Publisher Sue Hodgson Talks With LifeSport Coach and Professional Athlete Lucy Smith.
You participated in your first fun run at age 11, and since then you’ve had an outstanding career as a professional athlete: a 19-time Canadian Champion, a two-time World Championship Silver Medalist, and a myriad of podium finishes at international duathlon and running competitions. At age 46 and as a mother of two, how has the transition been from full-time athlete to full-time mom?
The transition has been many things, but I think it can be best summed up as transforming. Being a full-time professional athlete requires complete dedication to training, sleep, diet, overall health and the business side of your career. There is very little balance, but since I loved it, that was never an issue. I always wanted children and I embraced motherhood and parenting. I slowly worked on finding a balance to my life so I could enjoy both. It wasn’t easy at times and has taken a lot of soul searching, but I kept running. I did not retire from competition when my children were born and I took an organic approach to winding down the travelling portion of my elite career, letting my priorities and values around life balance, parenting and coaching guide me.
You were in a position to qualify for the Olympics in 2004 but were unsuccessful. With all your knowledge and dedication to sport, were you ready for this particular experience?
By 2004 I was completely ready to be an Olympian. I had trained through three Olympic cycles since 1992, coming within seconds of qualifying in 1996. In 2000 I had Maia and came back strong and full of determination for 2004. I did everything in my power to qualify for the team and had been dreaming of being an Olympian and Canadian Sport Ambassador since I watched the 1976 Olympics. I wasn’t ready for the disappointment of not attaining that dream. I was aware of the odds against my qualifying, but dealing with the reality of letting the dream go was one of the hardest parts of my career. Leaving my Olympic dream and deciding not to retire, however, opened the door for what has been one of the most productive and most fulfilling parts of my career.
You spend countless hours volunteering your coaching experience in the community with youth. What do you say to a member of our younger generation striving to be one of the “best,” while helping them manage the stress and pressure that can come with this level of commitment?
I would like to say relax and have fun. Specifically I try to help athletes discover being athletic, and experience the power of personal agency required with goal setting and working towards specific goals. Youth are very good at being in the moment and experiencing the joy of movement and hard work. When I meet an anxious youth athlete, I teach them to focus on what they can do, not what they are afraid of. It’s very empowering.
You and your husband Lance Watson and colleague Paul Regensburg founded LifeSport Coaching in 2004. Give us an insight into the vision and focus of the company. What can we expect as you enter into your 10th year of business?
Lance, who was my coach for 15 years, is an Olympic Gold Medal Coach – he coached Simon Whitfield to the first Olympic Gold Medal in Triathlon in 2000. Lance and Paul created LifeSport as a way to take the concept of personal excellence in elite sport and make it accessible to anybody. The LifeSport mission is to enrich the lives of motivated individuals who strive for athletic and personal development, by delivering personalized coaching programs that create fitness, performance, and inspiration. We pride ourselves on providing professional coaching and training programs for all levels of athletes from beginners completing their very first race, to age groupers and professionals. LifeSport also created the Subaru Western Triathlon Series – five World Class events that bring triathlon to both novice and experienced triathletes. Presently, we are proud to be finishing our new office space – an architecturally designed building at Elk Lake – which is to be shared with a like-minded tenant.
Based on your training techniques, how do you skillfully manage your athletes that are up against competitors who have made the decision to use performance-enhancing drugs?
We focus on the individual, their dreams and goals and their potential and don’t focus on what we cannot control. Being a great athlete at any level is more about the pride you take in your own path and at LifeSport, we coach personal success. Also, testing is very good now, so athletes are constantly being tested. The number of times I was tested in my career gave me reassurance that there was vigilance.
As one of the top master’s runners in North America, your involvement in sport goes beyond training and racing. Give us a glimpse into your work as a motivational speaker, author and role model for women and girls in sport.
I have focused my efforts into the community, coaching at schools and speaking to run clinics around town. I do it because I both love coaching kids and because giving back at this stage of my life is very rewarding. Sharing knowledge and energy is powerful and I see myself as part of the fabric of our community. Writing, speaking and coaching requires me to “get up” and “switch on” and is very motivating.
So much has changed in the world of sport competition: whether in cross country racing, baseball, football or hockey, it has become more bloodthirsty than ever. The rising use of social media in sport has allowed fans to get even closer to athletes and sport personalities. Do you think this exposure means the lines have become blurred between professional athletes and “celebrity athletes?”
The internet and new technology has changed the world since I was a girl growing up in Bedford, Nova Scotia. I do think the internet and social media can warp perceptions and create false values and illusions about sport, success and athletes, but I also think that sport itself and the pure pursuit of athletic skill has not changed, and that is what I love about sport. In its purest form, being athletic is a marriage of human movement and the power of the mind and heart.
For more information visit www.lifesport.ca.
