Fuelling Scotland for success: Lara Wilson

There are seven women within the management group for the senior side who are currently competing in WXV 2 in Cape Town, each with important roles, driving the performance of the team.

Scottish Rugby has created a mini-series to explore the careers of three of those management members in celebration of Scottish Women & Girls in Sports Week.

Click here to read the first in the series about Physiotherapist, Flo Laing.

In the spotlight today is Lara Wilson, the team’s Performance Nutritionist, whose role is far more than just planning meals—it’s about fuelling, recovery, and supporting the bond that keeps the squad united.

A life-long sports fanatic, Lara’s introduction to nutrition came at university during her undergraduate degree in Sports Science.

“I was really lucky that the degree I did had exposure to every discipline from first year – biomechanics, nutrition, physiology, psychology. I fell in love with nutrition and started building towards a career in it from then”, explained Lara.

In the early stages of her career, sports nutrition was still a niche field.

“There were loads of physios and strength coaches, but not many nutritionists when I first started out. It’s been a rapidly evolving area of performance and I love being part of it.”

With that, Lara began to study for her master’s in Sports Nutrition and began seeking experience.

“I emailed literally every local sports club near me to be like, ‘can I come in and do a nutrition talk?’ so I did some for local women’s rugby teams, women’s football pathway academies, showing them that this is really useful for performance. I got my foot in the door, and I just forged my career from there.”

Since then, Lara has had experience working across a diverse range of sports including para-table tennis, para-badminton, wheelchair basketball, and British diving.

In 2020, Lara joined Scotland Women as part of an applied PhD within the Carnegie Applied Rugby Research programme at Leeds Beckett University. Lara’s research directly benefits the squad and is applied to the strategies she develops.

Lara’s nutrition approach combines rigorous research with an understanding of each player’s individual preferences and needs, creating nutrition strategies that not only enhance fuelling, recovery and wellbeing but also bring enjoyment and togetherness, and her creativity shines through in how she delivers it.

“We introduced the ‘Scotland Shake Shack’ this year as part of our recovery strategy”, explained Lara.

“After training sessions I’ll prepare a recovery drink such as a smoothie or milkshake for all of the players. I’ll combine fresh fruits with protein sources and come up with different flavour combinations. It’s been a great way to make refuelling fun and it mixes up the way the players get the nutrients they need and meet their intake goals.

“It can be a messy task, so I have a special ‘Shake Shack’ apron, and it’s always great to see how excited the players get when they see me put it on because they’re looking forward for something new, and I think that adding that element of excitement has made it a really enjoyable part of recovery for them.”

Pictured: Lara Wilson (left) with her ‘Shake Shack’ apron with the mango coolers ready for players after training.

Whilst out in South Africa, Lara has taken it one step further to support hydration and cooling strategies, whilst training in the heat by making homemade isotonic ice lollies using Nutrition X Hydrafuel, which have been a hit among players and staff.

A large portion of Lara’s time is apportioned to ensuring that the team has everything they need: planning menus and monitoring their delivery, providing daily supplements to support immunity and recovery, stocking up on the best snacking options possible and more. Her role goes far beyond prescribing meals – it’s about human connection.

“Food is more than fuel. It’s culture, mood, and happiness. The way that I lead this programme is all about making sure that the science-based strategies we put in place combine all of those aspects.”

“We also try to have a culture night based on the opposition we are facing that week, so last month we had a Fijian barbeque, or when we play France in the Six Nations, we’ll have a French night. It’s great to be able to give the girls some culture too. Food is so social, so I think it’s important to make food exciting in a performance environment.”

Lara sees her role with Scotland Women as more than just fuelling performance — she views it as an opportunity to shape the players’ futures beyond the field. With many players studying subjects like sports science and physiotherapy, Lara and her fellow female management members are living examples of how their careers can evolve after rugby.

“For many of the players, they’ve been studying the theory at university, and we get to show them what that looks like in practice. When it comes to the stage where they have to retire, they know they can be just like Josie (Symonds) or Flo (Laing), or even myself.

“But they inspire us too. There isn’t a day that goes by when I don’t feel inspired by this group with all they have been through and achieved. It makes me strive to be the best I can be for them.”