From piano practice to Lego castles: are wholesome hobbies the secret to the Lionesses' success?

The Guardian

4 days ago

On Sunday the Lionesses clinched a historic victory in the Euros final against Spain, becoming the first England team to win a major international tournament abroad. As a clinical psychologist who works with professional athletes and sports teams, I know that discipline and aggression will have played an important role in their victory – but that habits and hobbies off the pitch might have been just as vital.
In the training camp, away from the spotlight and competition of the tournament, the Lionesses would come together in the evenings to engage in wholesome activities including building Lego, doing jigsaws and playing Monopoly. Michelle Agyemang played a piano in her room. Defender Lotte Wubben-Moy brought a sourdough starter from home for the team chef to feed. They were also encouraged to spend time with their families and to talk and journal about 'how they had made it to the Euros, their footballing journeys and the personal battles they had faced'.
Mastering professional sport requires resilience, composure and an ability to navigate the highs and lows inherent in competition. Highs – such as when an important match is won and the stadium roars with approval – kick players' sympathetic nervous systems into overdrive as the neurotransmitters adrenaline and dopamine are released. In this state, returning to a hotel room to sleep and recover ahead of upcoming fixtures can feel virtually impossible. It's not uncommon for athletes to continue to seek out dopamine hits in the form of intense physical exercise, alcohol, social-media feedback, gaming or gambling – all of which can have negative outcomes.
Similarly, when athletes experience a low – a day off, the off-season, an injury or retirement – their mood can plummet. Not only is there now ample time to ruminate on negative thoughts, but their brain chemistry is suddenly deprived of all that lovely pleasure-inducing dopamine as the highs of winning subside and social-media feedback wanes. All too often, the instinct is to pursue dopamine through other, potentially harmful stimuli because it feels too uncomfortable to tolerate the sense of lacking something. Little sympathy is often felt by the public towards football stars who appear seemingly reckless in their behaviours off the pitch, but in reality they are sliding down a slippery slope of addiction and are desperately fighting to get off.
Managing the cognitive, emotional and neurotransmitter-fuelled rollercoaster inherent in sport is crucial for athletes if they want to avoid emotional dysregulation, depression, addiction and burnout.
Here's where the Lionesses played a blinder with their choice of downtime occupations. Low-tech, slower activities such as Lego, puzzles and journalling, as well as being engaging and satisfying, provide an off-ramp for dopamine chasing. They allow players to build emotional and psychological resilience. If you've ever attempted a complex Lego build – like the forward Lauren Hemp, who reportedly built a Beauty and the Beast castle during the Euros – you'll know all too well the level of patience required. Tolerating the discomfort of a fiddly project can help build emotional regulation and resilience – vital for managing uncomfortable pressure points on the pitch.
Many of the Lionesses' purported pastimes were also low- or no-tech. In choosing to play an instrument or give each other beauty treatments (defender Esme Morgan was reportedly the woman to see about lash lifts), the Lionesses were giving their sympathetic nervous systems an opportunity to switch off, allowing for faster recovery. Moreover, in doing non-football related activities together during their leisure time, the players opened up space for social and emotional connectedness – a key component of a cohesive and connected team.
The type of calm, low-tech, collaborative activities practised by the Lionesses during the Euros provided balance between the rush of fast-paced highs and the discomfort of tolerating uncomfortable, slower-paced moments. It's this balance that our minds and bodies need to sustain the physical fitness and mental stamina required to meet the demands of a major tournament – and it's this balance that has been a key ingredient of England's success.
We can't all be Lionesses, but we can learn from them. When the going gets tough, the tough … do jigsaws.
Dr Amy Izycky is a clinical psychologist specialising in professional sport and neuropsychology working throughout the UK and internationally. She is the author of Skewed to The Right: Sport, Mental Health and Vulnerability