Mia Hamm | Mia Hamm Commercial | Mia Hamm Timeline | • Mia Hamm Training Tips •

Check out Mia as she challenges MJ One-on-One or get some tips from Mia on how to be a better soccer player.

If you're going to play soccer, play to win. Here are Mia Hamm's tips on playing at your top level.

BEFORE Practice or Competition

Foods that Fuel - The night before you play soccer, eat a high-carbohydrate meal like spaghetti and tomato sauce, mixed vegetable and rice or a vegetable-cheese pizza.

Round it off with milk, fruit and a granola bar, and you're filling your tank with high-octane fuel.

These foods will give you the energy you need to play soccer and perform high-intensity skills like sprinting, kicking and dribbling the ball.

For best control of passes and shots, always use the inside and outside of your foot instead of your toe.

RISE & SHINE
Make sure you eat a good breakfast before hitting the soccer field. You lose much of your energy store when you're sleeping, so you'll need to fill up with a healthy breakfast.

Get off to a good start by choosing high carbohydrate foods like whole grain breads or cereals, fresh fruit or juice and low-fat milk.

GAME DAY
Cool Drinks and Quick Snacks. Pack a cooler with drinks such as Gatorade and these snacks to eat between games:

Bagel with peanut butter, jelly or light cream cheese
Banana and low-fat yogurt
Low-fat granola bar, fig bars or animal crackers
Flavored rice cakes
Mini-box of dry cereal
Fresh fruit (orange sections, small apple, grapes, banana)
Mini-box of raisins

WARMING UP
Before stretching, you may want to take an easy jog up and down the soccer field to warm up your muscles. Then begin stretching. Stretches should be slow and gradual.

COOLING DOWN
Make sure you do some cool-down stretches and exercises at the end of practice. This will increase your flexibility and help prevent injuries. As soon as you walk off the soccer field, give your body a head start and drink Gatorade to replace the fluids and energy you lost during competition.

Gatorade is a division of The Quaker Oats Company

©2000 S-VC
Gatorade and the lightning bolt are registered trademarks of Stokely-Van Camp, Inc.
Is It In You? is a trademark of Stokely - Van Camp, Inc.