AI Answer
As a student athlete, you started this journey because you wanted to be a top player, make it to a good school, and prove yourself to coaches and others. Your family and mentors, like your brother, mom, sister, and brother-in-law, motivated and supported you along the way. Your dedication to training and managing your time effectively has played a crucial role in your success. You also recognized the importance of maintaining a healthy diet and making sacrifices in order to achieve your goals. Your proactive approach, including reaching out to coaches and seeking advice, has been pivotal as well. It's essential to remind yourself of these reasons for starting your journey as a student athlete to stay motivated and keep working towards your goals.

Valerie Vargas | UCLA Soccer

Um , though sometimes it might not be easy . You just have to remind yourself why you started being a student athlete . You have to sacrifice and missing out on a lot of things .

Valerie Vargas | UCLA Soccer

I emailed those coaches , uh , when I was 15 up to , I believe 16 , my coaches from Galaxy Academy , some advice I would give to the next generation would definitely be stay focused , keep working hard . If you wanna be a top player , if you wanna go to ad one school , you have to just keep working and just remind yourself why you started . And honestly , if you wanna prove the coaches or college coaches , anybody , you just have to keep working .

Valerie Vargas | UCLA Soccer

Um , I knew I was unique once I started playing in a boys club team . When I was , I believe seven years old , I wouldn't say early mentors , but I would say people that really motivated me were my brother , my mom , my sister and the people who the people who brought me into personal training was , was my brother in law . He coached in he coaches in Galaxy for the goalkeeper coach and his brothers really helped me , um , start getting into personal training training .

Valerie Vargas | UCLA Soccer

Honestly , uh missing family friends , literally everything . Uh Just because you have to travel a lot , you have to have very good time management and you just have to stay dedicated to your sport . Oh , when I was , I believe 1413 years old , I started playing for the Mexico national team and we won the pre World Cup , which was a really big thing and I also won the top goal score U seventeens .

Valerie Vargas | UCLA Soccer

He coached in he coaches in Galaxy for the goalkeeper coach and his brothers really helped me , um , start getting into personal training training . I knew if I wanted to play for the next level , I would have to start having a diet just so I won't be as fatigued and have a lot of energies throughout my day . I did a lot of technical work .