How the WNBA’s Breanna Stewart Is Staying In the Game, No Matter What Comes Her Way

Most WNBA players stay in the league for an average of 3 to 5 years—yet 2025 WNBA All-Star Breanna “Stewie” Stewart is still going strong in her ninth season. And that streak is just one aspect of her on-court success, which includes three WNBA Championships, two Kia WNBA Most Valuable Player awards, and three Olympic gold medals.

What’s the secret? “Longevity doesn’t happen by accident. You have to build for it,” she says.

That’s to say, the 30-year-old forward, Peloton’s first WNBA Ambassador, knows a little something about putting in the mental and physical work needed to keep showing up, even when weighty obstacles arise. In the last handful of years, Stewart has dealt with multiple Achilles tendon issues, including a full rupture in 2019, and a meniscus surgery in 2025. She also became a mother to two, daughter Ruby and son Theo, with her wife Marta Xargay.

What drives her forward, day after day? When you already have a full trophy case, the only option is to think bigger. Here, Stewart shares what motivates and enables her to play the long game, both on and off the court.

Training (and Recovering) with More Than Wins In Mind

At this point in her life and career, Stewart says she’s starting to look at things a little differently. For one, her training is more efficient and tailored to how she wants to move and feel on the court—“I don’t need to do everything; I need to do the right things…I train smarter, not just harder,” she says. “And motherhood shifted everything. I’m training for longevity now, for strength that supports all the roles I play, not just as a basketball player.”

From a physical POV, Stewart says her non-negotiables for staying sharp are strength work, recovery, nutrition, and sleep. “I’m big on consistency,” she says. That includes plenty of Peloton’s HIIT & Hills Rides, Climb Rides, and “Tunde everything,” which Stewart swears by for maintaining the foundational strength and skills that supercharge her athletic performance, but also help her move confidently through everyday life.  

And while remaining strong and fit is undeniably important, in some ways, the physical training pales in comparison to the mental game—especially when you’re sidelined with an injury.

“Injuries force you to slow down and listen to your body in a different way,” she says. “I’ve learned that progress isn’t always linear and that patience is part of the process. Now, I’m more proactive with how I take care of myself.”

Community As Self-Care

For elite athletes, mental health and resilience are often seen as solitary ventures, but taking care is a team effort. In fact, Stewart credits her long playing streak to, yes, personal intention, but also her support system. “I’ve always been really strategic about my training and recovery, but I also have an incredible team around me who help me stay at the top of my game,” she says. 

Outside of basketball, she credits family time with nurturing her overall well-being and bolstering her performance on the court. “I try to be really present with my family,” she says. “My family grounds me. That time together helps me reset mentally and emotionally, which honestly makes me a better athlete.”

When challenges have presented themselves, coming back to this pillar—and the other ones she’s built up over her career—is what keeps her grounded. “I also lean into routine when things feel uncertain. That could be something as simple as a quiet morning with my kids, or writing things down to process what I’m feeling,” she says. “I don’t try to pretend I’m fine when I’m not. I’ve learned it’s okay to feel everything, but it’s also important to keep showing up. One day at a time, one possession at a time. That’s how I reset.”

Playing the Long, Long Game

It’s no small thing to maintain mental focus and motivation after playing pro for so many years. Some of it just comes naturally. “I’m super competitive—so there’s that,” Stewart says. But more than anything, what keeps her going is a deeper purpose, she says. “I want to keep pushing the game forward, especially for women. I want to show my kids what it looks like to show up, day in and day out.”

In the last year or so, Stewart co-founded and launched Unrivaled, a new 3v3 women’s basketball league, and also hosted multiple Stewie 30 Elite Camps, which bring together top high school basketball players for high-performance training and workshops. 

It’s ultimately that purpose that gets her through challenging times. “For me, it starts with perspective. I try to zoom out and remind myself why I’m doing this,” she says. “I’ve been through a lot—injuries, losses, pressure—and what’s helped most is staying connected to my ‘why.’”

Earlier in her career, “longevity” meant staying in the league as long as possible, Stewart says. “Now, it’s about impact. It’s about staying at a high level, yes, but also building something sustainable off the court…legacy, family, voice, community,” she says. “I want to leave the game better than I found it. That’s longevity to me now.”