When Travis Kelce returns to the football field this September, it’ll be the sharpest version of the Kansas City Chiefs star we have ever seen.

That is, as long as Taylor Swift keeps his hands out the cookie jar!

After walking back from the brink of retirement following February’s Super Bowl heartbreak, Kelce, 35, is laser focused on leading the Chiefs to glory once again in what will likely be his final season in the NFL.

In summer 2024, it was a very different story. 

Following the Chief’s Super Bowl triumph against the San Francisco 49ers, it’s fair to say that Kelce lived it large – enjoying the partying and other excesses deserving of a champion.

With his superstar girlfriend’s worldwide Eras Tour in full flow, Kelce embraced the jet-setting – even joining Swift, 35, on stage at one of her sold-out London shows last June.

But when that hedonism was followed by a season that ended in disappointment this year, some critics couldn’t help but ask if it had all been a distraction.

One thing’s for certain: those naysayers need not fear a repeat.

Travis Kelce is making sure he is in the best shape possible for the 2025 NFL season

He was spotted with girlfriend Taylor Swift for the first time in months over the weekend

In summer 2024, it was a very different story. Following the Chief’s Super Bowl triumph against the San Francisco 49ers (pictured), it’s fair to say that Kelce lived it large – enjoying the partying and other excesses deserving of a champion.

For a source close to Kelce has exclusively revealed to the Daily Mail that the NFL star is having a ‘Cruel Summer’ by his own choosing.

It means drinking less and even turning down his favorite treats – Swift’s home-made pop tarts.

‘Travis plans to be in the best shape of his life for this upcoming season,’ the insider told Daily Mail. ‘He’s going to be treating this as his last, as it very well might be.

‘Sometimes throughout the last campaign he wasn’t at his peak, physically. But he is an elite athlete and though he didn’t have his best year, he is coming into this one with a vendetta, a goal to be in the best shape of his life and play like a man possessed.’

The source continued: ‘Taylor is an amazing cook, and she is really great at desserts. Travis doesn’t have the most healthy diet in the world but, these days, while he might sneak in one of her pop tarts, it is not in excess.

‘And it’s the same when it comes to drinking. He isn’t partying, he’s getting ready for the season. If there are drinks nearby, he isn’t going to stay away but it is never a must have with dinner or outings. Nor is he going out on his porch and throwing back a couple.’

Of course, if the hard work pays off – in the form of another Super Bowl victory next year – it will all have been worth it. 

‘If they get back to the promised land, then you’ll see him partying,’ our insider said.

Read MoreEXCLUSIVE Taylor’s ‘playful’ nights with Travis and why mornings in bed mean ‘they get a workout in together’

And so far, it seems the hard graft is starting show effect. Pictures of Kelce and Swift enjoying a Mother’s Day lunch in Philadelphia on Sunday showed the NFL star sporting an unusually svelte figure for the offseason.

Then, on Monday, he walked the red carpet alone at an Amazon MGM Studios Upfront event in New York, before telling reporters he has lost some 25 lbs.

The Daily Mail understands that he has been ‘training like crazy’.

He also has a personal chef, Kumar Ferguson, and a trainer outside of the Chiefs that he has worked with his entire career in Andrew Spruill.

Kelce is said to spend so much time with both men that Swift has even become close to them. They attended the surprise ‘Eras Tour’ birthday party Kelce threw for his girlfriend last December.

Certainly, this keen focus on fitness has been made easier by the fact that Swift is enjoying her own downtime, following the conclusion of her mammoth 21-month, 149-show tour last year.

‘They are just both decompressing from that go-go-go style of life and enjoying days together with as little stress as possible,’ our insider said.

Part of Kelce’s offseason plan has been for him and Swift to stay away from the spotlight 

Kelce and Swift pictured alongside his personal trainer, Andrew Spruill, last December 

Earlier this month, another impeccably placed source gave the Daily Mail a tantalizing insight into the couple’s quiet private life.

The insider described romantic dinners at home – cooked by foodie Swift – as well as bedtime cuddles in their sweatpants and playtime with the singer’s beloved pet cats.

As for activities of the extra-curricular variety, we learned that Kelce gives Swift mᴀssages, and that she ‘likes the fact that he is like a big, brawny guy.’

‘They get their own workouts in together just as other young couples in love do,’ the source teased. ‘She finds him the most romantic man she has ever been with, and he is all about making her comfortable.’ 

The prolonged period of quietude has no doubt been welcome amid the ongoing saga with with Kelce and Swift’s (former) best friends, Blake Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds.

Lively’s rancorous legal fight with her It Ends With Us co-star Justin Baldoni has seen Swift’s name unwantedly printed in legal documents.

And, on Friday, the singer was dramatically subpoenaed as a witness in the case.

Up until this year, Swift counted Lively, 37, among her closest confidantes. They own homes just a stone’s throw away from each other in New York’s trendy Tribeca neighborhood, and Swift is godmother to Lively’s three daughters. 

But the mood has since soured beyond repair, with Swift now reportedly feeling ‘exploited’ and used by her one-time bestie.

Read MoreEXCLUSIVE Taylor Swift believes Blake Lively ‘exploited’ her: One betrayal has ‘completely floored’ her

Indeed, it surprised no one when, in a show of solidarity, Kelce unfollowed Ryan Reynolds on Instagram last month.

It is understood that the two couples are no longer on speaking terms.

But now Kelce’s attention is turned squarely to the new season.

On Wednesday night, the NFL will release its 2025 game schedule, with the Chiefs expected to bring the curtain up in Sao Paulo, Brazil, against the Los Angeles Chargers on September 5.

Before that, Kelce will be competing in a celebrity golf tournament in Tahoe in early July – alongside his brother Jason, 37.

Then in late July, Happy Gilmore 2 drops. Kelce has a cameo appearance alongside Adam Sandler.

‘Right now, it is important to Travis get as much time with Taylor as possible,’ our source said. ‘She has been the best for his total wellbeing. He is extremely happy with life right now and that is the headspace he wants to be in – it is going to help immensely with getting ready for the NFL season to come.’