannot support individuals’ goals then a stretched degree programme may be a suitable option. The performance lifestyle team will support you with the consideration and most effective implementation of the stretch. For further details on eligibility please contact the Education and Development Manager
Anti-doping
Clean sport values are of uppermost significance at Loughborough University. Our students are the next generation of elite sportspeople, future coaches and sports practitioners our belief is that embedding the right values now will support the next generation of athletes too.
In December 2015 Loughborough became the first university to achieve the highest possible recognition within the UKAD education institution accreditation process. The accreditation process and subsequent partnership with UKAD has allowed us to continue enhancing our clean sport education programme in both quality and quantity.
Transition Readiness
In partnership with Add Victor we have created a number of workshops focusing on transition into the professional world. The programme runs across the academic year with a range of individualised and workshop based opportunities including presentations from business sector leaders and how to best demonstrate the transferable skills learnt within sport during CV writing and interviews.
Leadership Development Programme
This programme is accessible to those student-athletes identified by their Head Coach as displaying outstanding leadership. The programme consists of a number of cross sport workshops targeting core leadership skill progression. Guest speakers are incorporated into the programme to provide specialist insight and increase student exposure to different leadership styles and reflections. The sessions focus on the effectiveness of communication, reflecting in depth on linguistic content, style, body language, dealing with conflict and optimising feedback processes.
Leading students gain the opportunity to develop empowerment skills to aid team performance on and off the field/court, which are also invaluable for leadership roles post athletic careers. Students attending this programme have the chance to join the Performance Sport Athlete Committee (PSAC). PSAC provides an opportunity to represent their sport at a strategic level feeding into both the Student Sport Senate and Loughborough Sport Performance Director.
In addition to the aforementioned, the Performance Lifestyle team also offer squad level workshops on communication, time management, goal setting and planning amongst other subjects.