Insights from an Embedded PhD: #4 - Dr Suzanna Russel
Who am I?
My name is Suzy Russell and I completed my PhD titled ‘Mental Fatigue in Elite Sport’ at the University of Queensland (UQ) on the beautiful St Lucia campus located in Brisbane, Australia. The embedded nature of my PhD allowed me opportunity to formally partner with both Queensland Academy of Sport – Centre for Sport, Performance, Innovation and Knowledge Excellence (SPIKE) and Netball Australia. During my candidature, I held roles as a tutor and sessional lecturer at UQ and applied roles as a performance analyst with the Queensland Firebirds, who complete in the Suncorp Super Netball League, and as the Mental Health Project Manager at Queensland Rugby Union.
I am grateful to be invited to contribute to the initiative Matheiu has taken to create a platform for those who have completed PhDs in an embedded setting to share their insights. Below I will outline some learnings from my embedded PhD, which hold relevance to PhDs both within and outside the sporting environment. Some concepts I touch on are easier said than done and were learnt the hard way during my PhD! I hope you take something away from my perspectives which may aid you along your PhD journey.
My PhD Topic
My PhD thesis explored mental fatigue in the elite sporting environment using a combination of qualitative, observation and longitudinal approaches. The findings enhance the understanding of how athletes experience mental fatigue in an ecologically valid manner. The research advances previous findings to provide evidence which justifies the need for practitioners to be cognisant of appropriately monitoring and managing mental fatigue, whilst highlighting some of the associated challenges and methods words of future investigation.
How I got to a PhD?
Firstly, I think it is important to acknowledge that people have different experiences prior to commencing a PhD or an applied role within sport. Given we don’t all start from the same spot, before I share some advice, I have included a figure to outline my background and experiences prior to, and during my PhD, to aid with context for the advice I share below.
Advice for embedded PhD students
1. “PROGRESS IS NOT LINEAR” - Maria Montessori
The first lesson to share is that progress in your PhD, or simultaneous work within the applied environment, will not occur in a linear fashion. Acknowledge that with an embedded PhD, your data collection and time availability will be largely dictated by season phases or major competition and camp events. You may find the idea of ‘balance’ is hard to find and in reality, it is more a constant swinging sea-saw between when research and applied tasks take priority. Accept this and be pro-active; it may mean you don’t fit into the cookie-cutter timeline what of you think a PhD is supposed to look like, but don’t use that as an excuse. Set yourself deadlines in consideration of the external demands, communicate these to your supervisors in advance and make yourself accountable to your PhD. PhD can otherwise easily (and unintentionally) be deprioritised as tasks in the applied setting fall into the ‘important and urgent’ category. Whilst part of your PhD position may include the provision of support to athletes within a club or organisation, don’t lose sight that your primary duty is to apply yourself to tasks relevant to achieving a PhD. With timelines, I also continue to learn that projects involving collaboration always take longer than expected – work out how long you think a task or project may take – then times that by 3 and you might be close to when it will be finished by!
2. “IF YOU ARE THE SMARTEST PERSON IN THE ROOM YOU ARE IN THE WRONG ROOM” - Confucius
This quote relates to two major points – surrounding yourself wisely and the inevitable imposter syndrome. My biggest piece of advice to anyone considering a PhD is to invest time in selecting your supervisors. I am thankful for a ‘dream team’ of supervisors - Associate Professor Vince Kelly, Professor David Jenkins and Professor Shona Halson. Despite the administration nightmare of them all holding roles at different Universities by the time I submitted my PhD, I am so thankful for selecting them based on their different strengths and contributions and belief that they would be a good fit for my personality and future goals. Choose supervisors who you respect and aspire to be like, yet know will work to develop you and are happy to be challenged, and don’t simply aim to create a clone of themselves. Take the time to reach out to students of potential supervisors and to have an honest conversation with them. For me, choosing supervisors who had an exceptional understanding of the sporting environment, but also produced high-quality and impactful research, served me extremely well. Set yourself up with weekly or monthly meetings that you look forward to being part of.
Secondly, with an applied PhD you have the opportunity to concurrently gain industry experience and learn from those in the applied setting. This is a great opportunity for those aiming for a position outside research, or wanting their research to have applied impact. Where you can, make effort to connect with those in the applied organisation to learn their perspectives on your topic, there are a lot of lessons learnt from experience. On the flip-side of admiring the knowledge and experience of those in the applied setting, please don’t assume they know the ins and out of academia. For example, take the time to explain the importance and work that goes into the confirmation milestone, and the importance of maintaining scientific rigour in your work, this will pay dividends in the long run. Imposter syndrome is common in both PhD and applied sport setting environments but remember you have earnt the opportunity and learning is part of a PhD. To make original contributions to your field of research there will be points of uncertainty!
3. “CONTROL THE CONTROLLABLES” – Viktor Frankl
Embedded PhDs come with the additional challenge of everything being somewhat unpredictable in the elite sporting environment. Whilst the unbelievable, unexpected, and unexplainable in sport is enthralling for spectators, it is an additional factor for embedded PhD students to contend with. My advice for this (passed on from one of my supervisors) is to have plan A for each study - but also have plan B, C, D, E and F… the majority of time they won’t be needed, but having this prepared well will give you a solid base to adapt quickly from should circumstances rapidly change. A personal reflection from my PhD topic, is that not everything is simple but to approach the tasks which as much scientific rigour and theoretical grounding as you can. Where possible, control who you set partnerships up with. With the merry-go-round of jobs in applied sport, make contacts and have discussions about your studies and involvement with an organisation as a whole, not just a specific person within an organisation. Ideally, your PhD should be an embedded part of their 3-year strategic plan which will provide mutual benefit. You should also have some control over what you are expected to contribute and have set early boundaries on the expectations of you as a PhD student within the organisation. Set these guidelines around what your applied role involves, and whilst being flexible in times of need, and the ability refer to these will aid you. You can’t control everything, but knowing you have control over what you can, will aid in times of uncertainty.
4. “DONE IS BETTER THAN PERFECT” – Sheryl Sandberg
The lesson applies to both research tasks and those in the sporting environment. Doing an embedded PhD generally results in a high workload often under an element of time-pressure. PhDs tend to attract high-performing and self-critical people and essential to the success of completing a PhD is to learn that done is better than perfect. I am by no means suggesting you submit and share work you are not satisfied with, but getting something done should take priority over making it perfect in the first instance. A great example of this is the challenge of writing; develop a writing approach for yourself where you are happy to get words on the page and accept them to be in draft format. For me, this was using different coloured texts – red to indicate my first effort of getting words on the page, blue –text when I revisited and revised and finally black - when it was to a standard, I felt happy sharing with supervisors. There is great benefit in sharing your work early. Constructive feedback is useful, and you will get to the end goal quicker by sharing when there is still room for improvement. When you share your work, in the applied or research setting within your performance term or with your supervisors and collaborators, be open about the weaknesses. Those reviewing your content will often have limited time, aid them by highlighting what you would like additional support or feedback on. A draft is doing nothing productive when sitting on your computer unshared, if you have given it your best attempt to overcome roadblocks then progress this, share your ideas and gain some further direction. Find the difference between what is practically useful and interpreted well in the applied setting, compared to the level of detail and rigor required for peer-review process in the research environment. In both instances, if you wait for it to be perfect, it will never be shared and achieve the goal of communicating your findings to others.
5. “SUCCESS IS RARELY THE RESULT OF ONE FELL SWOOP, BUT MORE OFTEN THE CULMINATION OF MANY, MANY SMALL VICTORIES’ - Joseph M Marshall III
Always celebrate the small wins and celebrate the work done, not necessarily the outcome. Its cliché, but a PhD is a marathon, and breaking it down into small achievable chunks, especially when embedded in the applied environment will aid you in seeing your progress and keep on track. My advice is to congratulate yourself when you have achieved a process goal, e.g. finished running statistics for a study, finalised a chapter, or submitted a manuscript, rather than waiting to celebrate when a manuscript is accepted (or rejected). When working in the applied environment finding extended blocks of time to focus on PhD work can be a challenge, but small repeated efforts count for a lot. Block specific tasks into your calendar as you’d be surprised how much you in achieve in 30-minute gap of focused work. On this, Brad Stulberg has some great advice on showing up and mood following action. Whilst you may experience unconventional hours working in sport, harness those outside as opportunity to embrace the flexibility you do have. Spending time physically away from the applied setting you are embedded in is healthy for both your PhD and personal growth, I encourage you to spend time at your university around your peers experiencing the same challenges and triumphs. Whilst this might not be possible every day, the flexibility you have during PhD is a rarity. My favourite way to write was to sit in the sunshine at a café. When not needed at the club, embrace the freedom you have to work where you like. Small, repeated efforts of work add up.
6. “COMPARISON IS THE THEIF OF JOY”- President Theodore Roosevelt
This concept is pertinent to those undertaking an embedded PhD as you are driving for achievement to positively contribute to two domains, the sporting team you are part of, and the research and university environment. There are points the dual role is synergistically beneficial, but the aim of chasing both academic and applied success is comparable to the challenges of concurrent training. It is hard to get maximal impact of progress in both fields simultaneously. My biggest piece of advice is to run your own race, each PhD candidates’ experiences and trajectories are unique. Comparing yourself to the publications, conference presentations and grants of those completely embedded in academia, or to the solid, confident and efficient decision-making of those working full time in the applied setting is not a fair comparison. Understand your unique embedded experiences are providing you with breadth and the ability to transfer your knowledge - eloquently detailed by David Epstein in his book Range. When you see others succeeding around you, celebrate their wins and be motivated by this. Use these people as inspiration, if you see others achieve something you would like to, identify it as an area for you to work on and reach out to them and ask how they got there to give you a starting point. Pay this forward to others in return when people see you as the one with skills they would like to develop. Relevant to this, is there the value in learning to say no to offers that will not develop you, capacity is limited, and you cannot do everything. My PhD friends who read this will call me a hypocrite, as a student who was described as a ‘PhD Unicorn’, who did in fact try and do it all, but value your time enough to know if something you are approached about is mutually beneficial experience. Consider what you will learn and what you are able to contribute, before agreeing to a project or task in question. Rather than comparing and stealing your own joy, know you have a common goal with both your research peers and applied sport colleagues. Be brave enough to be vulnerable and embrace your weaknesses to improve and learn from those around you.
7. “A SHIP IN A HARBOUR IS SAFE – BUT THAT’S NOT WHAT SHIPS ARE BUILT FOR” – John A. Shedd
Many new opportunities and challenges to overcome will be presented to you both within the sport and research setting. One thing I learnt during my PhD is the opportunities which scare you the most are the ones worth taking. A PhD is a learning experience and aims to develop you as a person, whilst it can be hard for those who like to excel, be willing to be bad at something new and use the time to learn skills and capabilities which will aid you later in life. Being vulnerable and sharing thoughts on challenges you are presented with, or new opportunities, will aid you to form genuine connections and networks, which will give back well beyond your PhD.
8. “A GOLD MEDAL IS A WONDERFUL THING, BUT IF YOU’RE NOT ENOUGH WITHOUT ONE, YOU’LL NEVER BE ENOUGH WITH ONE“ – Cool Runnings
My last quote of advice comes from the movie Cool Runnings that was more recently expressed by Olympian Cate Campbell, but substitute the words ‘gold medal’ with ‘embedded PhD’. It is all too easy to attach your own identity, self-worth and sense of achievement with your PhD, or directly with the performance of the sport you are embedded in; but this is not what defines you and time should be spent doing activities which remind yourself of the worth and contributions you can make to society beyond these two fields. It is important to be invested and worth having ‘skin in the game’ and it is normal to feel the emotion of wins and losses, rejected manuscripts or grant applications or even when your R script returns an error. It is equally important to remember you have self-worth beyond these things. Academia and sport often highlight and share the successes of when a championship is won, a world-record smashed, or a paper is published, but rarely do people share the challenges they overcame or grind they undertook to achieve that success. A personal example of this is my currently most cited paper was rejected 4 times before it found its home; a process that challenged my own belief in the work despite deep down knowing its worth and rigour. Back yourself and clearly establish what you connect with and gain enjoyment from outside PhD and prioritise time for these in your life.
Beyond PhD / Next steps
Following submission of my PhD I have gained some industry experiences continuing a position as mental health project manager across grass roots to elite level rugby, and more recently working in a product role for leading sports technology company VALD performance.
I am excited to soon be commencing in a post-doctoral position at Australian Catholic University in partnership with the Australian Institute of Sport. In this role I look forward to continuing my work in measuring and managing mental fatigue and optimising mental recovery and mental performance in competition.
List of publications during the course of the PhD:
Russell S, Jenkins D, Smith M, Halson S & Kelly V. The application of mental fatigue research to elite team sport performance: new perspectives. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport. 2019: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2018.12.008
Russell S, Jenkins D, Halson S, S Rynne & Kelly V. What is mental fatigue in elite sport? Perceptions from athletes and staff. European Journal of Sport Science. 2019: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2019.16183977
Russell S, Jenkins D, Halson S & Kelly V. Changes in mental and physical fatigue during elite development netball. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport. 2019: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2019.12.017
Russell S, Jenkins D, Halson S, Juliff L, Connick M & Kelly V. Mental fatigue over two elite netball seasons: a case for mental fatigue to be included in athlete self-report measures. 2021.
Russell S, Jenkins D, Halson S, Julif L, & Kelly V. How do elite female team sport athletes experience mental fatigue? Comparison between international competition, training and preparation camps. European Journal of Sport Science. 2021: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2021.1897165
Russell S, Simpson M, Evans G, Coulter T, Kelly V. Physiological and Perceptual Recovery-Stress Responses to and Elite Netball Tournament. International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance. 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1123/ijspp.2020-0317
Russell S, Evans G, Jenkins D & Kelly V. Effect of external counterpulsation on running performance and perceived recovery. International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance. 2019: DOI: 10.1123/ijspp.2019-0605
Russell S, Kelly V, Halson S & Jenkins D. Cognitive Load in Sport in Human Factors and Ergonomics in Sport: Applications and future directions. In: Human Factors in Sport - Hulme A, Salmon P & McLean S (Eds.). 2020. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1201/9781351060073
Non-scientific communication pieces during PhD
Catapult high performing women in sport article:
Women in Sport: Suzy Russell, Mental Health Project Manager
Infographic produced by Yann Le Meur (YLM):
Asker Jeukendrup website mysportsscience article co-author:
Mental fatigue in sport – what is it and how do we recover from it? – Halson & Russell - 2019
ABC News Article
Mental fatigue and stress & athletic performance
Podcast Episodes: Wellbeing and performance in sport and youth
In Touch Queensland Rugby + Youth Mentor Podcast
The University of Queensland Higher Degree Research:
Student spotlight
Exercise & Sports Science Australia:
How to reach out to me
1. Twitter: @suzanna_russell
2. ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Suzanna-Russell
3. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suzy-russell-0839a9112
I hope you have taken away something from this blog post – please do not hesitate to reach out to me via for topic specific or general advice. To give anyone who needs some inspiration, here is a photo of me post my PhD Viva and still smiling!
If you liked this blog post - or at least learnt something - and would like to collaborate, please drop me an email using the contact form. I’m trying to collect as many interviews as I can!
