Squashletic

Signups are open and slots are filling up!

Join and myself for 5 days of squash, fitness, and mental training in Philly in June ☀️.

Aaaaand there will be a special appearance from World #4, !

DM me to learn more and sign up!

Down in 5 against Tesni yesterday in the El Gouna International.

Overall pleased to have put in a good performance against a tough, in form opponent.

Tactically could have made a couple of adjustments to potentially turn the tide in my favour. For instance hitting deeper length that actually reached the back wall. Sounds simple, doesn’t it?

The court was dead at the back, so if you managed to achieve a good weight of shot, it was very punishing and created good opportunities around the middle or at the front. Tesni did this very well!

The big positive is that the body was more or less ok in the days leading up to & including the tournament. A couple things to keep managing and improving, but a 90% healthy body at this stage in the season is a-ok for me!

A couple days here to train & enjoy the sun in El Gouna, then back to New York for a few, then off to Calgary for Canadian Nationals! 🇨🇦

Thank you to my support crew for all your help ☺️.

🎤 Black Ball Open 2024

A few days on the other side of the game!

Nice to have a change of perspective and few extra days to adjust to the time zone here in Egypt ☺️.

Always enjoyable developing other skills and a renewed appreciation for tournaments & the pro game.

Now back to competing- El Gouna International kicks off tomorrow! 🇪🇬🌴☀️

📸




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Is 1:1 Coaching for you?

It could be, if...

👉🏽 You've got important squash goals that you want to accomplish (whether that's in the next 6 months or 6 years!)

👉🏽 You are looking for a coach to help you with a customized program suited to your needs, abilities, and schedule

👉🏽 You're seeking advice regarding your training & tournament schedule, nutrition questions, or match mental struggles

👉🏽 You want someone consistently in your corner who will support you through the ups and downs

If you're interested in 1:1 online coaching, comment ONLINE COACHING below and I'll personally reach out! (You can also DM me "ONLINE COACHING" if you'd like to keep it private).

I'll only be taking on a maximum of 5 more clients from now until the end of the summer, so if you want to finish this season strong and make some big improvements for next season, this is the time to get going!

It's been a while since I've done an intro post, and there are lots of new faces around here!

Hi! I'm Nicole 😊.

I'm a certified personal trainer, certified nutrition coach, and professional squash player based in NYC!

I'm originally from Victoria BC and grew up playing junior squash in Canada, then came to the US to play for Princeton University, where I majored in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology (eek!) and minored in French (yay!).

It took me a bit of time to figure out what I wanted to do after college, but I knew I wanted to pursue my passion for human performance in some capacity, so I became a personal trainer & coach at Body Space Fitness!

After training and coaching people for several years (including squash coaching), I started my own online squash training business, Squashletic, aimed at helping squash players worldwide become stronger and fitter.

I love meeting guys, so please introduce yourself below and tell me 1) where you're from, and 2) one thing you'd like to improve upon in your game!

Thanks for being here!
Nicole

Just a quick reminder to try not to let your squash stats affect your non-squash life (ie. everything else!).

We've all been there- especially after a tough loss.

Sometimes I remind myself that I have other things going for me besides squash. And that these things will prevail long beyond my professional squash career.

And furthermore- when that time comes, no one else will actually care if I got to 40, 30 or 20 (or beyond) in the world. Will I care?

Yes- I will care if I've got the most out of myself possible, and tried my best to do this.

Whether you are playing in College and are vying for a top spot in the ladder, a junior aiming to get into the JCT's, or you are a club player wanting to push to the next level, just remember- there are a lot MORE people in the world that don't know the difference between a 4.5 and a 5.0 😂.

What matters more is the lessons you can take away from the journey!

Easier said than done when all you want is results, but eventually this mindset can end up crippling you and putting you under too much pressure to perform.

Thoughts? Leave them in the comments.

A true story from a client check-in this week:

Client Y (we will call him that) told me that his squash performance is noticeably and consistently better when she shows up 20 minutes early to prepare.

Here are some of the things he's doing to prepare for his training and matches:

1. Movement Prep & Mobility Exercises: Getting those joints moving better and increasing the core temperature so squash movements don't feel QUITE so jarring (they're pretty hard, aren't they?!

2. Ghosting: We recently set a target for Client Y to do 50 ghosts before he plays. Every time.

3. Solo Hitting: Client Y set himself a target to do 1000 "good" volleys in the span of 4 weeks. This was to improve his confidence and accuracy mainly for the return of serve!

Takeaways:
Be specific with your warmups and pre-training prep, because it not only helps you recover better, it is actually a massive performance enhancer.

Why?

Because if you warm up better, you'll get more out of yourself during your session, which will make you a better player. Simple.

If you can get 100% out of yourself no matter what you've got that day (whether it's 60% or 100%), you're going to make progress. But if you're only getting 70% out of yourself? That progress rate is going to be much slower.

So do yourself a favour and warm up before training. And send this to a friend who needs to see it too!

Happy training (and warming up!).

Long coaching days are hard on the body.

Especially if you're not doing the right things OUTSIDE of those lessons to maintain your body.

If you're already on your feet all day, usually the last thing you want to do is even more exercise, but hear me out:

Squash is a high impact, repetitive sport. Often times you're not fully warm or mobile before coaching, which takes its toll day after day (not to mention, week after week, or year after year!).

This means you actively need to do work outside of your lessons, or before your lessons to prime your body for your job.

Here's the good news: it doesn't need to take forever.

Just 30 minutes of strength training or cardio, or 5-10 minutes of a structured mobility session can actually GIVE you energy, and help your body feel better on court (and afterwards!).

If you're a coach looking for efficient workouts, structure and a bit of motivation/accountability to get your body back into shape, I'd highly recommend you check out my upcoming 4-week online program, Coach Kickstart. We start Monday, March 11th, and it will give you all the tools you need to re-start your fitness journey so you feel healthier, fitter, and stronger!

Comment KICKSTART below and I'll DM you the link to learn more!

By "be fit to coach squash", I mean...

- Not having constant aches and pains on/off the court
- Being able to actively participate in drills and games with your students when needed
- Not having to tailor the feeding/drills/coaching session to your body's state
- Having energy to coach for a few hours in a row

Coaching fitness is different than playing fitness. You don't need to be spending hours doing squash-specific work (like ghosting, etc).

You DO need to dedicate the time to take care of your body though, by doing:

- Mobility work to improve the range of motion of your joints
- Prehab/activation exercises to prepare your muscles to move optimally on court, and balance things out a bit.
- Strength training to strengthen your muscles (duh), address imbalances, and be more resilient overall.
- Conditioning for general health and aerobic fitness (this will not only help your ability to stick in rallies, but also your day to day recovery...).

The good news is that you don't need to spend hours and hours in the gym or on court to fit this type of work in. With an effective and targeted sessions, you can be in and out of the gym in 30 minutes or less.

And if you only have 5 minutes before going on court to coach? No problem. 5 minutes of targeted, specific mobility work can do wonders for your body- especially if done every day!

This type of structure and sessions is exactly what the upcoming program, Coach Kickstart, is all about! Helping coaches feel better on and off the court so you can enjoy your work more, and do a better job of it.

If you're a coach and you need some help in this area, comment KICKSTART below, and I'll send you the link to the waitlist for the upcoming program. We start March 4th!

Squash coaches:

Yes, it's tough to get back into shape when you spend so many hours on your feet motivating others.

The last thing you probably want to do is expend MORE energy when your body is tired and achy from coaching.

However, if you keep going down this route, it's not going to get any easier. Your body will get stiffer, more niggles will creep in, and playing squash will feel harder and harder.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it's true!

Don't worry- I do have some good news, though! You can actually get your fitness back- WITHOUT spending an hour training every day, doing really punishing sessions, or feeling so spent that you have no energy left for coaching.

The key is consistently doing 20-30 minute sessions (ideally before coaching, or in the middle of the day), that give you a mixture of full body strength training, cardio intervals, and a healthy dose of mobility & flexibility.

This is enough to wring out the niggles, restore healthy range of motion in your joints, and leave you feeling energized and strong after- such that you feel like you can actually give more focus and attention to your coaching!

If you're craving some structure/routine and accountability to get your fitness back, comment KICKSTART below, and I'll send you the link to the waitlist for the upcoming online program, Coach Kickstart.

Coach Kickstart is a 4-week online program for squash coaches that is designed to help you get back into shape, without taking hours and hours OR leaving you feeling ridiculously sore and flat.

And we are starting Monday, March 4th, so comment KICKSTART for the link to the details and waitlist!

Tournament of Champions 2024 🗽

Another really good tournament to start off 2024. Got past fellow Canadian, Hollie Naughton in my first round with a really strong performance.

Then I came up against Satomi Watanabe in my 2nd round. I put everything into the first 2 games, narrowly missing out on those 11/9 and 13/11 (and then the 3rd was not as close!).

Overall am quite proud of the squash I put together during TOC. Working on my movement for a couple weeks and changing my mindset helped me be able to extract the best out of myself in a performance setting- something which I’d been struggling to do all fall of 2023.

Thanks to , , and of course .

PS. Doing some commentary and MCing was a pretty good way to occupy time once I was out 😄. What a venue!!!!!

Florida Open 2024 ☀️

Got my first win of the year and PSA season, getting revenge on Mariam Metwally (where she beat me handily a month earlier in Hong Kong).

Thanks to some good movement work over the holidays & leading up to the event, as well as some mindset shifts, I was able to release the pressure I was putting on myself and actually compete & perform.

I then played former Princeton teammate & friend, Olivia Weaver. I lost out in 3, but was still proud of how I competed. The level was just too high for me to get enough opportunities and capitalize, and credit to Olivia who is showing some serious form right now.

(This tournament was actually a couple weeks ago, I’m just late to the posting party!).

Big thanks to my support & coaching team 🔥. These sorts of “ups” and good performances were only possible because of your support during the (very extensive) down times.

You don't need to do ALL of these every week- these are just some types of sessions you can include in your training.

The frequency and types of sessions you do in a given week will depend on what part of the season you are in (off/in season), and your goals.

For example:

In season? You may want to focus more on match play and ghosting, and less so on off-court conditioning and technical work.

Off season? Ramp up the off-court work (strength, conditioning, plyo/speed/power) to prepare you for the season.

If you don't really have a dedicated "season", getting a good mix of 4-9 every couple weeks should keep you in good stead!

If you have your on-court training sorted, but need guidance with the "other" stuff (ghosting, solo hitting, mobility/recovery, conditioning, strength, plyo/speed/power), I'd highly recommend checking out the Squashletic Training Academy!

Until Sunday Nov 26th, you can get 30% off the annual price ($125 vs $179). Click the link in my bio to check it out, or comment STA and I'll send you the link and the promo code!

Happy training!

If you struggle with warming up, stretching, cooling down, or doing any kind of prep & restorative work, listen up:

The Squash Mobility is on sale for a limited time for 30% off this week!

You can also gain access to Squash Mobility by joining the annual Squashletic Training Academy plan (which is ALSO on sale on for Black Friday...!!!).

Comment "Squash Mobility" or "Squashletic Academy" and I'll send you the link to learn more & join.

Use the code BLACKFRIDAY2023 for 30% off!

Happy training!

There's 2 ways. you can get your hands on this program for the best deal this week:

OPTION 1: Join the program for 30% off and get lifetime access! (Link in bio). One-time payment of $103.

OPTION 2: Join the Annual plan for the Squashletic Training Academy and get access to LLL as well as Squash Mobility, and a whole host of other programs, workouts, and training resources by becoming a member. Only $125/year (normally $179/year).

Click the link in my bio to join either program, and comment/DM with any questions! Happy to help you decide which is best for you 😊.

The following 4 programs are all on sale for 30% off this week only!

Here’s a quick breakdown of what’s involved in each:

Lunge Like a Legend:
Fantastic if you need squash-specific, bite-sized sessions to help you regain or improve your squash fitness from the ground up. Consider this your step-by-step blueprint to better squash movement, including mobility/flexibility, foundational strength, core & power integration, and on-court movement patterns.

Squash Mobility:
A collection of over 30 mobility/flexibility sessions to help you unlock stiff joints, recover quicker, reduce injury risk, and move more freely on court. One of the most popular Squashletic programs to date!

Squash Camp Fitness:
A must-have for any busy coach who works with students in a group and needs done-for-you workouts to use with them! This program gives you everything from warmups, to cardio circuits, to bodyweight strength sessions, to ghosting! Plus, they all have diagrams so you can easily visualize how to lay out the session for up to 12 people at a time!

Squashletic Training Academy: (Annual Subscription)
This yearly membership gets you access to premium programs Lunge Like a Legend and Squash Mobility, plus a whole library of workouts (strength, conditioning, ghosting, mobility/flexibility, etc), monthly training programs, and other training resources. Note: the premium programs are not available as part of the monthly subscription- only annual.

Each of these offerings has loads of squash-specific fitness content specifically geared towards helping you become a stronger, smoother, more efficient squash player.

To join a program, comment the name of the program you’d like and I’ll send you the direct link. OR go to the link in my bio and you’ll find them all linked there! Use the code BLACKFRIDAY2023 to save 30%.

If you need…

- A kickstart to your training
- Some accountability to help you gain momentum with a better training routine
- Better nutrition habits (either for performance or weight loss)

Squash Shape is likely a great program for you!

Here’s what it entails:

Part 1: Training
It’s a 6 week training program where I’ll be personally helping you tailor the sessions to your weekly schedule, checking in on your progress every week, and holding you accountable. Plus, you’ll have the other group members to cheer you on and keep you motivated!

Part 2: Nutrition
When you’re not training, you’ll be working on improving your nutrition habits. Whether you want to lean out a little, you want to feel healthier, or you feel like you could fuel your performance & training better, you’ll absolutely benefit from this actionable, habit-focused part of the program.

This is the FOURTH time I’m running Squash Shape, and I can’t wait to help you transform your lifestyle & set you up for success in 2024.

How to learn more: comment “Squash Shape” below this post and I’ll send you the link to learn more and apply!

We are starting next week, so time is ticking!

Grasshopper Cup 2023 🇨🇭

Long story short- not the performance we wanted, but credit to my opponent who played & managed the game better.

Thank you to all the organizers & sponsors for this event. Fun to be a part of it, both on & off the court.

Next up: Pan Am Games in Chile 🇨🇱

If there's no buy-in, the results are always going to be limited.

Students need to be "all in" and believe in the process, for their time spent with you to be as productive as possible.

Coaches: what are some ways you increase buy-in with your students? I want to know!
Comment below! 👇🏽

Coaches: if you can get your students doing...

- Warm ups before every practice
- 2 x 20 min strength workouts every week
- 3 tough conditioning sessions weekly
- Ghosting a couple times/week

It'll massively help their off-season gains and prepare them for a stronger season starting in the fall.

On court work is obviously still king (or queen!) for becoming a better squash player, and is the true priority in-season.

But in the off-season, you want to take advantage of the time away from competition and make some serious fitness gains.

However, this doesn't happen with a sudden 1-week burst of intensity.

Long lasting strength & conditioning gains are made through constant buildup over the course of a couple months.

If you're a coach and you're looking for ways to improve your student's fitness this summer, check out the link in my bio to get on the waitlist for the upcoming program.

Early bird pricing releases later this week, so be sure to get on the waitlist for the special promo!

The results from these 6 weeks?

- More energy on court
- Better fitting clothes
- Less bloating
- Improved movement efficiency on court

These 3 takeaways may seem simple, but when done consistently, they can help you feel better in both the short AND the long term.

I can't stress how important that last sentence is. Most diets and training plans promise to get you fast results, but because they're so dramatic that they're unsustainable. In this program, Squash Shape, we focus on changing your mindset and habits around training & exercise to get you feeling, moving, and eating better.

6 weeks is not enough time for a full blown transformation. But it is enough time to build momentum.

I used to place more emphasis on the numbers in these types of programs, because numbers don't "lie" (ie pounds lost, calories, # of minutes exercised, etc).

But the reality is that these sorts of takeaways are the *habits* that will make the numbers move in the right direction- consistently.

So often we're concerned about the speed of our progress, we go out at a rate that's unsustainable, and inevitably come to a grinding halt.

That's why I like to focus more on the *direction* of progress. Keep the forward momentum. Slow progress is still progress.

If you're looking to make some changes to your lifestyle (whether it's training or nutrition), and you're unsure of where to start, simply ask yourself: "Will this exercise/meal/etc help me move forwards?". Little decisions like that add up to big results over time.

Looking forward to running the next program- likely sometime this fall. Until then, comment with any training/nutrition/weight loss questions and I'll reply with some advice!

-Nicole

That’s a wrap here in Chicago 👋🏽.

Overall a positive week in the Windy City.

- Played & competed well in my matches. Reached the 2nd round of the World Champs for the first time.
- Body felt good 🙌🏽
- Got a few days of good training in afterwards with & some other pros
- Went on a beaut boat tour!
- Spent time with my parents who came to visit & watch
- and more!

Off to the airport now to fly to Montreal for the Nationals. My first match is Thursday on the glass!

Thank you to John & the University Club of Chicago for hosting us, and to all the sponsors, volunteers and PSA staff for making this event a success!

And of course thank you to for the support & coaching, and my sponsors and for my equipment ☺️👟.

📸:

Tough loss at British Open.

2 points from getting over the line, but lost my composure (and Alex played better) in the last few points of the match.

For the first two games I was constantly stuck behind Alex- letting her volley and control the middle, and picking me off when I left it too short or loose. I quickly found myself in a 2-0 deficit!

I tried not to get too down about the score line, as I knew I could do better, but had to work to find a way. Thanks to some advice from Rod in between games, I was able to make some adjustments, get a better length, and start to actually compete!

I raised my game enough to win the 3rd, and was also close & competitive in the 4th… until I found myself down 9-6! I put the score out of my mind, and just did my best to play one good rally, to try and bring it back to 7-9. Winning that rally gave me some confidence, and I was able to string together a few good rallies and get over the line 12-10.

I had a shaky start to the fifth (went down 4-1), which is NOT what you want, but pulled it back and got a 9-6 lead.

After being down 2-0, I was a bit stunned to find myself in a winning position. I knew not to give the end result too much thought, but I didn’t keep my composure. With her back against the wall, Alex upped her game and forced some opportunities out of me.

I ended up losing 11-9.

Match reports seem to be popular amongst readers/followers, so I’ll share some more tactical & mental insights (that aren’t just score related like this 👆🏽) in an email to my list later this week.

If you’d like to receive it, head to the link in my bio and sign up for the Best of 3 newsletter, and you’ll instantly be added to the list to receive this match recap (and the Bo3) when it goes out later this week!

Big thank you to the & sponsors who helped put this event together, and to for hosting. Loved being back in Birmingham for a few days!

And thanks to for the in between game coaching (so nice to have that back this season), and to for your continued help 💪🏽.

➡️Next one is the Orange Ball 30k in Florida next week!

It can be really hard to keep your competitive edge (both mentally and physically) throughout a tournament.

While you can't always control everything that occurs during a tournament (like how well your opponent plays, the ref's calls, etc), you CAN do the following things:

1) Do the best you can with what you've got in the moment or on the given day
2) Focus on what you CAN control (pre-match routine, nutrition, hydration, your attitude)

Perhaps the most important thing you can do to give yourself the best chance of competing well is having a good pre-match routine... based off of what works for YOU (not others, or superstition).

Here are a few things to pay attention to:
- when you wake up
- being adequately hydrated
- what session you do in the morning (if any). Mobility? Solo hit? Practice?
- Minimizing stressful/creatively demanding work
- What and when you eat
- Your pre-match warmup

I know, some of the things above might seem obvious, but I often find myself repeating these fundamentals. There are no quick fixes or magic solutions- just repeatable habits that will over time produce reliable results.

Questions? Anything you'd add to this list? Comment below!

I'm not trying to scare you 😂.

I'm just trying to inspire action by reminding you that time is going to pass no matter what.

In fact, I was reminded of this a few weeks ago when I realized I kept putting off releasing my podcast (for months and months).

I just realized "OMG- if I don't do this now, I'm going to be in the SAME position 6 months from now...".

We spend a lot of time thinking about what we'd like to achieve, but often time it takes a a rock bottom moment, or an extreme circumstance to force us to make this change.

Ideally, let's not wait for that to happen.

If you're ready to get started & make some LASTING changes in your training, nutrition, and body composition, so you can feel lighter, stronger, and more confident on court, click the link in my bio. 💥

Oh, but do it before Sunday, March 12th, or you'll have to wait until next season!

This post says it all, so here's all I will say:

If you've been looking for a sign to finally level up your training and nutrition, this transformational 6-week program is for you.

And today is the LAST day to grab the early bird deal! At midnight tonight EST, the price of Squash Shape will go up to $444 until it kicks off on March 13th, and then up to full price of $555 once the program has started.

Personally, I love this program because if you do the work, you get results. Simple as that. Swipe to read some of the testimonials and check out some of the other posts in my profile (including Celia's podcast) for more reviews.

Link to sign up: https://squashletic.fitterapp.app/squash-shape

Hope to see you inside!

Nicole