Maxigesic on keeping up with the Warriors Women
For many professional athletes life revolves around the game. For the New Zealand Women’s Warriors, the game has to revolve around life. Despite its rapid growth, the NRLW is not (yet) a full-time career; instead, players balance work, study, and family commitments with the physical demands of their sporting endeavours. For some, that looks like a six-hour shift followed by four hours of intense pre-season training, in addition to being a full-time mum. It’s a schedule that requires grit, guts, and most importantly, recovery. To push their bodies to the limit, rest, hydration, nutrition, and rehabilitation techniques are imperative to ensure they can continue to face each day head-on. With Maxigesic as their Official Pain Relief Partner, Remix spoke to the Warriors Women about the importance of recovery, what a typical day looks like, and how they manage to do it all.
Image via @nzwarriorsnrlw
What does a typical day as a Warrior look like for you?
Harata Butler: ‘It’s full-on. Starting with mahi—I’m still employed full-time outside of footy. We then lead into training, which typically starts at 4pm. The day is quite busy right from the get-go. Mental preparation is key.’ Maarire Puketapu: ‘Most of us have jobs, so we’ll go to our job, maybe 9am-3pm, and then we’ll spend about four, four-and-a-half hours at [pre-season] training before heading home. In our normal season, we would usually have a two-hour field session, which is quite physically demanding, and then an hour at the gym.’ Shakira Baker: ‘When we’re in season, I’m working as a relief teacher. I’ll be going to work in the morning, and after finishing, I’ll go to training from about 4pm to 8pm. I’m making sure I’m able to fit everything in. [NRLW] is not yet full-time, so we’re having to juggle work, commitments, if we want to start families, [etc]. I’m sure in the near-future it’ll become full-time for women, and I’m looking forward to seeing that day.’
Image via @nzwarriorsnrlw
How do you make sure you’re recovering correctly so you can keep up with your intense schedule?
Matekino Gray: ‘Sleep. Nutrition, as well. We do back-to-back trainings, and they are hard trainings, too. Take care of your body when you can but sometimes, you just don’t have time. My big thing would be: get enough sleep.’ SB: ‘Being an older athlete, recovery is really important for me. I make sure I’m getting enough sleep, knowing I’ve got work and training. Also keeping hydrated and making sure I’m doing my one-percenters, because my body has been through a lot with injury. I make it a priority to be able to perform well.’ MP: ‘The days we have off, usually as a group, we’ll go and do some recovery sessions: hot and cold [contrast therapy], stretching, anything we can.’ Mya Hill-Moana: ‘Doing hot-and-cold after a game or training: it helps with the blood flow after we’ve smashed our bodies.’
Image via @nzwarriorsnrlw
Many Warriors Women are juggling work and family with the brutal physicality of training and matches. How do you do it all?
HB: ‘We don’t really have time to think ‘how’. As women athletes, we’re still trying to find our space in the sporting world. As a mum and a partner, we’re so used to multitasking. When you add sports into it, it’s a passion—it’s something you want to do for yourself. We tend to make room because we want it all, and we can do it all.’ MHM: ‘You just do it. As women, we just get it all done. We can run families, run businesses, we can do it all. We just make stuff happen.’
Maxigesic offers fast, effective relief from a range of pain symptoms commonly experienced by athletes, including headaches, migraines, back pain, and period pain. Its unique double-action formulation combines paracetamol 500mg and ibuprofen 150mg to deliver Smarter Pain Relief— proven to be more effective than either ingredient alone.
Always read the label. Use only as directed. Incorrect use could be harmful. If symptoms persist see your healthcare professional. Do not use if you have asthma or a stomach ulcer. AFT Pharmaceuticals, Auckland. Patent no. 552181. TAPS PP5928
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