From the race track to the office: health advice from an Olympic athlete applied to the workplace
16 September 2024 | Comment(s) |
Dr.Carole Nielsen
Physical and mental preparation, emotional management and a healthy lifestyle are just as important in top-level sport as they are in the workplace. On her return from the Olympic Games, the athlete Hélène Parisot shares her health tips, which can help you manage stress at work more effectively.
Groupe Mutuel: Hélène, you've just come back from the Paris 2024 Olympics, where you competed in the 200m and 4x100m relays. Congratulations on your performance! With just a few days to go before the end of the Olympics (editor's note: interview conducted at the time), how are you feeling?
Hélène Parisot: Thank you. To be honest, I feel like I've been through a washing machine. The event was very intense and so was the emotional descent that followed. But otherwise I feel fine, I'm starting to realise what happened.
As well as practising your sport at a very high level, you work for Groupe Mutuel. How do you manage your time between sport and work?
We regularly carry out satisfaction surveys among our employees. We wanted to combine questions on satisfaction with questions on potential stress levels, and the JSA fully meets these needs. The tool is easy to use and enables us to compare different aspects.
We also appreciate the fact that it is accredited by Promotion Santé Suisse and that we can benchmark ourselves against the Swiss average. The costs are reasonable and transparent, so there are no surprises.
In addition, Lise Grangier-Théoduloz was a great help to us in making this choice, as she is familiar with our organisation and the banking sector. We were in regular contact with her, in particular to discuss the issues we wanted to focus on. We really appreciated her help and immediately felt confident.
Speaking of preparation, we can imagine that taking part in the Olympics in front of 80,000 people puts a lot of pressure on you. How do you prepare yourself mentally for these major events?
Thanks to the various professionals who work with me, I use a number of tried and tested methods: visualisation, hypnosis, neurofeedback, cardiac coherence, mindfulness and disconnection from screens. By practising these techniques regularly, my body is gradually reconditioning itself. For example, if my mind wanders before the start of a race, thanks to the techniques I've learnt, my brain is able to refocus in a matter of seconds. And yet, at the beginning, I was very sceptical!
Do you think these techniques can also be applied at work, before or during a stressful event, for example?
Of course you can! What's more, some of them are very easy to apply at any time. For example, cardiac coherence, i.e. breathing regularly (six breaths per minute for five minutes) can be practised anywhere, since it's not visible, even during a meeting if necessary. There are various applications and techniques, and in my opinion the best thing is to try out several and see which ones work and speak to you the most.
And what about physical preparation?
Obviously, there are techniques to prepare for a race and eating a suitable diet, but for me another very important factor is sleep. Getting enough sleep, even during the day, gives my body the resources it needs for the big day.
Could we also draw a parallel with the workplace?
In my opinion, yes. More and more companies are offering rest areas. Even if not everyone is comfortable entering a rest room in front of colleagues, I advise those who can to try out the benefits of a power nap (maximum 20 minutes). If this isn't possible in the workplace, one solution might be to isolate yourself in your car.
Just before the race, thoughts probably cross your mind. How do you deal with them?
It happens sometimes. If these thoughts distract me from the race, first of all I accept them, it can happen, and then I apply the mental techniques that allow me to come back to the present moment. What also helps me is knowing that, even if I'm alone in the starting blocks, I have my family and friends behind me. It's important to create what I call a circle of trust. At work, for example, this could be your colleagues, your boss, someone you trust, Human Resources, etc.
And once the race is over, what about recovery?
Physically, we're lucky enough to have physiotherapists with us who can give us massages, and we can also take a cold bath to restore the heart rate to normal.
In sport, as in the workplace, recovery is essential after a major event.
Absolutely. In fact, we sometimes forget to plan ahead. As far as possible, I advise people to set aside time to recover in the evening or the day after the intense event. This could be after an event in their private life or after a great performance at work. Expressing yourself, both by talking and by exercising, helps the body to reduce cortisol levels. Finally, sleep is once again a key element in my physical and mental recovery.
Thank you very much, Hélène, for all your advice, which will be of use to athletes and employees alike. Can you draw a final parallel between running and work?
On reflection, I'd say that in both cases, you have to keep things in perspective. If you don't perform as well in sport or have a problem at work, it's important to remember that there will always be a solution and that you're not alone.
A few tips for taking care of yourself, in your private life or at work:
- Accept that you may feel less well or stressed. These are normal reactions that are part of life and shouldn't make you lose confidence in yourself.
- Take the time to prepare yourself mentally for a stressful event: positive visualisation, hypnosis, meditation, cardiac coherence, neurofeedback, mindfulness. Many resources are available via applications.
- Preparation depends on the task or event: you don't prepare for a sprint or a marathon in the same way. Take the time to analyse the situation and find the most appropriate strategy.
- Are thoughts disrupting your concentration? Accept them, give yourself a certain amount of time to think about the stressful situation (set a timer), then concentrate on the present moment: what do your senses perceive, how does your body feel?
- Give yourself breaks in your working day or on your busy day off. At work, plan breaks between two sessions or tasks.
- Feeling tired? Dare to take a power nap, even at work. It'll get your body and mind working and focused again.
- Do you feel stress in your body? Get rid of it physically: walking, physical exercise, music, writing, drawing or talking to someone close to you will all help you to release stress hormones such as cortisol. Find the technique that helps you to calm down quickly.
- Allow a few hours or even a day after a major stressful event to allow your body to recover from the physical and emotional intensity.
- Put things into perspective: every problem has a solution. Ask yourself these questions: how serious is the situation? Are the consequences so dramatic? Draw on your internal resources and those around you to help you reduce stress.
Bonus for managers:
- Taking care of your employees means first and foremost taking care of yourself!
- As far as possible, offer them flexibility in managing their time and tasks. They'll be grateful, feel valued and be all the more motivated and successful at work.