One things guys have to remember is consistency... You can't make up for three years of eating poorly in just one workout.
Apolo Ohno
It's about having an active lifestyle, staying healthy, and making the right decisions. Life is about balance. Not everybody wants to run a marathon, but we could all start working out and being active, whether you walk to work or take an extra flight of stairs.
We all naturally want to become successful... we also want to take shortcuts. And it's easy to do so, but you can never take away the effort of hard work and discipline and sacrifice.
My dad's great. He's my biggest supporter. He's always told me that whatever I choose to do, I can do it. I just gotta put my mind to it.
It is not up to me whether I win or lose. Ultimately, this might not be my day. And it is that philosophy towards sports, something that I really truly live by. I am emotional. I want to win. I am hungry. I am a competitor. I have that fire. But deep down, I truly enjoy the art of competing so much more than the result.
I tend to build bulk and muscle easily, and running seems to make sure I stay kind of stringy, if that makes sense.
I had a ton of energy, ran around like crazy - more than a handful for my dad. I was crazy. Dad barely handled it. I was never diagnosed ADHD or anything like that, but I'm pretty sure I had it when I was younger. It's the only thing that would explain me getting into trouble all the time.
I never had one day that I didn't want to be on the ice, because I always had an objective for that day. I had a rigorous plan and schedule in place that I had to adhere to. It was a step-by-step process of slowly but surely inching toward the Olympic Games and using every day as a series of goals to be accomplished.
My 'go to' workout is called the Asylum from Beach Body. It's intense training with lots of intervals, core work. It's hard! I travel a lot, so I can take it on the road with me and do it in a hotel room.
As seemingly impossible as it may seem of having zero regrets, when I look at my life now and all the mistakes I've made, all the bad decisions I've made, all the things I could have done differently or done more in, I don't think I would have changed anything.
I am a believer in nutrient timing and supplementation, through 8Zone. I love eggs, apples, wild fish, leafy greens, brown rice, pasta, oatmeal, home grown Washington Potatoes, and cooking with coconut and olive oils.
Broadcasting is definitely in my cards for the future, and I'm determined to work hard at it - to perfect it and create my style and niche.
I don't have great running technique, but I like to run. I've heard from countless people that the last six miles of the marathon is all mental. But what better city to have this in than New York City where there are millions of people there supporting you?
I have a scar on my left thigh, kind of almost near my knee. I essentially fell in the 2002 Olympics and when I hit the wall - because of the impact - my right leg kind of came in at like a knife-type angle and stabbed my leg with my own skate blade.
All the suits I buy have to be tailored, no matter what. But it's not just because of my height; it's because I've been skating for so long. My waist is very small, but my legs are just huge. Most really nice suit makers are Italian, and usually they make suit pants for Italian men. I'm like, 'Those Italians must have pretty skinny legs.'
I've always liked game shows - the competitive aspect and the character-driven personalities you see.
My mantra has always been to have zero regrets in life. Everything I do at one speed, I go all-out.
On the ice, if I slow down, I can coast behind somebody for a couple of laps. If I slow down on the run, it'll turn into a walk.
It's just a goatee. That sounds kind of weird. A soul patch? I don't know how 'soul' it is.
I wanted to play football or be a boxer, but my dad didn't want that because of all the impact. But in 1992 I was watching short track, and it was obscure, but they looked like superheroes in their tight outfits, and I thought it was amazing. I wanted to do that. I made the national team at 14.
I believe my father has and always will be the strongest influence in my life, as he has guided me on many paths.
Who cares if somebody dances better? Doing my very best is rewarding internally.
Vancouver is an amazing city and luckily, growing up in the Seattle area, I was able to immerse myself into the culture at a young age, traveling back and forth across the border for skating competitions as a youngster.
When you reach that competing point, when you reach that time when the gun is about to go off, everyone's level is pretty much the same. The one thing that's going to separate you from everybody else is how you deal with those pressures, how you stay relaxed.
Japan, not only a mega-busy city that thrives on electronics and efficiency, actually has an almost sacred appreciation of nature. One must travel outside of Tokyo to truly experience the 'old Japan' and more importantly feel these aspects of Japanese culture.
Being a competitor, you always believe you can come back. I'll be up at 3 in the morning watching World Cup races in my hotel whether I'm in Asia on a business trip or in New York City and have to get up in 2 hours.
I rolled the second car that I ever owned, a Toyota 4 Runner. This was winter in Colorado, two weeks before the 2002 Olympic trials. I was driving in the outside lane, and my rear tire caught some black ice, and we totally turned sideways to the point where we were heading right toward the median.
I love to shop. Clothes, electronics, and I love jewelry, especially yellow gold.
I could never focus on my upper body as a skater, so I'm enjoying having symmetrical upper and lower body muscle.
U.S. Speedskating has been riddled with problems since when I started my career, and we were always able to look past that. When it came down to performing on the ice, regardless of funding issues, we were always able to make it happen. And that's what it's all about.
My first car was a Toyota 4Runner when I was 17. I paid for it myself. I was very happy.
Do I feel any pressure as the most decorated Winter Olympian in American history? None at all. The only pressures that I know I face are those of how to pay it forward: How can I continually make a positive impact in people's lives, help others achieve their dreams, create their own Olympic mindset, creating champions within themselves?
It starts with your diet and then to your exercise... you have to make the right decisions as a consumer and learn about carbs and proteins as well as watching your portion control, and from there you have to stay active as much as possible.
For me, the '60s in the automotive industry was awesome. The cars are heavy, huge, rolling works of art.
When you are at the Olympic Games, it comes down to a ten thousandth of a hair between making the next round or winning a race or getting second or third.
I wanted to go back on 'Dancing With the Stars,' I did it. One of my favorite shows is 'Hawaii Five-0.' I went on, guest starred. I wanted to be in a film, did 'Tasmanian Devils' in Vancouver. Wanted to host a show, boom, did it.
It's important to be driven and have goals. You want an independent woman who knows what she wants and isn't afraid to go after it. It's attractive to me when a woman is doing what she loves. It makes me want to know more.
With speed skating, it's like doing one-legged squats over and over again, with that one leg absorbing more than 80 percent of your weight. It takes an enormous amount of strength, and you're in such a weird position.
You'd like people to remember you for these great times on the ice. In reality, you want them to forget because you're doing something new and better.
Every Olympic athlete prepares differently. For me, I am 100 percent into the sport. And if I decide to really make a crucial career decision to say, 'This is something I want to do,' I want to leave no stone unturned in my preparation.
Olympic athletes have to find a job right after they're done competing.
The woman I'm attracted to won't be based on what I write down on paper. It's going to be what I feel.
My small experience on 'Dancing with the Stars' allowed me to slowly appreciate the Waltz and Viennese Waltz, but to see it in Vienna is something much different.
The last thing I want is for people to go through the motions in life. We're all meant to do different things, but there's a lot of opportunity for us to do some great things.
I only watch the last 40 seconds. Watching a whole marathon over time, the beginning, middle and end look very slow. I want to see action! I can't help it.
I know exactly what I'm doing on the ice, and I'm in my element.
I know that BMW is now a sponsor of the USOC - of the United States Olympic Committee - so they offer the use of their aerodynamic speed-tunnel for testing and such for the athletes, which is a great advantage. But to be honest with you, I'd rather have a free car!
Champions all get kicked when they're down.
The first question is always, 'We loved him on 'Dancing with the Stars,' we loved him in the Olympics, but can he speak English?' Yes I speak English. Yes, I can.
An Olympic pursuit really takes a full three to four years of Olympic preparation.
