Nathalie Hendrikse Handball Athlete

Nathalie is a handball champion in her home country of the Netherlands and also runs a very popular fitness blog on Instagram with 22k followers. She tells Sundried a little more about the sport of handball and talks about her love for our activewear.

Have you always been sporty?

I have always been sporty! I started to play handball when I was just four years old and I have been playing sport 4-8 times a week for more than 10 years now!

How did you first get into handball?

I got into handball because my mother played. I used to go along to support at games, but it's thanks to her that I started playing it myself.

For those who don't know, can you tell us a little more about handball?

Handball is a bit like indoor football because you use the same goals and lines. The point is to score goals but you cannot enter the circle around the goal. You may take three steps, dribble with the ball and take three steps again. Unlike in football, you don't have any defenders or strikers - you do both! Except for the goalkeeper. A match is split into two lots of thirty minutes. It's a very tough sport because a lot of physical contact is allowed!

What's your favourite thing about being an athlete?

My favourite thing about being an athlete is that I can put my energy (and I have lots of it) into something I love. I also like to inspire people to do the same and show people the quite unknown sport handball!

Talk us through your training regime.

I do 3 strength training sessions a week and four two-hour handball training sessions. I also run and see a physio to stay injury-free.

Do you follow a specific nutrition plan? If so, what/when do you eat?

Nope, I eat what I want. I'm lucky in that I love healthy food but I don't track anything and I also eat unhealthy stuff like chocolate. I know how to have a good balance.

Tell us something about you we may not know.

I studied Criminology and graduated in December!

What are your goals for the next year?

My goals are to get physically stronger and use that in my gameplay for handball. Your physique is very important, especially because it is a very physical sport and you can become easily injured.

If you could eat just one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

CHOCOLATE, no doubt.

Why work with Sundried? And what's your favourite bit of our kit?

A lot of sportswear looks nice but doesn't fit well. Sundried has a perfect fit; the leggings are high waisted and you don't have to keep pulling them up because they don't slip down. The fabric is very stretchy and would be flattering on any body type. It's an ethical brand and I love their view and way of working.