Lauren Hemp is one of the UK’s soccer, or football, stars. She plays for the Lionesses. Hemp recently enjoyed a spar trip while on break from football. She shared a photo on Instagram of herself in an outdoor pool. Hemp captioned the post, “Catching some sun before the international break.” How does she stay so fit? Read on to see 5 ways Lauren Hemp stays in shape and the photos that prove they work.
Playing soccer, naturally, is Hemp’s main way of staying fit. Soccer is a great way to stay in shape. Better Health states, “Soccer is a good sport for maintaining health, fitness, strength and endurance. The health benefits include that it: Increases aerobic capacity and cardiovascular health. Lowers body fat and improves muscle tone. Builds strength, flexibility and endurance. Increases muscle and bone strength. Improves health due to shifts between walking, running and sprinting.”
Hemp opened up about how she handles pressure to The Guardian. She says that being proud of herself and her accomplishments have helped her from putting too much pressure on herself. “For me, I’m my biggest critic. I put so much pressure on myself that I don’t really feel it from the outside. But I sometimes look back and realise how far I’ve come and that I’m still so young and think I should not put as much pressure on myself as I do. It’s finding that balance in making sure I do perform at my best but that I do enjoy the journey as well because I think when I enjoy it you get the best out of me.”
In her The Guardian interview, Hemp sung the praises of coach Sarina Wiegman, and shared what she’s learned from her. “For me, she’s always told me to have freedom, express myself, and I think that’s what I’ve needed. You’ve seen from the results that we are playing very well under Sarina. Hopefully that will continue into the Euros. She’s been on the winning side, so we’ve got so much trust and confidence in her. She’s telling us what we need to know to ensure that, come the Euros, we’re the best.”
In her interview with The Guardian, Hemp shared what aspects of her game she wants to improve. “One of the main things is my decision-making,” she says. “Whether cutting on the inside, going on the outside, shooting, crossing, things like that – driving at a player. When you get the ball and everyone comes towards you it’s all about that split-second decision and what you’re going to do on the ball. With the decision-making then comes becoming more consistent with goals and assists. That’ll show in my stats. But also, my right foot, at the moment I think I just use that to stand on, so that’s another one of the many things I’d like to improve.”
In another interview with The Guardian, Hemp shared some of her favorite foods. “I like an omelette but I’m not great at making them, so when I was away with England I’d always ask the chef. He said it’s all in the pan, so I now have a specific pan that doesn’t get used for anything else.”