Not only is Alex Morgan an Olympic gold medalist, one of the youngest members of the U.S. women’s national team and 2012’s U.S. Soccer Female Athlete of the Year, she’s also a knockout!
The soccer star has been making headlines lately for her incredibly toned bikini bod and flawless makeup. Lucky for SheKnows, we caught up with Alex behind the scenes on set for her commercial with ChapStick. As their latest spokeswoman, she believes a little lip health goes a long way.
We got her to spill all of her fitness, diet and beauty secrets with us. Here’s how this 24-year-old manages to wow crowds on the field and turn heads off of it
SheKnows: What are you most excited about in the year to come?
Alex Morgan: I’m really just looking forward to the journey, to continue improving myself on the field and off the field. Between the last World Cup and the Olympics, I really grew as a player and I hope to continue to do that.
SK: How often do you practice?
AM: Every day. I’ll take a day off sometimes and do yoga to make sure I’m always getting some sort of workout in.
SK: So, you cross-train. What other activities do you enjoy?
AM: Other than playing soccer, I do spin classes. I do yoga. I go for runs. I just picked up swimming recently. I like to try a lot of different things for my body so it never gets into a routine and stops working. I’m trying to always switch it up.
SK: As evidenced in some pictures of you and your teammate Sydney Leroux lounging on the beach in Hawaii recently, you have some pretty amazing abs! What is your favorite exercise for flat abs?
AM: I think that running helps the core stay toned. I really don’t think there’s anything better. Yoga is also good. Then sometimes I will do “10-minute abs.” I’ll get a timer and put music on and do 10 different types of core work, each one for a minute. I don’t take any breaks. I go 10 minutes straight. It’s not easy!
SK: Do you follow a strict diet or can you eat whatever you want, since you work out so much?
AM: I’m definitely conscious about what I put into my body, knowing that it’s the energy that’s going to come out of my body. At the same time, I can have a burger at lunch. I don’t restrict myself too much. For me, it’s all about making sure my body is feeling good. I work out so many times in the day that I can’t put crap in my body because that won’t help with my fitness.
SK: What does your meal plan look like?
AM: My diet includes a healthy breakfast, a lean lunch with greens and protein, and for dinner, I don’t go too crazy on the carbs. I do snack throughout the day, whether it’s nuts or fruit. Nuts are a good way to get protein in. Carrots with hummus is also a good healthy snack.
SK: What are your “guilty pleasure” foods?
AM: I love Nutella, a great burger and Diet Coke!
SK: Your makeup always looks so pretty and natural. What’s your beauty routine?
AM: My beauty routine is super-simple. I really don’t do that much because I never know when I’m going to go work out. I apply my ChapStick in the morning when I wake up and then re-apply throughout the day. I always use a little bit of mascara and a little bit of bronzer, but I try to stay away from foundation. I feel like it runs a lot when I’m working out. And I put my hair in a little low bun when I’m not working out and a ponytail when I am.
SK: Who are your female role models?
AM: Growing up, I really looked up to the ’99 team. It was great getting to meet all of them and learning what they put in to get to where they are today. It helped motivate me.
SK: Who is your celebrity crush?
AM: I don’t know, there are so many options! I have a celebrity couple crush: Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz. Then obviously you have to think about Ryan Gosling, not only in The Notebook but also in Crazy, Stupid, Love.
SK: What do you like to do when you’re not playing soccer?
AM: I’m in the middle of coming out with the third book in my series, The Kicks. It’s coming out early next year. I also like to relax when I’m not traveling. I just like to hang out in the sun and relax with friends and family. I don’t get to see my family that often because of all the traveling.
SK: Speaking of traveling, that trip to Hawaii looked pretty amazing…
AM: That trip was incredible. I went for a friend’s wedding and it was a much-needed vacation. It was great to just relax and enjoy the scenery and my teammates and friends. Not having to worry about working out three times a day was really nice!
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