Eight ways to get healthy that don't involve cutting out any food groups.

Ellyse Perry is an Australian sports superstar.

At sixteen, she was playing cricket AND soccer at the country’s highest level.

Ten years have passed since that life-changing year. But even now, her career continues to soar and after all those years competing with the very best of the world’s athletes, Ellyse has got to know a few things about getting motivated.

1. Move your butt

Get started. “It’s never as bad as you think it’s going to be.”

Ellyse tells us how she does it all on the latest episode of I Don’t Know How She Does It:

“On days when you’re not feeling like you don’t have the energy or you’d rather be somewhere else, once you get moving and you’re surrounded by your team mates, something pulls you out of that rut.

“The hardest thing is getting started”.

2. Play in a team

It doesn’t matter how big your team is – the message is simple. Stop working out alone. Find a gym buddy or a walking partner. It’s good for your body and even better for your brain.

“For me, it’s that shared experience, working together to try and achieve something but whether you achieve it or not, you’re going through it with other people and you can celebrate together or you can commiserate together”.

3. Eat simply

So much of Ellyse’s health is based on “knowing where your food comes from” and her food motto is basic, “fresh and simple. I try and leave the technical things for when you go out for a nice dinner”.

But she does make a little room for her biggest vice. Ice cream.

4. Do what makes you feel good

You’ll never find the time to exercise if you don’t find a routine that you love … or at least enjoy.

“Once I finished school [and got] my drivers' license I did [all the driving to training and games] myself, I just loved doing it. When you love doing something, it’s always easy to find the time to do it.”

5. Make time for love

Ellyse and her husband, Matt Toomua have been married for about a year now after meeting at Qantas Club. And even though their schedules are packed, they still find time for each other.

A post shared by Ellyse Perry (@ellyseperry) on Apr 10, 2016 at 4:27am PDT

“We always look for gaps in our schedule but … we’re also keen to make the most of the opportunities we have with sport because I guess we’re not sure how long our bodies will hold out for, it’s a limited time we will play at a high level.

But when they’re home, it’s less red-carpets and more chilling at home. “We’re definitely more of a hanging on the couch couple. Or outdoorsy. We just got a puppy so we take her for long walks … we enjoy going to the beach”.

6. Get a supportive crew

Ellyse credits so much of her success to her parents who ferried her between soccer and cricket training, games and everything else in between. Without them, she knows she wouldn’t be huge kicking goals. But their support wasn’t just about what happened on the field.

A post shared by Ellyse Perry (@ellyseperry) on Jan 27, 2017 at 11:29pm PST

“They still took me along to drum lessons and I learnt to play the keyboard as well. I think that they were keen to give myself and my brother every opportunity to try things out and keep doing things we enjoy doing.

“My parents were very selfless. Mum worked really long days but still came home … [and would] take us to the park.

7. Don’t stop

Ellyse says that too often women stop playing sport or soften their training schedule because they’ve left school or ‘grown up’. To relax, Ellyse gets moving.

“[In my] time off I just enjoy being active. Things that aren’t soccer or cricket related … I have to be active every day or I don’t feel great”.

8. The harder you train, the luckier you get.

And it’s a motto (instilled in her by her father from a very young age) that certainly rings true for Ellyse.

You can follow Alissa Warren on Twitter and Instagram @alissawarren.

Listen to the full episode of I Don't Know How She Does it with Ellyse here:

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