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Every time I am not playing, I am training harder to keep myself fit.

I went from a player who was never fit to a person who actually worked hard to get myself in shape.

As professional soccer players, we take our bodies to the extreme. We're the people at the gym that look like we're breaking the machines. Pushing our bodies to the limits is what makes us so strong and capable and Olympians. It's not an easy thing to consistently do over and over again to your body.

Sports formed me. I was always decently skilled but lacked size, so I had to resort to using my skill versus my power. I strategically play golf because that's all I can do. It's the same on the basketball court. I try to get open and shoot it. Or I use the open space on the soccer field.

Fitness is important, but the most important thing is how you adapt and the way you feel physically. To adapt to a new position. To try to change your game.

You need to work very hard, you have to spend a lot of time practicing your sport - six to seven hours daily.

Training is such a vital part of preparation for a game, you really do train to play. It tops up your ability, like sharpening a carving knife. You can get away with not doing it for a while, as long as you have reached a certain standard of fitness.

With athletes, it's never fully understood the level to which we push ourselves. Especially in an endurance sport.

To combat the monotony of gym workouts, I started playing soccer. I looked at workouts as training sessions. My soccer training includes squats, pushups, resistance-band work, and sprints. Ninety minutes of running became part of my love of the game rather than a chore.