Latest news with #OTDiaries
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
The wrestler in lipstick: Why Olympian Amit Elor prioritizes pre-match glam (and romance novels)
Amit Elor makes flourishing in a male-dominated sport look easy. As a 20-year-old competing at the Paris Olympics last year, she became the youngest American — male or female — to win a gold medal in wrestling. These days, the Gen Z-er can be found documenting her life on and off the mat on social media. Sometimes, that means lifting weights. Other times, it's wearing sheet masks. 'I feel feminine even when I'm wrestling,' Elor, 21, tells me during a conversation for Yahoo Life's OT Diaries. 'It's important for me to do things like paint my nails before every competition. I like to match the color of the rubber bands on my hair to my singlet or to my socks if I possibly can.' This isn't something that was always important to her. She recalls being a tomboy when she was younger and refusing to wear dresses or skirts. 'It's probably part of growing up with the sport and wrestling only boys, that I felt like I couldn't show that side of me,' she says. 'So it's kind of been a process of feeling comfortable with my femininity and feeling comfortable expressing it and looking girly and wearing dresses and putting makeup [on].' These days, applying lipstick and nail polish and having her mom help with braiding her hair are pre-competition rituals for Elor, who likes to bake and read romance novels in her downtime. Here's what she says about how these interests help her find balance as a young athlete. Well, first and foremost, I'm making sure to have fun every single practice, even if it's super-intense and it's not fun. I think the environment really helps, and when your teammates are messing around, your coaches are positive, that helps too. And then, of course, having things outside of the sport, like hobbies. I really love cooking and baking. I'm a huge foodie, so if I travel somewhere else and I know that this place is known for croissants or something like that, I'll go and give it a try. I love traveling too, and wrestling allows me to travel a lot. Recently, I also got into reading, and I've been on a romance streak, which has been great. Everybody says balance is key, but balance is hard. You have to put in effort to be able to balance something, but I think that truly is the best. You see a lot with high school wrestlers when they start wrestling, [that] sometimes they're too extreme. They'll not eat for a few days or they'll eat just one thing. My goal is to still get to eat my favorite foods. Unfortunately, when it is closer to the competition, I have to do that in moderation. And it's totally possible and it's actually the better choice, right, to be eating a lot throughout the day, fueling yourself and then putting the work out there on the mat. So obviously, I can't always eat exactly what I want and the amount I want. But I know it's a timing thing too, right? After the competition, it's really fun to go out to eat and really celebrate. It gets a little bit complicated. … If somebody is going up in a weight class, the goal will be to gain muscle and strength. But sometimes [it's the opposite]. I've had this personal struggle that I'm eating well, I'm training hard, but I'm lifting so much that I'm actually gaining muscle, and it's making it harder to drop down a weight. So I've had strength coaches tell me, 'Decrease your reps, go heavy weight, low reps.' So there's these alterations we'll make when we do have to be a certain weight class. And sometimes it's flexible and we can [compete at] our natural weight. But other times it is complicated because one [weight class] is closed, or we're trying to make the strongest team and stuff like that. I think the gym is my safe place, along with the wrestling mat. I enjoy lifting and working out just as much as I do wrestling. It's really fun. I love active recovery. On a rest day or when I have time, I really enjoy walking. I can lose myself during a walk and just walk forever. One thing I was doing a lot before the Olympics, actually, was walking while reading, like an actual book. And I would just do this for one to two hours every day. It was helping me a lot. I would do it on a walking pad. I did it once at this field outside my house, but I've gotten pretty good at relying on my peripheral vision. I have at least one full rest day a week. I'm also generally trying to get better at listening to my body. I recently got really into ice baths. I really enjoy it. I love the feeling after, that kind of high you get from enduring all the cold. … The longest I've done is 10 minutes. But just doing five [minutes], I get the benefits of it. The hardest part is the first 30 seconds to one minute, because your body is adjusting and you're breathing really hard. But then after that, you just feel coolness and your body adjusts. It's actually really cool how your body is able to adjust and then suddenly you feel fine. Wrestlers love the sauna. We go to the sauna probably almost every day for 15 to 20 minutes at least. It's awesome. Seeing all the women that are getting more comfortable flexing, working out, lifting and becoming stronger versions of themselves, it's really inspiring. And it makes me feel a little bit more confident to put myself out there too. Growing up, I was pretty lucky that I was never, never told to be a smaller version of myself. My parents never told me to cut weight. I always ate as much as I wanted and I always loved the feeling of being strong and looking strong. I think that's something that's really important for me to share with other girls, especially even within wrestling: that the smaller version of ourselves may not necessarily be the best version of ourselves. And we really need to pay attention to how we feel, and not just how we look. Life is worth living, and it's so, so fun doing all these things and getting to eat all these delicious things and all that. I've always been a huge fan of peanut butter or almond butter. I love dipping apples in almond butter. That's delicious. I'm crazy about Greek yogurt. I can have that for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It's the perfect snack with honey. I had a phase where I really liked protein oatmeal. So you blend oatmeal and protein powder with some almond milk and other things and you can microwave it or bake it or cook it, whatever. It's literally like a dessert. It's so delicious. I'm huge on dark chocolate. I need to have dark chocolate with me all the time. Sometimes I have like half a bar to a bar of dark chocolate every single day. It makes me happy. It's more of a ritual, you know. … That feeling when my hair is braided and I put my singlet on, nothing compares to it. It's that specific competition feeling. I'm ready to go. It's only my mom [that does my hair] just because I'm so used to it and I trust her. If something works for me in competition, I like to replicate it. Sometimes I've been fixated on the same pair of shoes, and if I lose wearing a pair of shoes, I probably won't compete in those again. So I get a little superstitious about that stuff. My strength coach gave me a very special bracelet as a gift. It had engraved on it something in Latin that meant 'I believe,' and it was just so meaningful to me. The night before I left for Paris, I spent like four or five hours looking all over my room and I couldn't find it. I had to leave for Paris without this bracelet that was so special to me, and I remember feeling really superstitious. I was like, I don't have the bracelet. How am I gonna perform? I'm probably not gonna win. They're little, little feelings. But I know at the same time that they don't mean anything as far as competition. But here and there, if I am feeling a superstition, I'm able to go with the flow with it. Always my mom. Probably Friends or Futurama. Ice cream. I can have ice cream for breakfast, lunch and dinner. My biggest fear is regret. I want to make sure I live life to the fullest. When people pick their nose or their ears, that gives me the ick. Greek yogurt. And I'm a water girl. I can say that I drink water every day. Probably food videos, like food reviews or 'what I eat in a day.' I just love it. And then I start looking at restaurants and then saving them. I'm a foodie. ChapStick, I can't go [anywhere] without ChapStick. I recently spent a month in Brazil, so I've been listening to an album of Brazilian funk music. I can't understand a lot of it. But the vibe gets me hyped up for a workout. I don't follow that many wellness trends. Always stretching before you work out. I'm probably the best baker my friends and family know. I played saxophone when I was in middle school and I'm trying to relearn and get better at it. This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Race car driver Marcus Armstrong is a vegan who loves planking for hours. So will he drink milk if he wins the Indy 500?
If you were trying to get hold of racer Marcus Armstrong to check in after Saturday's crash, there's a good chance he hasn't gotten back to you. For the record, he is, fortunately, fine. But he's also "really bad on my phone" — which is something that helps him stay mentally prepared for the 2025 Indianapolis 500. The 24-year-old from New Zealand was involved in a brutal-looking crash during his final practice before the first of two days of qualifying rounds this past weekend. Armstrong was taken away on a stretcher but was back on the track on Sunday. He ended up earning the 32nd of 33 spots for the big race on May 25. Speaking to Yahoo Life's OT Diaries a few days before all this went down, Armstrong told me he was prepping for all scenarios. "You really need to be on top of your own thoughts and emotions," he shared. "So over the next week, we're just going to be cycling through every single possible scenario before race days, because it throws so many challenges at us." After a weekend full of adrenaline, Armstrong typically takes 24 hours to disconnect from technology. "I usually switch my phone off," he told me of his postrace ritual. "People close to me know that I don't often answer my phone, but on the Monday after a race, it will almost certainly be on 'do not disturb.' If you can get ahold of me, I'd be massively impressed." Physically, Armstrong is in top shape; the exercise junkie planks for several hours a day just to relax. But what's become instrumental to maintaining his cool on the track is meditation practices he's adopted over the past several years. "It's something that's not so popular here in the motorsport paddock, you know, it's quite a toxic masculinity vibe," he laughed. "But we're slowly moving towards the meditation route. I feel like it helped me to make better decisions, especially in the heat of the moment when you're driving a race car at 240 miles an hour." Here, Armstrong talks about how he plans to avoid distraction as the "emotional roller coaster" to the Indy 500 rolls on. Watching from home and watching from the track are two very different things. Nothing compares to the atmosphere with the hundreds of thousands of people that walk through the gates on race day. Everyone's there for a party. It's almost like a festival. That was my first impression. It's a family-oriented place, but there's also a lot of young people partying and just having fun. It's got everything you could ask for, this race. And then obviously to compete here, there's a lot of distraction, but it's part of the fun, isn't it? I mean, without the distraction, there is no fun. It's obviously a long couple of weeks and it's an emotional roller coaster. These cars are so finely tuned that if your car feels amazing at 10 a.m., it might feel really not good at 3 p.m. So staying calm and making the best of every situation you have is a true challenge here at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I use a lot of meditation practices, actually. I do use the app Calm occasionally. I also use Brainwaves, which is kind of similar. I actually have a meditation coach here in Indianapolis. I think I might be the only one on the grid that has a meditation coach. I am training to break the world planking record. Funnily enough, that's my rest day exercise. I'll come back from a race, and typically on Monday, I will do a long planking session for an hour or two because, frankly, it's relaxing to me. I don't really need to engage my mind. I can just sort of switch my mind off, listen to a podcast, listen to music and just stay in that position. Some people would say that I'm absolutely crazy... A plank is typically not so comfortable, but if you just lock in and you get used to it, it's very relaxing. When I'm in New Zealand, occasionally I'll eat some salmon or cheese of some sort. But here in the States, I'm pretty much 100% vegan. That's honestly not intentional. I do what feels right for my body and that's just the sort of diet I've gravitated towards. So, the milk scenario, I don't know. I think I'm contractually obliged to say that I love drinking milk. So I love drinking milk! They didn't allow me to choose almond milk, I think that was a joke that was quite frowned upon when I made it earlier this month. If I win, I'll be more than happy to pour milk over me. I like to be MIA for a day and not to think about anything motorsport for 24 hours. It's not exactly a conscious decision to do that. It's just something that I've become accustomed to doing. And I'm addicted to doing exercise. So that clears my mind and I'm able to focus on the next weekend. I'm going to say partying. I'm not going to get fired, right? Nobody — I never call anyone. And I typically don't answer the phone. So I bustle it up inside like an unhealthy teenager. Californication is my favorite show of all time. Besides the usual spiders, snakes, I would say getting eliminated in the first round of the qualifying at IndyCar weekend. Peanut butter. I love an acai bowl. It's like a massive calorie bomb. And Whittaker's chocolate. UFOs, or just questioning our existence. Are we in a simulation or not? That's a big one. I'm horrendous at cooking. I'm horrendous at cleaning. Even though I've been living alone for the better part of 13 years, I've never managed to successfully do my washing. I'm horrendous at rugby, which is why I started motorsport. Loads of things. I'm bad at a lot more things than I'm good at. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Gabby Thomas says protein and carbs are her 'best friends.' But she makes time for gummy bears and celebratory pizza.
Gabby Thomas is known for her speed. But the three-time Olympic gold medalist credits her impressive race times to her ability to slow down. 'I think my life does move very fast, and with my job I'm constantly running very fast, but I've worked really hard to make it so that my mind is able to slow down on a day-to-day basis,' she tells me during a conversation for Yahoo Life's OT Diaries. 'I don't even listen to hype-up music before I run because it's about slowing down and being very calm mentally.' Looking back at her 200-meter victory at the 2024 Paris Olympics, I can see it: Thomas's intense concentration as she lined up against her competitors. It wasn't until she was the first to cross the finish line at 21.82 seconds that the adrenaline took over and her expression changed. So what does she do to lock in? 'Meditation and mindfulness is definitely a big part of my daily routine,' says Thomas, who spends about 10 to 15 minutes in the morning focusing on those practices. 'Incorporating it into my warm-up and into my competition warm-up is important,' she adds. 'Just taking time for myself to reset.' Thomas also says she takes advantage of any opportunity she gets to take her running shoes off. Here, she talks about her mind-body approach to her sport and where pizza and neurobiology fit into it. Thomas took home three gold medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics. (Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images) What's the longest stretch of time that you've gone without running in your career so far? That's a tough question. Probably four weeks. After a season ends, I will take a month off of running, just completely, entirely. I just don't even want to think about running. Then I might go on a jog after that. But typically, I'll take six weeks off of intense training every year. Are you doing anything else to stay active during that time? I started Pilates last year, which I do really, really like. I thought it was fun, [and] I love being in that group setting. But other than that, no. I'm, like, off. I definitely slow down a lot. Recovery is such a huge part of my training. Recovery and rest are about half of the battle. … Getting at least eight hours of sleep every night is also a big piece. You studied neurobiology at Harvard University and went on to get your master's in epidemiology at the University of Texas Health Science Center. I imagine that education plays a role in how you approach that mind-body balance. I definitely think so, yeah. My undergrad degree in neurobiology actually did help with my training a good bit because it introduced me to meditation and also introduced me to visualization, which is something I also practice before I train or compete. [It also helped] with sleep. I wrote a couple of papers on sleep during my undergrad and during my master's. [It's about] truly appreciating the importance of [sleep] not just for training at the elite level but just for life in general. I think sleep is something that we can all kind of work really hard to prioritize, and it'll impact our performance mentally and physically substantially. I think really just having an understanding of neuroplasticity and what training actually is doing for the body, both physically and mentally, and understanding how you can really change how your brain is wired if you do things through repetition. I had a deep understanding of that just through my academic studies. Do you consider how your self-care contributes to the longevity of your career? It's definitely on my radar, you know, thinking about my career and my legacy and longevity. We just had the Paris Olympics, and everyone asks about the L.A. 2028 Olympics. So it's on my mind, but I'm very much a 'focus on the now' type of person. I focus on the present. I think that's probably the most sustainable way to be in my sport; just quite literally putting one foot in front of the other and focusing on where your feet are now. It's about: What can I do to get better at the track today? What are some small things that I could do to help me be prepared for my next competition? And ultimately, if I do that every day, that'll prepare me for the next four years of my career. That way it's not quite as scary or overwhelming, and it's a really healthy way to kind of stay in the sport. Where does nutrition fit in? Fueling and food is such a huge part of my career and my training. It's a big part of my recovery as well. But balance is really important too, right? It's important for me to fuel because sprinting actually burns a lot of calories, so we're definitely starving by the end of a session. I just add a lot more to my plate, literally. That's why it felt like Cava [the Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant chain Thomas is collaborating with] was such a natural alignment to partner with just to fuel my active lifestyle. Protein and carbs are huge. Those are my best friends. Every morning I wake up, and I make a protein smoothie. After practice, I am not kidding, I always stop by Cava or order it on the way home. I've been grabbing the falafel crunch bowl, but it's whatever I'm craving, which could also be the harissa avocado bowl. And then before bed, some more protein. So it's very, very easy, and I find that when you kind of have a plan and you know what you like, it's a lot easier to stay on top of the fueling and the nutrition. But like I said, it's about balance. After a hard race or competition, I always get a pizza, so that's like my reward meal. I know when I'm going into it that if I do well, I'm going to have a pizza, and it's great. But day-to-day, it's really just prioritizing eating healthy, focusing on protein. Are there smaller things that you grab for when you're on the go? Probably protein shakes. That's what's easiest for me. When traveling, it can actually be very difficult to maintain a routine, whether it's food or sleep, whatever it is. But I do my best to stay as consistent as I can. What's nonnegotiable in that case? Hydration is huge for me. It's up there with sleep and food. Hydration and moisturizing — that's definitely it for me. It's that simple. Is it water that you're drinking most of the time? All the time, truly. I always have water on me. I'm always outside and training. And I live in Texas, so it's definitely crucial for me. I love my coffee. It's also one of the first things I do every morning and one of the first things I look forward to doing. I have used caffeine before a race, but it is not something that I feel that I need; it's not something that is in my routine now. I really do like to keep it simple. I'm not always going to have access to coffee or caffeine before I race. I'm not always going to want to [have caffeine], especially if the race is at night and I have to go to sleep after. … In our world of competition, things can be really messy, schedules can be difficult. So I like to keep things as simple as possible, just so I'm not in the habit of kind of messing up a routine. You've spoken about how beauty and fashion play a role in American women's track. What's your relationship with that on a day-to-day basis? With beauty, it starts from within, and it's kind of my guiding principle. So when you feel good, when you feel comfortable, when you feel great, it shows. It radiates through you. When you're taking care of yourself, when you're eating well, when you're managing your stress, when you're getting your sleep, when you're allowing yourself that time to recover, you can really tell, and you start to glow. Also, just being comfortable with who you are, not being afraid to try a beauty trend that you feel good about. If it makes you feel good, then it's great. As far as fashion goes, I think kind of the same founding principles. I'm learning a lot about fashion in recent months. I think one thing that really just sticks out to me is just being authentic and being authentic to what you prefer, what you love and what makes you feel good. Most people are used to seeing you in your track uniform. What are you wearing off the track? Athleisure is definitely very comfortable for me. I wear it every single day because I train every single day. But if I get the chance to, I really like dressing in a very feminine and elegant way. Especially because of how much I'm wearing athleisure and how much I'm involved in sports. So I love to do that and just kind of be in my feminine side a little bit. You made it into Vogue for that very reason, which is very cool! Let's get into a few rapid-fire questions. On a day off, where can someone find you? Probably walking my dog on the trail. What is your best travel hack? If you are on a long flight and you want to sleep, bring an eye mask. An eye mask is a game changer. Go-to sweet treat? Right now I'm in a gummy phase. I have gummy worms or gummy bears every night before bed. Wellness trend that you swear by? I really do like contrast therapy — cold plunge, sauna, cold plunge, sauna. I'm also a big fan of hyperbaric chamber therapy. Binge-worthy TV show? Love on the Spectrum. Most-used phone app? Unfortunately, probably TikTok. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Gabby Thomas says protein and carbs are her 'best friends.' But she makes time for gummy bears and celebratory pizza.
Gabby Thomas is known for her speed. But the three-time Olympic gold medalist credits her impressive race times to her ability to slow down. 'I think my life does move very fast, and with my job I'm constantly running very fast, but I've worked really hard to make it so that my mind is able to slow down on a day-to-day basis,' she tells me during a conversation for Yahoo Life's OT Diaries. 'I don't even listen to hype-up music before I run because it's about slowing down and being very calm mentally.' Looking back at her 200-meter victory at the 2024 Paris Olympics, I can see it: Thomas's intense concentration as she lined up against her competitors. It wasn't until she was the first to cross the finish line at 21.82 seconds that the adrenaline took over and her expression changed. So what does she do to lock in? 'Meditation and mindfulness is definitely a big part of my daily routine,' says Thomas, who spends about 10 to 15 minutes in the morning focusing on those practices. 'Incorporating it into my warm-up and into my competition warm-up is important,' she adds. 'Just taking time for myself to reset.' Thomas also says she takes advantage of any opportunity she gets to take her running shoes off. Here, she talks about her mind-body approach to her sport and where pizza and neurobiology fit into it. Thomas took home three gold medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics. (Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images) What's the longest stretch of time that you've gone without running in your career so far? That's a tough question. Probably four weeks. After a season ends, I will take a month off of running, just completely, entirely. I just don't even want to think about running. Then I might go on a jog after that. But typically, I'll take six weeks off of intense training every year. Are you doing anything else to stay active during that time? I started Pilates last year, which I do really, really like. I thought it was fun, [and] I love being in that group setting. But other than that, no. I'm, like, off. I definitely slow down a lot. Recovery is such a huge part of my training. Recovery and rest are about half of the battle. … Getting at least eight hours of sleep every night is also a big piece. You studied neurobiology at Harvard University and went on to get your master's in epidemiology at the University of Texas Health Science Center. I imagine that education plays a role in how you approach that mind-body balance. I definitely think so, yeah. My undergrad degree in neurobiology actually did help with my training a good bit because it introduced me to meditation and also introduced me to visualization, which is something I also practice before I train or compete. [It also helped] with sleep. I wrote a couple of papers on sleep during my undergrad and during my master's. [It's about] truly appreciating the importance of [sleep] not just for training at the elite level but just for life in general. I think sleep is something that we can all kind of work really hard to prioritize, and it'll impact our performance mentally and physically substantially. I think really just having an understanding of neuroplasticity and what training actually is doing for the body, both physically and mentally, and understanding how you can really change how your brain is wired if you do things through repetition. I had a deep understanding of that just through my academic studies. Do you consider how your self-care contributes to the longevity of your career? It's definitely on my radar, you know, thinking about my career and my legacy and longevity. We just had the Paris Olympics, and everyone asks about the L.A. 2028 Olympics. So it's on my mind, but I'm very much a 'focus on the now' type of person. I focus on the present. I think that's probably the most sustainable way to be in my sport; just quite literally putting one foot in front of the other and focusing on where your feet are now. It's about: What can I do to get better at the track today? What are some small things that I could do to help me be prepared for my next competition? And ultimately, if I do that every day, that'll prepare me for the next four years of my career. That way it's not quite as scary or overwhelming, and it's a really healthy way to kind of stay in the sport. Where does nutrition fit in? Fueling and food is such a huge part of my career and my training. It's a big part of my recovery as well. But balance is really important too, right? It's important for me to fuel because sprinting actually burns a lot of calories, so we're definitely starving by the end of a session. I just add a lot more to my plate, literally. That's why it felt like Cava [the Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant chain Thomas is collaborating with] was such a natural alignment to partner with just to fuel my active lifestyle. Protein and carbs are huge. Those are my best friends. Every morning I wake up, and I make a protein smoothie. After practice, I am not kidding, I always stop by Cava or order it on the way home. I've been grabbing the falafel crunch bowl, but it's whatever I'm craving, which could also be the harissa avocado bowl. And then before bed, some more protein. So it's very, very easy, and I find that when you kind of have a plan and you know what you like, it's a lot easier to stay on top of the fueling and the nutrition. But like I said, it's about balance. After a hard race or competition, I always get a pizza, so that's like my reward meal. I know when I'm going into it that if I do well, I'm going to have a pizza, and it's great. But day-to-day, it's really just prioritizing eating healthy, focusing on protein. Are there smaller things that you grab for when you're on the go? Probably protein shakes. That's what's easiest for me. When traveling, it can actually be very difficult to maintain a routine, whether it's food or sleep, whatever it is. But I do my best to stay as consistent as I can. What's nonnegotiable in that case? Hydration is huge for me. It's up there with sleep and food. Hydration and moisturizing — that's definitely it for me. It's that simple. Is it water that you're drinking most of the time? All the time, truly. I always have water on me. I'm always outside and training. And I live in Texas, so it's definitely crucial for me. I love my coffee. It's also one of the first things I do every morning and one of the first things I look forward to doing. I have used caffeine before a race, but it is not something that I feel that I need; it's not something that is in my routine now. I really do like to keep it simple. I'm not always going to have access to coffee or caffeine before I race. I'm not always going to want to [have caffeine], especially if the race is at night and I have to go to sleep after. … In our world of competition, things can be really messy, schedules can be difficult. So I like to keep things as simple as possible, just so I'm not in the habit of kind of messing up a routine. You've spoken about how beauty and fashion play a role in American women's track. What's your relationship with that on a day-to-day basis? With beauty, it starts from within, and it's kind of my guiding principle. So when you feel good, when you feel comfortable, when you feel great, it shows. It radiates through you. When you're taking care of yourself, when you're eating well, when you're managing your stress, when you're getting your sleep, when you're allowing yourself that time to recover, you can really tell, and you start to glow. Also, just being comfortable with who you are, not being afraid to try a beauty trend that you feel good about. If it makes you feel good, then it's great. As far as fashion goes, I think kind of the same founding principles. I'm learning a lot about fashion in recent months. I think one thing that really just sticks out to me is just being authentic and being authentic to what you prefer, what you love and what makes you feel good. Most people are used to seeing you in your track uniform. What are you wearing off the track? Athleisure is definitely very comfortable for me. I wear it every single day because I train every single day. But if I get the chance to, I really like dressing in a very feminine and elegant way. Especially because of how much I'm wearing athleisure and how much I'm involved in sports. So I love to do that and just kind of be in my feminine side a little bit. You made it into Vogue for that very reason, which is very cool! Let's get into a few rapid-fire questions. On a day off, where can someone find you? Probably walking my dog on the trail. What is your best travel hack? If you are on a long flight and you want to sleep, bring an eye mask. An eye mask is a game changer. Go-to sweet treat? Right now I'm in a gummy phase. I have gummy worms or gummy bears every night before bed. Wellness trend that you swear by? I really do like contrast therapy — cold plunge, sauna, cold plunge, sauna. I'm also a big fan of hyperbaric chamber therapy. Binge-worthy TV show? Love on the Spectrum. Most-used phone app? Unfortunately, probably TikTok. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Ben Shelton is a tennis star — but he's 'not a robot.' Why he loves naps, doing nothing and those little cookies they give you on the plane.
Ben Shelton doesn't get much time off. The tennis star tells me the longest he's gone without touching a tennis racket is 10 days, and he's only had one six-week break between competitions since going pro in 2022. Of course, all that hard work has paid off — at 22, he's already won two singles titles on the ATP Tour and reached two Grand Slam men's semifinals. But don't let his intensity on the court fool you; Shelton prefers to keep things low-key. And when he does get a rare break, you'll probably find him hanging out on his couch with friends. As he shares in our conversation for Yahoo Life's OT Diaries, he's happiest 'pretty much doing absolutely nothing.' That might not be what you'd expect to hear from someone currently ranked No. 13 in the world, but it makes sense for a young athlete playing the long game. And it's not like he's missing out on anything. 'I feel like I do enough throughout the year, whether it's seeing things, going to cool places, trying restaurants or being in different cities,' Shelton explains. 'So the last thing I'm doing [when I'm off] is traveling. I try to leave the house as little as possible.' For him, the secret to success is knowing when to slow down. Here, Shelton opens up about finding balance and normalcy in a high-speed sport. There's a lot of adrenaline that goes into your sport. How do you come down from that? I like taking naps. I think that naps help a lot with mental relaxation and recovery. I'll even take one before matches sometimes, but I think they're great on off days. Being able to kind of detach from the sport and not be thinking about tennis all the time is really important to me. [So is] being able to go out and do other things, or just be with people who aren't tennis players. Is there anything that you do to try to maintain a routine? I'm probably not as precise as some professional athletes. I think I do a pretty good job of getting my sleep, getting rest and eating healthy. But my life also has balance. I'm not a robot, so I'm not, like, going to sleep at 9 every night to wake up at 7. I'm a normal kid, so sometimes it's 2 a.m. [that I'm going to sleep] and sometimes it's midnight. Usually before a match, it's a little bit earlier. But I like to think of myself as more of a normal person, and my routine isn't quite so exact. Do you think being young allows you to do that? Yeah, maybe. Maybe it's something I'll have to adjust as I get older. I've heard about guys who have gone their whole career being a bit more laid-back with their routine, and that's worked for them. And some guys have had to make changes and sacrifices to keep it going. But everyone's different; I'm just kind of going one day at a time and seeing what happens. I assume your supplement regimen is something you keep up with since you've partnered with Thorne. What does that look like? It's not always exactly the same, but a few of my constants are creatine, beta-alanine and magnesium bisglycinate. Those three help with my performance and sleep, but also focus. So I think I'm hitting all the bases that I need with that group of supplements. I've started taking the daily electrolytes — it definitely helps me to drink more water when I mix it with something that tastes good and is good for you. I love the watermelon flavor, so I've probably been drinking a little bit too much of that. ... I don't know if you can have too much. I don't measure my liquid intake or anything like that. I go more by feel, but I'm more specific with my routine on match day. Are you a coffee drinker at all? I'm not a 'need caffeine to function' type of person, and a lot of days I won't have it, but sometimes I'll drink it in the morning. That's usually for an earlier match day if I need to get the engine going a little bit earlier than I wanted to. If you're steering clear of the tennis court on your days off, what exercises are you doing instead? I love playing basketball, pickup games or any other sports like throwing a football. I like being in the gym, although that's technically part of my training. It's interesting because I was a kid who was very, very active and always doing things. So it's kind of surprising to me that now that it's my job to be active all the time, I find myself walking a little slower when I'm not training and doing a little bit less physical activity. Your body definitely needs that break. Have you tried any recovery techniques that you swear by? I think that cooling down and stretching is important, but I'm not somebody who's like, 'Oh, you have to do cupping ... every day.' I think every situation requires something different, and I kind of go off of that rather than having one thing that I live by. I have a physio who works on me pretty much at the end of every day and other people around me that I trust in those areas, recovery and fitness. I just listen to them. I've always liked what I like. I trust what I like. I'm not always looking for the latest and greatest. I love that you keep it real. Let's finish off with some rapid-fire questions. Do you prefer a home-cooked meal or takeout? Home-cooked meal. What are you snacking on when you're traveling? I try not to eat on planes that much. I'm usually just drinking water. But those Biscoff cookies that they give you on Delta flights ... those are my all-time favorite. If you had to choose one wellness treatment, what would it be? I'm gonna go with an ice bath. Binge-worthy TV show? Entourage is my No. 1. Most-used phone app? I would say either FaceTime or Instagram. And finally, favorite sweet treat? I haven't been eating desserts a lot lately, but I like ice cream a lot. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
