Tennis champion Jessica Pegula has some good news and some bad news. Pegula, 30, shared a picture of herself wearing black shorts and a green t-shirt, holding a puppy while taking a selfie. “Hi guys - unfortunately pulling out of @rolandgarros this year. I’m just about back to practicing normal (haven’t had any issues for weeks) but played it super safe with recovery & return to play. If I had another 5-7 days I would have been there 100%. So I will definitely be back for a full grass season and the rest of the summer and grinding out the rest of the year. Gotta get that match count up 😅🤪In the meantime I got a new puppy 🤣,” she captioned the post. Here’s how the athlete approaches training, wellness, and success.
1. Building Strength
Pegula used the pandemic lockdowns to really focus on her training. “I wanted to use that time to make gains in my fitness,” she told US Open. “It’s so hard when we’re always playing, it’s like we’re always trying to just not get hurt and not get injured, to feel okay week in and week out. It’s hard to find a block of time to get stronger and build, other than the offseason. So I kind of saw it as an offseason. I worked out every day. There was nothing else to do, so I had to do something. I hate having the feeling of being out of shape and trying to get back into shape.”
2. Top Five Player
Jessica Pegula/Instagram
Pegula is ranked number three in the tennis world. “I see girls I played challengers with and now I feel so weird being a top five player in the world,” she told The Guardian. “It feels weird. I’m always kind of wondering if they’re like: ‘How the hell did that happen?’ And I’m thinking to myself, ‘Gosh, I really made that leap. I really did it.’”
3. Skincare Line
Jessica Pegula/Instagram
Pegula founded her own beauty line called Ready 24. “Over the years, I have learned to prepare much better; prepare for tennis, prepare my body, my skin, my mind and anything that helps me get through long stretches away from home or long travel days,” she says. “Sometimes, little things can really help lessen the grind of a travel trip, work trip, or just a long day. This is really what inspired Ready 24 and hopefully I can keep bringing more products that fit that lifestyle to you guys!”
4. Treating People Well
Pegula commands respect among her fellow players. “I always knew I was putting in the hard work and treating people well, being respectful and having that respect among my peers,” she told The Guardian. “I’ve always felt like I’ve had that. So to me, that outside factor never really affected me because I knew what I was, I was doing it the right way and I was doing it.”
5. Not An Underdog
Pegula acknowledges she is not an underdog in the tennis world. “I think people definitely root more for the underdog, and so I’ve never really felt like people are totally rooting for my story,” she told The Guardian. “I don’t mean that in a bad way. It’s just like, that’s what I feel. And I don’t care – it doesn’t affect me and that’s fine. I understand and I think I’ve gotten better at maybe trying to bridge the gap of more of, OK, it might not be an underdog story, but it’s kind of a cool story. A fun story.”
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