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MY JOURNEY

I grew up playing sport and was lucky enough to be dragged on many outdoor adventures as a child. My family were big on food and also adventurous in the kitchen.

 

When I finished school, I desperately wanted to travel and explore. I worked several ski seasons and then moved abroad for 3 years. Whilst living in Melbourne, I rediscovered my love for swimming and joined a gym for the first time. I also became vegetarian which sparked an interest in where my nutrients were coming from and how they could support my new training. I fell in love with nutrition, so applied to study Nutrition, Exercise and Health at the University of Plymouth. I continued into the world of sport with a MSc in Applied Sports Nutrition at St. Mary's University, Twickenham.

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In the final months of my MSc, I got offered an exciting opportunity to cover some lecturing at Plymouth Marjon University and I am now an Associate lecturer there, teaching nutrition across several sport degrees and working as a practitioner within multi-disciplinary teams. Going hand in hand, my teaching keeps me up to date with the latest research whilst my role as a practitioner informs the experiences I teach from and share with my students. 

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This platform aims to demonstrate how I can support athletes, whilst portraying my passion for the importance of nutrition. The health industry is a noisy one with varying levels of expertise and wildly differing opinions. To add to this, our understanding of sports nutrition is still in its infancy and we have much to learn. 

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Szembek (my Polish surname, pronounced shem·bek) Performance Nutrition encompasses my beliefs, knowledge and consistent development in this ever-changing field.

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How can I supPort ATHLETES?

  • My aim is to help athletes eat for enjoyment, eat for nourishment, and eat to optimise exercise performance, recovery and adaptation, all whilst building or maintaining a healthy relationship with food.

  • We will explore all of the factors that may influence your nutrition, including personal goals, values and motivations; lifestyle, emotions, challenges and barriers; and formed habits and behaviours.

  • We will formulate a strategy together to achieve, solve and improve these factors gradually.

  • We will fill in any gaps in nutrition knowledge; to help understand what is in our food and what it can provide us with.

  • We will work on the daily practices that can indirectly support health and performance over time, as well as the acute strategies needed on competition day.

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Optimal nutrition will look different for everyone.

Working towards it requires time, patience and the motivation to make a change.

I want nutrition to be an easy, habitual and uncomplicated part of your performance puzzle. 

Am i the right person for the job ?

Nutrition can be used to optimise performance, but it is equally important to maintain a healthy relationship with food and be adaptable, in my opinion. Whilst I give individualised nutrition support, I do not write meal plans. I want to promote fuelling exercise and food freedom, not rigidity and restriction. 

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Secondly, macronutrient tracking can be a useful tool for analysis or even for education around macronutrient content of foods, but it is not something I promote for long-term use or sustainable weight loss. Macronutrient tracking often leads to reduced variety in the diet and encourages a focus on estimated numbers on an app, whilst discouraging people from listening to their internal needs and wants. It is also time-consuming and most people 'give up' and return to previous habits and patterns. 

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And finally, whilst I may be able to support in recovery or improving overall diet and health, it is not within my scope of practice to support people with clinical conditions such as eating disorders, Type II Diabetes or bowel-related/autoimmune diseases. A dietitian would be best suited to support in these scenarios but it is very much case-specific.

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Any questions, get in touch!

Qualifications and certifications

  • Registered Associate Nutritionist (ANutr)

  • Registered Performance Nutritionist (SENr)

  • MSc in Applied Sports Nutrition (Distinction)

  • BSc in Nutrition, Exercise and Health (First class honours)

  • ISAK Level 1 

  • Level 3 Personal Trainer

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