Melissa Smith Total Wellbeing

20/08/2025

💥 Mental Skills Session: Performing Under Pressure 💥

With tournament week fast approaching, our Senior Sport Academy athletes took part in Sunday’s session with Dylan Ross, focused on developing tools to thrive under pressure and perform at their peak

We explored:

⚡️ What pressure is: those moments where the outcome matters, feels uncertain, and we know we’ll be judged on it

⚡️ How pressure shows up: nerves, racing heart, fear of failure, or perfectionism

⚡️ Practical tools: breathing to stay calm, mindfulness to bring focus back to the present, reframing challenges (“pressure is a privilege”), and using cues like “What’s important now?” to reset quickly after mistakes

⚡️ Building resilience: not just bouncing back, but growing stronger through setbacks

Dylan left us with a reminder that hits home heading into competition:

👉 “Ships don’t sink because of the water around them; ships sink because of the water that gets in them. Don’t let what is happening around you weigh you down.”

Our athletes are learning that pressure isn’t something to fear, it’s something to use.

Thanks again Dylan for your time and expertise, such fantastic skills you are sharing with our athletes! 💫

10/08/2025

Providing your body with the right nutrients and enough energy while recovering from injury is a strategy to enhance healing and speed up recovery.

Eating a balanced, nutrient-dense diet is essential to help your body repair damaged tissues and reduce inflammation naturally.

Here are my top nutrition tips to maximise injury recovery — many of which I’m applying myself as I recover from a ruptured Achilles tendon.

PMID: 36839176

30/07/2025

Things I'm grateful for:

🌟 Still being able to drive
🌟 Indiana Pants
🌟Shower seat
🌟Amazing family and friends
🌟Retail therapy
🌟Online shopping
🌟Knee scooters
🌟Having 3 kids to give chores to

30/07/2025

Well, I didn’t see this coming…

Last Saturday I ruptured my Achilles playing netball, and just like that, my netball playing days came to an abrupt (and very frustrating) end.

It’s been a big couple of weeks… from the high of celebrating turning 40, to suddenly navigating a long recovery and all the change that comes with it.

It’s gutting. Netball has been such a big part of my life. Being active is my normal, as a PT, a sport lover, and a mum of three busy boys. So, adjusting to this slower pace and relying on others is definitely not easy.

That said, I’m so grateful for the support I have. Thank you to everyone who helped on the day, especially those at the courts when it happened, and Stacey McCaw for your personalised ambulance service to the hospital. The team at Oamaru Hospital were awesome! A big thanks to my amazing mum for stepping in to help around the house, and to the friends who have dropped off food and flowers. I feel very lucky to have such a supportive circle. And of course, a huge thank you to Craig and the boys for all the running around and picking up the pieces while I’ve been laid up.

Also, a big thanks to all my clients for being so understanding while I adjust to this new normal. I know how frustrating it is when your routine gets interrupted, your patience and kindness mean a lot.

Right now, I’m trying to stay focused on what I can control - keeping my foot elevated, eating well, sleeping well, doing what small movements I can like toe scrunches and gentle foot motion to keep blood flowing while I’m in the cast.

I’ll do some documentation of my recovery journey, partly to keep myself accountable, and also in case it helps or resonates with anyone else going through an injury or setback. It’s a reminder that sometimes life forces us to slow down, reset, and rebuild.

If you’ve come back from something similar or have tips to share, I’m all ears.

Let the healing begin… slowly but surely 💪

23/07/2025

A huge thank you to Waitaki Girls' High School for having me along to speak at their Wellbeing Wednesday session today. What an engaged, thoughtful, and respectful group!

We covered some big topics:

💥 Balanced nutrition & adequate fuelling
💥 Exercise & Movement
💥 Sleep and recovery
💥 Social media smarts
💥 Creating a positive body environment

One moment from today that really stuck with me was when I asked the group to turn to the person next to them and share three things they love about themselves that have nothing to do with appearance—qualities like kindness, intelligence, patience, humour, or courage.

So many felt shy or embarrassed to say nice things about themselves out loud. This is such a thing, especially for young people. There’s a fear it might come off as cocky or arrogant. But the truth is:

👉🏼 It’s not cocky.
👉🏼 It’s crucial.
👉🏼 It’s confidence.

Identifying your strengths and speaking kindly to yourself is one of the most powerful things you can do. And if you say it often enough… you’ll start to believe it. 💛

Some of the key messages from our session included:

🌟 Be selective about where you get your health info— Lots of followers ≠ credible advice
🌟 Follow those who uplift you with what they do, not just how they look
🌟 Ask: “Has this image been edited?” “Would I say that to a friend?”
🌟 Avoid comparing yourself with others – “Comparison is the thief of joy”
🌟 Focus on the amazing things your body can do, not just how it looks

These years are so important, and I’m super proud to be in a position to help our young people build strong, confident relationships with their bodies and minds.

16/07/2025

Tonight, I had the privilege of speaking to the Zonta Club of Oamaru about the work I do through my business, and in particular, our Sport Academy.

Zonta’s mission is to empower women through service and advocacy, and while my work focuses on health and wellbeing for both youth and adults, at the core we share a common value: supporting people to reach their full potential.

Whether it’s working with young athletes to build strong foundations early, or supporting adults to stay strong, active, and independent, my goal is to help people feel empowered in their own health journey, live well and thrive.

Thank you to Zonta for the warm welcome and the beautiful flowers. It was great to be able to share what we’re building in our community!

19/03/2025

Junior Strength & Conditioning Pilot – Expressions of Interest! (Winter 2025)

We’ve had a few inquiries about kids' gym sessions, so we're exploring the possibility of running age appropriate Strength & Conditioning sessions for kids aged 11-14 this winter.

This programme will be designed to:

✅ Help kids learn to move properly
✅ Build strong movement foundations
✅ Improve coordination & confidence
✅ Develop fundamental athletic skills

💪 Who: Kids aged 11-12 & 13-14 (Year 7 & 8 and Year 9 & 10 at school)
⏳ Session Length: 30-45 minutes
📅 When: Final times based on interest
📍 Where: Oamaru Rowing Club Gym

To see if there’s enough interest and determine the best session times, please complete this quick form:

https://forms.gle/asNkQyKG9nByVNJq5

Let’s get kids moving the right way! Feel free to share or tag anyone who might be interested!

12/03/2025

Celebrating 4 years in business!

Four years ago, I took a leap back into the world of health and wellbeing, and what a journey it has been! From starting out small with 3 young children to juggle, to now stepping into my biggest year yet - a new gym space, expanding my services with a sports academy programme, and growing my amazing PT and nutrition client base.

It hasn’t always been easy, but every challenge, every win, and every client’s progress has made this journey so rewarding. A massive thank you to everyone who has supported me along the way - whether you’ve trained with me, trusted me with your nutrition, or cheered me on from the sidelines.

And a special shoutout to my husband Craig, who has been my sounding board for ideas, my biggest supporter, and the one who helps keep things running smoothly behind the scenes at home.💙

Bring on the next 4 years and beyond!

📷: Sari Renee Photography

# PersonalTraining

24/01/2025

Thanks Ash for the great write up!

Things are getting real now! I've been busy getting things in order, and I can't wait to get started! 🥳

Waitaki App

It's all here

17/01/2025

Did you see the awesome article by Sally Rae in the Otago Daily Times?

I’m back at work on Monday and will be hitting the ground running! Next week, I’ll be sending out information to current members on how to re-sign up for the gym, so be sure to keep an eye on your inbox. I’ll also be posting all the details here soon for anyone else keen to join up.

In the meantime, if you have any questions about the gym or the Sport Academy programme, feel free to send me a message!

https://www.odt.co.nz/regions/north-otago/not-just-about-long-life-quality-one-too

01/01/2025

🎉 Happy New Year 2025! 🎉

I'm thrilled to start the year with some exciting news!

I've officially taken over the lease of the Oamaru Rowing Club Gym, which will start from 1st February. A big thank you to Karina for her support in working together to make a smooth transition for current members.

I'm also launching a brand-new Sport Academy for active teens! This is a pilot programme to support 20 incredible kids from SKC, WBHS, and WGHS, and I couldn’t be more excited! These young athletes will be given the tools to thrive, including general nutrition, sports nutrition, strength & conditioning, mental skills support, goal setting, and more.

This is just the beginning of something truly special, and I can’t wait to see how these teens grow and achieve their goals!

Stay tuned for updates as I work through the gym transition and as the pilot programme progresses throughout the year.

Here's to a New Year and some new goals!
🤩🌟💪

📷: Sari Renee Photography

28/12/2024

Ringing in the new year with an insulin pump!

After 25 years and multiple daily insulin injections, as well as the funding now available, I finally took the plunge and got an insulin pump. I fill a cartridge with insulin and insert it into the device that's hiding under my pump belt, and the insulin travels through the tubing and into my body through an infusion site. I change these every 3 days. I can unclip and disconnect from the site on my skin for things like showering, swimming, and exercising.

I always had a bit of 'pump ambivalence' and was stubborn about using it as I always managed with injections, and the loss of control and a bit of vanity also played a factor. But with a now much busier working and family life, I knew it was time to embrace the opportunity and use this new technology that is available to me.

I still need to count my carbs, and I enter this into the pump, which will deliver the correct amount of insulin based on my carb ratio. But this pump also has amazing technology called control IQ where the pump will suspend my insulin to prevent a low blood sugar when it sees my blood sugar dropping, and can deliver automatic correction doses when my blood sugar starts to rise. Having a system that automatically adjusts insulin doses based on my blood sugar readings (and it can do this by looking 30 minutes ahead, so it is definitely smarter than me 😆) takes such a mental load off.

The beeps it makes sometimes makes me feel like I've gone back in time to when I was a child and had a Tamagotchi, but the pet I'm trying to keep alive this time is me! 🤣.

While I still need to get used to the tubes attached to me, and it's not nearly the same as a pancreas, it is definitely the next best thing!