British soccer star Beth Mead may not be at the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, but she’s making the most of her time off on holiday in Ibiza, Spain with fellow player and partner Vivianne Miedema from the Netherlands. Mead, 28, is sitting the competition out due to injuries, hence why she is currently soaking up the sun in a Burberry bikini. “𝑰 𝑩 𝑰 𝒁 𝑨 🌴☀️,” Mead captioned an Instagram post. "Not going [to the World Cup] obviously has been a little bit of a tough pill to swallow,” she previously said. "I was very lucky to go to the 2019 World Cup so after experiencing one, what it’s all about, how amazing it is, it’s been tough not being able to go.” Mead’s athletic build is the result of plenty of training—here are 5 ways she stays strong and fit.
1. Same Breakfast Every Day
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Mead is someone who enjoys eating the same thing every day—a vegetable omelet. “I’m a creature of habit, I actually have the same thing most mornings,” she says. “I should mix it up probably, but I have an omelet, I put in peppers, spinach, mushrooms, tomato, and a little bit of cheese.” Research shows having eggs for breakfast is a great choice. “Eggs are a good source of protein (both whites/yolk). They also contain heart-healthy unsaturated fats and are a great source of important nutrients, such as vitamin B6, B12 and vitamin D,” says Kurt Hong, MD, an internal medicine specialist at Keck Medicine of USC.
2. Always a Trailblazer
Mead has always had lots of energy, so her mother took her to soccer practice when she was six—and she outperformed the boys. “[I had] so much energy I did my mum and dad’s head in,” she says. “The guy was like, ‘It’s all boys. She can obviously join in. They might be a little bit rough.’ So Mum was like, ‘Ah, just throw her in,’ just wanting to get rid of me. She came back an hour later to pick me up and the man was like, ‘She’s rougher than most of the boys.’”
3. Sleep and Relaxation
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Mead makes a point of taking time for herself to relax and reset. She especially emphasizes the importance of good sleep. “Everyone needs a good night’s rest to perform to their best ability,” she says. “It is just as important to have some downtime as it is to have a good night’s rest. I’m lucky in that I’m good at zoning out. I absolutely love sitting on the sofa with a coffee and watching TV.”
4. Her Fitness Tips
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Mead’s advice to up and coming athletes is to never give up on their goals, even in the face of setbacks. “I want readers to know you can still follow your dreams, even when you face bad times,” she says. “For example, when I didn’t get picked for the Olympics, I was gutted, but I learnt to pick myself up from the knock-back, and that helped me become a better player. My biggest advice to youngsters is to always learn from their mistakes, and that’s where I can rely on my parents! I don’t need to watch myself on the TV, as I know they will be there to tell me if I put a foot wrong on the pitch. If they are not at a live match, they definitely watch me on the television.”
5. Fitness Tracker
Mead uses a fitness tracker when she’s in recovery from training and playing matches. “I think it's one of my biggest tools for recovery,” she says. “With us playing so many games at the moment, it's been incredibly important for me to try and get it right. It's something I can control, I guess. Stuff on a football pitch, you can't always control, but the stuff you do off it you can. Last season was very busy, then we had the Euros on the end of it. For me to be able to track how much I sleep, what my strain for our games is – it gives you where your recovery is at after each day in relation to your sleep and your strain pattern. I make sure that I'm in green recovery before every game and so far, touch wood, I've been pretty consistent in my football in the last few years.”
