Shawn Johnson

“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!”

“I started taking gymnastic classes when I was 3 years old.”

“People put too much emphasis on looks.”

“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.”

“I live for Pilates reformer class. I go at least three times a week. It's a great way to lengthen your muscles, stretch, and kind of relax your mind.”

“I'm pleased to say my knee feels a lot better. It's still not back to normal, and I don't know if it ever will be, but I'm learning to deal with it instead of expecting it to be like it was before.”

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

“Gymnastics taught me everything - life lessons, responsibility and discipline and respect.”

“I have a lot of expectations and a lot of goals I want to fulfill, but the biggest dream is still to make the Olympic team for London.”

“I always feel like I'm the young one, I'm the small one.”

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

“Gymnastics is so complex.”

“To have any doubt in your body is the biggest weakness an athlete can have. There are times when I physically can't get myself to go for a skill because I'm thinking, 'My knee hurts really bad.'”

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

“Something my mom taught me when I was little is that everything happens for a reason.”

“I had a constant fear, a constant little doubt in my mind: 'OK, I'm getting ready to do my standing back full on beam and I might re-tear my ACL.'”

“I didn't make it a priority, and as a result my knee didn't heal to the extent it should have.”

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

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