Born in Ysbrechtum, Friesland, Van der Heide joined SC Cambuur, signing a professional contract in 1997.
[1] In March 2012 it was announced, that van der Heide would retire from professional football and join ONS Sneek as a playing assistant manager.
[2] In May 2014, van der Heide returned to SC Cambuur as assistant manager of Henk de Jong but also stayed in a role as an advisor at ONS Sneek.
[6] However, van der Heide decided to leave IJsselmeervogels with immediate effect on 17 August 2017 because he couldn't combine the two jobs.
[8] Ahead of the 2019-20 season, he once again returned to SC Cambuur as assistant manager of Henk de Jong.