UFC Fighter Mackenzie Dern in Bathing Suit is "Amazing"

Mackenzie Dern, the professional UFC fighter, loves to go to the beach. Naturally, she loves to break out her swimsuits. Dern just posted a new photo on Instagram of herself lounging in the sand. She wore a bright yellow bathing suit, and captioned the post with a matching heart emoji. "Amazing," said one fan. How does she stay so fit? Read on to see 5 ways Mackenzie Dern stays in shape and the photos that prove they work—and to get beach-ready yourself, don't miss these essential 30 Best-Ever Celebrity Bathing Suit Photos!

1. She’s Focused

In fighting, it’s important to be focused and have the right mindset. Dern tells the NYPost that she always prepares herself for a fight. “I think the mindset needs to be, when I’m going in to fight these girls, they’re not thinking about if their daughter’s, you know, is their daughter OK? Are they crying? Are they hungry? Or anything like that. They’re just focused on beating me, on winning, on [landing] the punches. And so, I think the mindset definitely changed and it’s gonna get me there to be champ material.

2. She’s Motivated

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Dern has a daughter, and she tells the New York Post that being a mother has made her more motivated. “I’m way more focused. I want to win my fights. I want to do good. I want to have good performances. And having someone depend on you, my daughter, it’s not just me.”

3. She Builds Muscle

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Being a professional fighter, you have to have muscle. Naturally, Dern tells the NYPost that she does a lot of strength training and building muscle. “I’m getting muscle, I’m working my strength training, and I’m keeping my body fat low. I’m in a way better place now, thankfully.” Reminder: "Strength training results in specific physiological adaptations. During the initial phase of a strength-training program, noticeable gains are made due to something called neural adaptability, which is an increase in the recruitment of motor units. As the nervous system becomes more efficient and recruiting more motor units, more force is produced. These initial adaptations are often falsely interpreted as muscle size increases," says ACE Fitness.

4. She Loves The Beach

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Dern loves to spend time at the beach. She tells the New York Post that her ideal day would be, “Go surf then after get a tan. Just relax on the beach tanning. I like to just lay in the sun.” "An estimated 1 billion people worldwide, across all ethnicities and age groups, have a vitamin D deficiency (VDD). This pandemic of hypovitaminosis D can mainly be attributed to lifestyle (for example, reduced outdoor activities) and environmental (for example, air pollution) factors that reduce exposure to sunlight, which is required for ultraviolet-B (UVB)-induced vitamin D production in the skin," says one study.

5. She Doesn’t Think She’ll Meet Her Goals Right Away

Dern is publicly trying to get into a certain weightclass. She tells Gracie Magazine that this is a long process, and that she doesn’t expect results right away. “You can’t be overconfident,” she says. That’s what got in my way regarding the scale leading up to UFC 224 in Rio; many unexpected things happened at the camp, but I always remained convinced that I was going to suffer but was going to hit the weight… And in the end, it didn’t work out.

Mackenzie Dern is reminiscing about sunnier days, in her swimsuit! The UFC fighter shows off her amazingly fit curves in a white bathing suit via one of her latest social media posts. “Rainy days in cali! Missing the warm sun!” she captioned the bright and sunny Instagram snap. How does the fighter and mother maintain her famously fit physique? Read on to see 5 of Mackenzie Dern’s top diet and fitness tips for staying in shape and the photos that prove they work—and to get beach-ready yourself, don't miss these essential 30 Best-Ever Celebrity Bathing Suit Photos!

1. Reprogram Your Body

Mackenzie became a mom in 2019, welcoming a daughter, Moa. “My pregnancy kind of restarted my whole body,” she told the New York Post. “I had a really high fat percentage before I got pregnant. And then breastfeeding and Moa getting [bigger] inside of me, she took a lot of my body fat. I lost a lot of muscle during my pregnancy,” she continued. However, she maintains she was able to reprogram her diet, and “was almost able to start from zero again,” she continued. “I’m getting muscle, I’m working my strength training, and I’m keeping my body fat low. I’m in a way better place now, thankfully.”

2. Surf

Mackenzie’s ideal day would be to “Wake up. Go surf then after get a tan. Just relax on the beach tanning. I like to just lay in the sun,” she told The New York Post. She regularly shares photos of herself surfing on Instagram.

3. Do Functional Training

Mackenzie relies on functional training to keep her body ready to fight. “I dedicated myself 100 percent, but my training was different than before,” Mackenzie told Women’s Health about how her approach to fitness altered after becoming a mom. “I did more functional training, focusing on movements with dumbbells and cables, to improve my speed and reaction time.”

4. Follow a Strict Diet

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Mackenzie sticks to a super strict diet. "I can tell you 10,000 excuses but I really believe what happened with my weight was way back months ago in my last fight. I think it’s my diet, I need to get my diet right,” Dern explained at a UFC 224 post fight press conference after failing to make weight. However, she revealed to the New York Post that sushi and Brazilian barbecue are two of her favorite meals.

5. Jump Rope

Mackenzie makes exercise convenient with a jump rope. “One step closer everyday! One more battle coming! Always believe in yourself! Be your biggest supporter! No one else can do the work for you, it’s your dream, it’s your hard work! “ she added in a motivational caption.

Professional wrestler Valerie Loureda encouraged fans to watch both UFC and WWE NXT Great American Bash 2023 via a social media update. Loureda, 25, shared a video of herself looking fit and beautiful in an aquamarine bikini with matching coverup, telling fans who her picks are for the fights. “I’ve been working hard to bring a different touch to WWE that they’re never seen before,” she explained in the video. How does she stay so fit? Read on to see 5 ways Loureda stays in shape and the photos that prove they work.

1. Proud of Her Roots

Loureda is proud and confident about her fighting skills. “I’m an amazing wrestler,” she says. “Cuban wrestling is very different, and I was lucky enough to be taught wrestling by Yoel Romero and Alexis Villa and Gustavito (Balart), a lot of Olympic wrestlers, so they really taught me that Cuban wrestling, and I’m gonna take it into the cage. I just haven’t been given a chance to show it because I’m playing my game, but the moment I get the opportunity to show it, people are gonna be shocked by my wrestling skills.”

2. Taekwondo Background

Loureda grew up doing taekwondo, which set the tone for her future career as a fighter. “I never in my life thought for one second this is eventually what I would do,” she says. “I always had the vision of the Olympic dream [in taekwondo] in my mind, but at some point… that changed, and I saw MMA on TV. I saw the way it was blowing up, and people were falling in love with it. I said, ‘Wow, I can do that. I could fight like that. I could beat those girls, and I could change the world one day with that platform and all their viewers.’ So I was very excited about MMA, and that’s when it was born for me.”

3. Wrestling Training

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Loureda says switching from MMA to wrestling was no joke. “It’s extremely tough. For me, it’s actually harder than MMA,” she says. “My first bump, I just knew I could do it. I had this feeling in my gut and my first bump, hitting the ropes, I just fell in love with it and I knew I could do it. It’s tough, it’s a hard transition, it’s different than what I’m used to, but if you can rewire your brain and change your mentality and realize what this is and how to be the best at it, you can be successful. I was with coach (Norman) Smiley the whole time and he was amazing and taught me so much. He stayed in an open ring after for like two hours and we worked and he taught me stuff and taught me different things that would work with my style.”

4. Building Muscle

Loureda is careful to build muscle rather than lose weight as a result of MMA/wrestling training. “I might not be sparring as much, but I’m doing physical training (and) conditioning,” she says. “I lost a lot of weight after ‘Exatlon,’ and in these times, I’ve used time to concentrate on what I want to do with my life. While many are eating and gaining weight at home, I’ve been working to be on weight and be ready for this fight. So I haven’t had many partners for this training camp, but I’m very confident in my level and the years of training in martial arts.”

5. Beautiful and Strong

Loureda has neither time nor patience for those who criticize female athletes for bikini pictures. “If women do it, it’s being seen as doing it for social media and doing it to be an object for men and marketing. And that’s not the case,” she says. “It’s not for any man, it’s for us as women showing we can be badass and beautiful and strong, and we could still be animals in the cage and know how to defend ourselves.”

Brazilian MMA champion Mackenzie Dern’s whole fitness (and fighting!) philosophy seems to be “never give up.” The 30-year-old UFC strawweight fighter shared a picture of herself wearing black leggings and a blue sports bra, soaked in sweat and glowing with pride. “You become unstoppable when you work on things, that people can’t take away from you. Things like your mindset, character and personality,” she captioned the inspirational post. Here’s how Dern got back into fighting shape after having a baby, and is now stronger than ever.

1. Lifting Weights

Weight training is a key part of Dern’s exercise regimen. "Strength training helps improve a woman's overall health in numerous ways," Emily Hill Bowman, MD, tells Nebraska Medicine. "Besides the many health benefits, women can also lessen their risk for conditions unique to them such as osteoporosis after menopause and pregnancy complications like gestational diabetes, preeclampsia and postpartum depression."

2. Bike Rides

Dern loves riding bikes outside for fun during her down time, which is a great way to enjoy some fresh air. “Cycling is one of the healthiest and most low-impact forms of exercise - meaning it causes less strain and injuries than most other workouts,” say the experts at the University of Montana. “So it's a hobby you can continue to enjoy throughout your long life.”

3. UFC Training

Dern’s preparation methods for UFC were more intense than her previous martial arts training. “One of the things I had to change were the Muay Thai training sessions — a session of just kicks and punches to get my striking sharp,” she told Gracie Mag. “I also started doing an extra session of cardio, even to keep my weight below what I kept it at in BJJ [Brazilian jiu-jitsu]. And the stamina to fight in there for 15, 25 minutes is a little different. There’s no way to rest during battle — only on the stool during breaks.”

4. Postpartum Strength Training

Dern focused on building strength after welcoming her daughter in June 2019. “During my pregnancy, I didn’t train at all,” she told Women’s Health. “I wanted to take advantage of those nine months and enjoy the time off with my growing family. I came back to the sport four months after giving birth to my daughter, Moa. I was still breastfeeding! The longer you wait to come back, the harder it is, I think. I dedicated myself 100 percent, but my training was different than before. I did more functional training, focusing on movements with dumbbells and cables, to improve my speed and reaction time.”

5. Doubled Down On Training

Dern struggled to get fit after having her daughter, but soon got back into shape with intense training. “I was a little nervous for the first match after baby,” she told Women’s Health. “It ended up being my first loss—I was undefeated before that. I lost a couple of sponsors, too, but that only spurred me on. I doubled down on my boxing and strength training, to get the muscles back and to get to the next level as a fighter. I won my next two matches, and I’m proud to say I’m a better athlete now than I was before pregnancy.”