Looking forward to warm-weather training

Heather Mitts, a defender for the Philadelphia Charge, answers selected questions from users of WUSA.com.

Heather, what is a typical day like for you, a professional soccer player? Do you ever get time to just “hang out” outside of soccer, or is it full time? — Alex from Philadelphia, PA

Well, a typical day means waking up at 8am and hitting the training room before practice if need be, then heading to the locker room to get all geared. Then I eat some breakfast. We practice at 10 a.m. unless we have a meeting before practice. We practice for about two hours, shower, eat lunch, then watch video or discuss strategies. Sometimes we have appearances, which last about two-four hours depending where we have to drive. The days fly by pretty quickly. We always have a day off after games so that is usually our day to hang out. I have been pretty lucky to make it to some great places in downtown and experience what Philly is all about. I love it here!

I know that constantly traveling can get very tiring and boring, so what does the Charge do on trips to make things seem more interesting? — Mary Beth from Dunn, NC

Well, traveling is pretty boring at times but we try to keep ourselves busy while resting our bodies at the same time. Let’s just say that we watch a lot of movies during the season. Also our team is very close so we hang out fairly often. We try to make the most of our down time and focus on the game.

I loved watching you play at UF. Do you ever go back to Gainesville in your free time? What do plan on doing in the offseason? — Diane from Jacksonville, Fl

I am actually going back to Gainesville for the entire month of October to train with the team. I can’t wait to catch some football and soccer games and catch up with some old college buddies. I will also commentate a few soccer games during September and October. Then I will go home for the holidays. My family is going to Costa Rica for New Year’s and I can’t wait. After that I will head somewhere warm to train for pre-season in March! Can’t wait.

Heather, when did you become a defender? In other words, at what age did you finally started playing the position full time? — John from Galloway, NJ

I began playing outside back my junior year at Florida. I started my college career at outside midfield and was always very defensive minded, so the coaches decided to put me in the back. Looks like it was the best place for me after all!

Why did you all choose to play soccer? When were you interested in Soccer? — Amber from Upland, CA

I played every sport but volleyball growing up, then I pretty much became disinterested in every other sport but soccer. I guess you can say it just stole my heart.

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