Christen Press on Getting Naked for ESPN's Body Issue: "It Was Weird"

Lindsay Dolak

Updated 9 August 2016 at 12:00 pm

Credit: christenpress/Instagram

When you're World Cup Champion and Olympian soccer star Christen Press, you're used to having all eyes on you. The 27-year-old forward on the U.S. women's national soccer team is no stranger to pressure, and will be under plenty of it as she competes with her team in Rio for Olympic gold. But it seems going toe-to-toe on the soccer field under thousands of eyes can't exactly prepare one for stripping down for a fully nude magazine spread.

That's exactly what Press did when she participated in ESPN magazine's annual Body issue. The popular feature (no surprise there) has various athletes stripped naked to show off and celebrate the diversity of the human figure. This year, Press is in the company of fellow athletes like boxer Claressa Shields, WNBA star Elena Delle Donne, and wrestler Adeline Gray.

Credit: Courtesy

In a series of images, Press flaunts her extremely toned physique, which she says "looks like soccer."

"I'm 100-percent a byproduct of my sport," she tells ESPN. "I have butt muscles, thigh muscles, and then my upper body is super skinny. Every single thing about my body looks like soccer." So just how did she feel about showing off that soccer bod? "It was weird and a little nerve-wracking, but definitely fun," she tells InStyle.

Credit: Courtesy

There's no denying that Press's figure is total #fitspo, but that doesn't stop her from experiencing the occasional body insecurity. "We all have insecurities," she says. "It took me a while to learn, but we are allowed to make mistakes and have flaws. I've learned to love my body and myself over time by being a little more accepting and having grace with myself."

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