Afleveringen
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In this episode, I sit down with Holly Montabelli (known on Instagram as "The Rugby Midwife") to tackle a critical, yet often ignored, topic in our sporting community: pelvic health.
Holly opens up about their personal journey as a lifelong rugby player and midwife who experienced a prolapsed cervix and pelvic floor dysfunction while training. Together, we bust common strength-training misconceptions, discuss the immense physical demands placed on rugby forwards, and share the exact breathing and rehabilitation techniques needed to restore core stability.
We also dive into the cultural and structural challenges facing women's clubs todayâfrom the normalization of urinary incontinence to the glaring lack of basic infrastructure, like sanitary bins in changing rooms. Tune in to discover how to identify key warning signs, seek the right professional care, and implement proactive team education to break down barriers and keep female athletes in the sport they love.
Find Holly on instagram @therugbymidwife
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This week Iâm taking a step back to answer a question that came up in my business mentoring group: what do I want to be known for? The result is a properly honest rundown of what sits behind the Peerless Pack and my coaching, from my childhood at the rugby club to why a no bullshit, common sense approach to nutrition and training matters more than ever in a world of conflicting advice and AI generated noise. I talk community over competition, fun over grind, and why keeping women in the game for as long as possible is the whole point. Like the sound of this, come join the Peerless Pack. Early bird sign up for the Peerless Pack opens 22nd June - contact me @laurapeerlesscoaching or [email protected].uk for more info.
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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This week I'm back on my own and we're getting into something that's been on my mind after a very normal, very human weekend involving three consecutive days of drinking.Did it ruin my life? No. Did I still get the job done on Monday? Yes. And yet somewhere out there, a man with millions of podcast listeners is telling the world that two glasses of wine ruined his life for three days.So let's talk about that. Because when people with massive platforms conflate imperfection with disaster, it quietly reinforces the idea that you have to be perfect to be healthy. And that is not only wrong, it is genuinely harmful.In this episode I get into the WHO definition of health (physical, mental, and social well-being), why I think about it as a Venn diagram, and why chasing optimisation in one area often tanks the others. I also talk about the version of myself that spent too long trying to look like the right kind of fitness coach, and why I would rather be messy and relatable than aspirational and unattainable.Featuring: Friday balcony beers, a County Cup final at Twickenham, a birthday weekend for someone deeply missed, and the England Women's Rugby team still half-cut at their post-World Cup interviews.This one is for anyone who has ever felt like they ruined everything because they had a normal weekend.
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This week I'm joined by Becky Jones, otherwise known as the Empower Coach, and honestly this conversation went places I didn't expect.
Becky is an anti-diet coach who helps women break free from diet culture and unrealistic beauty standards. She grew up being bullied in a small Yorkshire village, developed a disordered relationship with food at 12 years old, and spent her 20s fighting the messaging that her body needed to look a certain way to be accepted. Now in her 40s, she's turned that into a career calling out the systems that caused it in the first place.
We ended up talking about a lot more than food. We talked about what happened when my team won our league this season and got almost zero recognition from our club. We talked about being labelled "difficult" and "hysterical" when you ask for things that are completely reasonable. We talked about how women in sport are still being made to feel lucky just to be there, and what you can actually do when you're tired of beating your head against a brick wall.
In this episode we cover:
⢠Growing up in 90s diet culture and how it shaped us both
⢠Why "skinny talk" is making a comeback and why that matters
⢠The lack of recognition for women's grassroots rugby (and why 5,000 people clearly agreed)
⢠How to find your voice and set boundaries without blowing everything up
⢠Non-violent communication as an actual practical tool for dealing with institutions
⢠Why BMI is basically useless for rugby players
⢠The patriarchal systems behind diet culture and why Becky isn't shutting up about them
⢠And why community, not comparison, is what actually changes things
This one is for the women who've been told they're too much. You're not too much. The room is just too small.
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At 39 I genuinely believed I had no business playing rugby anymore. So I hung up my boots, missed an entire season, and told myself that was just what happened when you got older. Spoiler: I was completely wrong.
In this episode I am shooting from the hip and sharing the five things that took me from retirement to county trials at 43. Not theory. Not things I read in a book. The actual stuff I did, the mindset shifts I made, and the honest truth about what was holding me back in the first place.
We talk about why I finally invested in a coach and what that actually changed, what structured strength training has done to my body and my confidence on the pitch, why I used to treat rest days like failure and why that was costing me more than I realised, how I simplified my nutrition after years of overcomplicating it, and the one thing that was quietly killing my enjoyment of the sport I love.
If you are a woman in your 30s or 40s who is starting to wonder whether your best rugby is behind you, this episode is for you. I promise it is not.
The Peerless Pack opens Monday 1 June. If anything in this episode lands for you, come and find me at @laurapeerlesscoaching on Instagram or drop me an email at [email protected].uk I would love to have you in the Pack. If youâre ready to take action then apply here https://forms.gle/JwvgHttK7GLHzHAq6
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Iâm going to be honest with you. The last few weeks have been a lot. Socialising, eating on the fly, poor sleep, and a body that was absolutely cooked after our cup final. I intentionally took a week off the gym because I knew I needed it. But the other stuff? That crept in and I can feel it.
So this week Iâm doing what I tell my clients to do when things have slipped. Iâm going back to my Tight 5.
These are the five foundations I come back to every single time life gets messy. Not an overhaul, not a punishment, not a dramatic detox. Just five simple things done consistently that keep me feeling good, performing better and staying sane. Named after the front row and second row of the scrum, the players that provide a strong, stable platform to keep everything safe, secure and moving forward. Thatâs exactly what these five things do for you.
In this episode Iâm walking you through all five. Protein and plants at every meal, hydration habits that actually work, why daily movement is not the same as training, why sleep might be undermining everything else youâre doing, and the mindset shift that holds all four together.
Iâm doing this reset alongside you this week. Not above you, with you.
And if by the end of this you want to do it inside a community of women who genuinely get it, the Peerless Pack is back and we start on the 1st of June. Five early bird spaces available. Link to the app form here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeeds7rXSJY0zef0ZpQXPYZS5igR5UEWvanz6tt16eJRVN_nQ/viewform
Come find us.
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This week Iâm getting something off my chest. Iâm part of the most successful team at my club, league winners, National Plate winners, three-time County Cup holders yet when we won the league last weekend, nobody from the board came to watch and there was nothing on the clubâs social media. Not a word. In this episode Iâm talking about what that feels like, why I think silence is compliance, and what real allyship actually looks like in the grassroots game. This isnât a rant, itâs a rallying cry. And Iâd love to know if any of it resonates with you.
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We won the league. 13 seasons in the making, two near-misses, one absolutely rank mud bath, and a day trip to Guernsey that cost more than a week away and we finally did it.
In this episode Iâm unpacking what winning the league with Seaford Scarlets actually taught me about goal-chasing not the glossy version, the real one. Because it wasnât one game or one season that got us here. It was the boring stuff. The uncomfortable stuff. The stuff nobody sees.
Iâm sharing my five takeaways from the season and how every single one of them applies whether youâre chasing a performance goal, trying to shift your body composition, or just trying to show up consistently when life is being a nightmare.
We cover:
â Why youâre basically winging it without a proper plan
â Getting comfortable being uncomfortable (and why itâs non-negotiable)
â The danger of the âone big momentâ myth
â Why community will always beat going it alone
â What happens after you hit the goal (this is where most people go wrong)
If youâve been waiting for a sign to stop messing about and actually go for it this is it.
DM me PACK on Instagram @laurapeerlesscoaching if you want to know more about the Peerless Pack, or drop me an email at [email protected].uk if youâve got 1:1 coaching on your mind.
Sheâs Gotta Try. Letâs go.
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Iâm 14 seasons deep, a qualified nutritionist, mid-way through my gym instructor exams, and feeling the strongest and fittest Iâve ever felt. But it wasnât always like this. In this episode, Iâm fessing up on some of the genuinely daft things I used to do in the name of âhealthâ from 5am HIIT sessions on an empty stomach to kebab-shop pre-game meals and full-blown meltdowns when my pre-match routine went sideways. If youâve ever obsessed over the scales, winged it nutritionally, burnt the candle at both ends, or told yourself youâve âruined everythingâ because one thing didnât go to plan, this oneâs for you. Five points. Five hard lessons. One older teammate who made all the mistakes so you donât have to.
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I went to county trials for the first time ever. I didnât get picked. And honestly? It was one of the best things Iâve done in a long time.
In this episode, Iâm reflecting on what it actually meant to put myself in that room surrounded by some of the best womenâs rugby players in Sussex and what I took away from the experience beyond the result. Because if you only measure success by whether you got selected, youâre missing the point.
Iâm talking through five things that county trials reminded me about performance, mindset, and showing up as yourself: why the only person you really need to prove anything to is you, how positive feedback can genuinely change the trajectory of your game, why having fun is a legitimate performance strategy, what being authentic actually looks like when the pressure is on, and how to reframe a disappointment into your next move.
Thereâs also a bit about my nickname (itâs Minge, and yes, thereâs an explanation), why I went to trials with my hair down, and what I did the moment I found out I hadnât made the squad.
If youâve ever been knocked back, missed out on selection, or just found yourself questioning whether youâre good enough this oneâs for you.
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I went to County trials at 43 and absolutely showed up and this episode is all about that energy. Whether youâve got two games left or youâre playing into June, this oneâs for you.
I break down her Tight5 Method â the five non-negotiables that underpin everything she does with her clients and maps out exactly how to layer up from there, from strength training structure to the supplements actually worth your money. No fluff, no fancy stuff. Just the bread and butter that keeps you stepping over that white line feeling strong, fuelled, and ready.
If youâve ever thought âI know what I should be doing, I just donât do itâ Lauraâs got something to say about that too.
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Iâm writing this one with a hot water bottle strapped to my waist and a lot of feelings about cookie cutter fitness advice. This week Iâm talking periods â specifically why the cycle-syncing trend sweeping social media right now doesnât translate to rugby players who have games, training sessions, and real life getting in the way. I cover whatâs actually happening hormonally across your cycle, why your symptoms are completely different to the woman next to you in the changing room, and five genuinely practical tips for managing training and nutrition around your period without following a plan that wasnât built for you. Honest, straight talking, and a little bit sweary. Just like rugby.
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In this episode of The Five Points Podcast, I take a trip down memory lane after redisiting a photo from my first (and only) half marathonâ10 years on.
What started as a goal to âjust get roundâ turned into a sub-2-hour finish⌠but more importantly, it became a turning point in how I viewed myself, my training, and what my body was actually capable of.
I share the messy reality behind that raceâfrom injury setbacks and under-fuelling, to learning how to train with purpose, fuel properly, and commit to a process (not perfection). It was the moment I stopped dabbling and started taking my performanceâand rugbyâseriously.
This episode is about more than running. Itâs about identity, confidence, and the shift from âIâm not really that personâ to fully owning what you do.
If youâve ever felt like a fraud in your training, struggled with consistency, or felt stuck in that cycle of doing just enough but never quite progressingâthis oneâs for you.
I also share why this experience shaped the coach I am today, and how it led to creating the support I wish I had back then.
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Join Laura and Kany as they dive into the raw, honest, and often humorous reality of hitting 40 and hitting the "reset" button on their careers. After leaving high-pressure roles in banking and cyber security, both women have embraced self-employment and the grit of contact sports.
In this episode, they discuss:
The Identity Shift: Navigating the "identity crisis" that comes with leaving a corporate routine and finding a new sense of purpose.
Controlled Aggression: Why rugby and boxing provide more than just fitnessâproving you can "do hard things" and finding mental strength through broken noses and sparring sessions.
Authentic Coaching: Moving away from elitist fitness standards and scale-weight obsessions to focus on inclusivity, sustainable health, and the "Tight Five Method".
Being a "Badass" Role Model: Challenging the "second-class citizen" status of women in male-dominated sports and the power of being unapologetically present.
Life at 40: From managing hangovers and "beer fear" to prioritizing rest, active recovery, and the occasional celebratory glass of champagne.
Whether you're facing a career transition or looking for the motivation to start a new sport at any age, this conversation offers a "real-life," relatable look at thrivingânot just survivingâafter 40.
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I recently completed a 4-week fat loss experiment not extreme dieting, just being intentional with my food while still showing up to rugby, gym, and life. In this episode, I share the lessons I learned about myself: the importance of planning, old habits creeping back, my love for food, why meal structure matters, and why even someone like me still struggles.
If youâre a rugby player wanting to lose fat without sacrificing performance or enjoyment, this episode is for you. Real talk, real mistakes, and real tips all from someone whoâs been there.
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This week on The Five Points Podcast, Iâm taking you behind the scenes of my current fat loss phase.
Iâm in the middle of building up to a big game, carb loading strategically, expecting the scale to spike (because glycogen, not body fat đ)⌠and focusing on performance first.
But this episode isnât about calories, macros or training plans.
Itâs about the five non-negotiable systems I use to stay consistent â especially when motivation dips, hormones are doing their thing, and procrastination is calling my name.
Inside this episode:
⢠Why I get my clients to weigh in daily (and why itâs NOT about the number)
⢠How a simple morning routine changes how you show up
⢠The power of doing one hard thing a day
⢠Habit stacking & âdeal makingâ (yes, coffee is involved)
⢠Movement snacks and why what you do outside the gym matters most
If youâre a rugby player who wants to feel stronger, leaner, more confident and more in control â without obsessing over food â this oneâs for you.
Because fat loss isnât about perfection.
Itâs about systems.
Want some help or know more follow me @laurapeerlesscoaching or [email protected].uk
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In this episode Iâm joined by Georgia Donati Clark âThe Female Parkour Coachâ to discuss training specifically for the sport you love. Whatâs useful, whatâs overrated, and how to build a body thatâs strong, fast, and resilient without overthinking every session.
This is a grounded, coach-led chat for rugby lovers who care about long-term performance, not viral workouts.
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Do you actually want a snack⌠or is something else going on?
In this episode, I break down evening snacking for rugby players â when itâs absolutely fine, when it might be a sign that somethingâs off, and how to tell the difference. I talk you through the five questions I ask myself (and my clients) when the inner fridge rummager appears, including whether youâre fuelling enough during the day, how balanced your meals really are, and how stress, boredom, and emotions can drive snacking.
I also cover how your menstrual cycle can impact hunger and cravings, and why sometimes eating more is actually the right call. This is practical, realistic nutrition advice with zero judgement â just better awareness, better fuelling, and better performance on and off the pitch.
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In this episode of The Five Points Podcast, I dive into a question thatâs been popping up more and more lately: can AI really replace a coach or personal trainer?
After being sent a reel about an AI-powered âPT mirrorâ promising workouts, motivation, form checks and encouragement for ÂŁ1,000, I started reflecting on where technology fits into training â and where it seriously falls short. I talk openly about my own use of AI as a tool for creativity and organisation, but also why I believe it will never replace real human coaching.
Across my five points, I break down:
⢠Why experience and evidence-based coaching canât be replicated by algorithms
⢠The importance of empathy, nuance, and actually knowing the person youâre coaching
⢠Why human connection, community, and banter matter more than ever
⢠The difference between reminders and real accountability
⢠And why who I am as a coach â my lived rugby experience, personality, and understanding of the game, canât be replaced by tech
This episode is especially for rugby players who are juggling long hours, niggles, motivation dips, and big performance goals. If youâve ever wondered whether AI training plans or shiny new fitness tech are the answer, this is your food for thought.
If youâre looking for proper support, real accountability, and a coaching environment built around rugby, community, and lifting each other up, I work one-to-one and run a group coaching programme called The Peerless Pack.
You can contact me at [email protected].uk or find me on Instagram @laurapeerlesscoaching.
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Welcome to the first episode of The Five Points Podcast for 2026! In this episode, Iâm sharing the five words that will guide how I show up this year â in rugby, coaching, and life. From intent and clarity to structure, fun, and community, these arenât just words, theyâre action points to help you move forward, feel your best, and enjoy the journey. Whether youâre a rugby player, a coach, or just looking to set yourself up for an intentional year, this episode is for you.
Find me: @laurapeerlesscoaching or email [email protected].uk
Goal setting form: https://forms.gle/1pAGRX9ypmPoXTCJA
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