Ready, Set, Glasgow podcast: Scott Beattie - Starting out in football, loving coffee & not overtraining
Scott Beattie is the latest guest on Ready, Set, Glasgow podcast series.
International distance runner Scott Beattie is the latest guest on the England Athletics Podcast's "Ready, Set, Glasgow" series, inspired by the upcoming Commonwealth Games, in which he'll compete in the 10,000m.
The 27-year old talks to co-hosts Dan Pembroke - a two-time Paralympic javelin champion - and athletics commentator Alex Seftel about his background in football, getting the workload just right in training and what inspired his love of good coffee.
"It was the instants at home that my mum and dad still drink", says Scott, who takes a portable coffee maker with him on the circuit. "I'm still trying to get them off them and onto the nicer stuff. It's costing me a lot of money now, but it's a nice hobby to have."
He is part of Morpeth Harriers, a club with a great tradition for endurance running, but he played many sports growing up. "I didn't really get into running until I was 16-17. I played football, mostly. From 11-12 until 15, I was at Sunderland," explains Scott, who thinks that football has made his body feel more robust and prevented him from getting too many injuries.
"I got released and played locally for a bit after that," he recalls. "I stopped enjoying it and needed a change. I knew I was alright at running. I went up to Morpeth, there was a group of lads the same age as me. I had friends and I also had success really quickly," he adds.
Beattie then went to the USA to study at the University of Tulsa in Oklahoma, where fellow English athlete Marc Scott had enjoyed success. He competed in the NCAA system surrounded by what he describes as a "completely different culture" from home in the North East. "I probably didn't give enough credit for how hard it was going to be to adjust," he admits. "It is a lot, especially at 18. In terms of running and performances, it took me quite a few years to find any sort of consistency. Luckily I had good people around me."
In fourth place, Beattie was the first Briton across the line at the European Cross Country Championships in Portugal last December. He has an ultimate aim of making the 2028 Olympic Games, but what is important to him is not overtraining and taking moments to get the balance right and enjoy life.
"More and more now, I'm doing less hard workouts," he says. "A lot of the stuff is being controlled and in the right zone or effort for that day. That has probably led to being able to get it right on race day and not being tired from training."
Where to listen
The episode is now available to watch on YouTube, as well as listen to on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and SoundCloud.