Quotes By Shawn Johnson

I usually work out 4 hours a day during the week and 5 to 6 hours on Saturday, with Sundays off.

People only see gymnastics on TV and in the Olympics at such an extreme. So it can be intimidating.

I fell in love with running, and I finally have time to do it now.

My coach, Liang Chow, had one rule while I was training for the 2008 Olympics: no skiing. I could do anything I wanted outside the gym, he said, except ski.

A comeback in gymnastics is almost impossible in itself.

Stay strong. Stand up. Have a voice.

I have a chaperone everywhere I go - my mom.

We're taught at such a young age that you can always be better and that you're never perfect and that you're never good enough.

I had surgery to repair the ACL in February 2010 and was back in the gym by June, but rushed things too quickly and ended up re-tearing my MCL in September.

I get less and less sleep these days, so when I have any down time all I want to do is sleep!

I missed being considered an athlete and having that competitive drive, and missed having something to work for every day. I'd taken two and a half years away from the sport and was out of shape. I wanted to get back to where I was in 2008.

I was at the Olympic Games winning medals and I still doubted my image. I doubted what I looked like. That's sad.

Staying healthy and consistent is paramount.

I want to go to college, obviously go to London and just kind of figure out the rest of my life.

I think about my goals. There were a lot of times in gymnastics when I really didn't want to go in and train, but you can't make it to the Olympics if you don't train!

I love lean meats like chicken, turkey. I'm obsessed with sushi and fish in general. I eat a lot of veggies and hummus.

My parents- they've been my biggest influences and supporters since day one. They teach me every day that happiness comes from within and not from something outside of your heart.

The body is an amazing machine... If you eat the right things your body will perform incredibly well!

In 2008 I didn't take it all in enough. I was so wrapped up in just the competition that I missed what was going on around me. If I am given that opportunity again to go to the Olympics and be an athlete I want to take it all in because I feel like this is my last shot and I want to feel the team spirit. I want to really live and breathe the USA.

Injury taught me I need to learn how to face challenges.

It might have been easier to retire, to say my knee couldn't handle it and let that be that. At the same time, the prospect of not being able to compete in gymnastics anymore was heartbreaking.

I've never had a teammate competing with me my whole life.

In some ways the ACL tear was a blessing. I had hesitated to return to elite gymnastics after the 2008 Olympics. I told myself I had already accomplished so much, and the road was just going to get harder if I continued.

I don't want to be all power and muscle.

I need to learn how to face challenges.

People put too much emphasis on looks.

I pay attention to my diet to be a healthier gymnast, but I'm not obsessive over it.

It's about putting in the hours and going through the paces.

After 13 years of hard landings in gymnastics, one ski run had delivered the biggest injury of my career.

A typical practice consists of practicing every event for about an hour. A lot of people assume I have private coaching, but I work out with 13 other girls at the gym!