Beyond a ‘Week in the Life’ of a trainee sport and exercise psychologist: Demystifying supervised practice through 10 professional activities

More than a decade after this publication featured a series of “week in the life” accounts from experienced Sport and Exercise Psychologists, insight into the lived realities of trainee practitioners remains limited. To address that gap, this article outlines a representative week in the life of a Trainee Sport and Exercise Psychologist in the final year of his enrolment on the British Psychological Society’s (BPS) Qualification in Sport and Exercise Psychology (QSEP). Rather than presenting a day-by-day diary, the article is structured around ten recurring professional activities, which encompass the breadth and depth of responsibilities that trainee practitioners can expect to face throughout their supervised training. Drawing on the author’s personal experiences, this article illustrates that the supervised training extends far beyond applied delivery and can include a number of key professional development activities, including research requirements, administrative demands, and sustained ethical reflection. This article emphasises the scale of commitment required to evidence competence across knowledge, research and applied domains, and considers how these activities collectively shape professional identity. By offering a transparent account of supervised practice, the article aims to inform aspiring practitioners and stimulate further dialogue about trainee development pathways within UK sport and exercise psychology.