drive when I need it, and the mental strength I need when Im racing.Taking It All InThe four-year Olympic cycle brings with it so much pressure. But this is my third Olympics; Im ready to go and I just cant wait to compete.I know what to expect now. It gets crazy before an Olympics but I can just be

SAN JOSE, Calif. Roy Oswalt Jersey . -- The girls will come in, often wide-eyed and eager, to get a feel for what the typical day of an elite gymnast looks like. After watching three-time Olympic medalist Aly Raisman make her way through another energy-sapping, mettle-testing, soul-draining workout, those same girls who dream of following in Raismans footsteps often leave in tears.I feel bad that Im supposed to be inspiring them and they dont even want to do it anymore, Raisman said. I think people are surprised at how hard it is.Six hours a day. Six days a week. Week after week. Year after year. Usually for as long as their bodies -- not to mention their brains -- can take it.Raisman can joke about it now that shes on the other side of it. Her spot on a second Olympic team is all but assured when national team coordinator Martha Karolyi announces the five-woman squad late Sunday night. That giddy moment, however, will be quickly tempered by the reality that the most challenging four weeks of their careers await. Time off between now and the opening ceremonies in Rio de Janeiro will be scarce, if it exists at all.The Grind is a rite of passage in the powerhouse U.S. womens program, one designed to end with tearful hugs on the podium with gold medals draped around their necks as The Star-Spangled Banner plays. Its a bid for glory that comes with an inherent risk as Karolyi and the coaching staff grapple with the question of how much is too much.Its a fine line Karolyi believes she has found a way to straddle effectively while building a dynasty that hasnt lost a major international competition in eight years. She is unapologetic in her approach, one that places a higher emphasis on execution than repetition. During competition days the Americans are almost always done with their warm-ups first, part of Karolyis directive to get it right and get out of there.Mentally you will be tired, but physically you are doing less when youre getting closer, then you can avoid overtraining, Karolyi said.If anything, Karolyi appears to have mellowed as she nears retirement. Olympic champion Mary Lou Retton remembers throwing 70 vaults a day while training under Karolyi and her husband Bela before the 1984 Games. Back then there were no extra mats to help pad the landings to take some of the pressure off their joints, an added layer of protection that is standard today.I hit that (gold-medal winning) vault when I had to, Retton said with a laugh while pointing out that at 48 shes already had both hips replaced. They train smarter and more efficient. Im pretty beat up.At this point in the Olympic cycle, healthy is a relative term. When the 2012 Olympic team arrived in London, reigning world champion Jordyn Wieber was dealing with stress fractures in her right leg. While the adrenaline took over during competition, she spent the majority of her down time in treatment and limited her practice routines. Though Wieber helped the Fierce Five roll to gold, she also failed to qualify for the all-around final, finishing as the third American behind Raisman and Gabby Douglas.Now retired and serving as a volunteer assistant at UCLA (where shes also a student), Wieber doesnt believe she was overworked, calling her injury inevitable after thousands of hours in the gym. The severity of the pain didnt ramp up until the team arrived in London. With a lifetime goal finally in sight, Wieber bit her cheek and pressed forward.Everybody was banged up at the Olympics, she said. Im on the Olympic team already. Im not going to give that up.Its a mindset that can place Karolyi and her staff in a difficult position, particularly when it comes to teenagers who will likely have just one shot at their sports biggest stage.Coaching gymnastics is such a small part of it, said Kim Zmeskal Burdette, who coaches national team member Ragan Smith. Its reading their emotions, reading their body language. Are they just frustrated with this skill or is their body not functioning? Its hard.Zmeskal Burdette would know. The 1991 world champion acknowledges she was extremely intimidated to speak up during her career, concerned any sign of weakness would damage her standing. While making a comeback in the late 90s, she ignored the throbbing in her shoulder -- throbbing that eventually led to surgery -- out of fear of getting passed up.If I say something, I dont get to do bars, she said. I dont want to not do bars. My friends are going to do bars. Theyre going to get better at bars. Im going to be stressed that Im not doing bars. It kind of happens naturally.Every single athlete at Olympic Trials has at some point been pushed to exhaustion at her home gym far away from Karolyis watchful eyes. Raisman estimates shes done her boundary-pushing floor exercise 8 million times, which in her mind is only a slight exaggeration. There have been days shell peel herself off the floor to go home and her father will need to pick her up because she cant muster the energy to get behind the wheel.I think people always say we train so much, but the system works, Raisman said. You kind of have to push yourself to the point where you feel you can do your routine in your sleep. ... Im not saying its easy or its fun. Its fun now that Ive put in the work and its all coming together. Brad Lidge Jersey . Shot outdoors against the stunning backdrop of Banff, Alta., the networks 30-minute original production airs tonight at 8pm et/5pm pt on TSN2. The four All-Star teams will play for $100,000 in prize money during TSNs annual skins game, airing live this weekend on TSN from The Fenlands Banff Recreation Centre. Lance Berkman Jersey . Its the second straight game Bell has scored in extra time for Kelowna, which beat the Brandon Wheat Kings 6-5 on Friday, and he now has four game-winning goals on the season. http://www.customastrosjersey.com/custom...arge-1176y.html . Jason Zucker and Matt Cooke also scored for Minnesota, which has won five of six. Kuemper made five saves in the first, nine in the second, and nine in the third. The rookies best save came with 2:17 left in the third period when he denied former Wild forward Matt Cullen from just outside of the crease on the right side. In her first column for ESPN, Australian Olympian Emily Seebohm reflects on the experiences of the London Olympics, including her silver medal in the 100m backstroke, and the important lessons she learned there and at the 2015 world championships in Kazan that have her poised to race for gold in Rio de Janeiro.Four years ago, I was fast enough to win gold in the 100m backstroke at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.The trouble was, I swam a gold-winning time in my heat before touching the wall some 0.45 seconds slower in the final.Its a lesson Im determined to learn from at the Rio Games.Failing to win gold at London was really tough. At the time, I set my sights on gold and nothing else; that was all I wanted. If I didnt get that gold, it wasnt good enough. But I have another chance now. After four long years featuring thousands of hours of following that thin black line, I can finally make amends.The major lesson I took from London was the need to peak at the right time during an Olympics campaign. I cant go out and swim my fastest race in the heats again. I am so determined to get faster from the heats to the semis and then the final; thats something I didnt do in London, and its an area I can improve in.Race Smarter, Not HarderMy coach David Lush says I have to go out easier -- not easy, but easier -- as I sometimes go too hard and then it hurts me at the back-end if I die a bit because Ive worked so much harder going out. If I work smarter and go out a bit easier, then Im able to bring it home much more strongly.But its hard, because you want it so badly and you push yourself so much early; but it can end up hurting you when you need that reserve energy at the end and youve got nothing left to give.Relaxation Can Deliver ResultsI still love racing and I really enjoy big events like the Olympic Games, even more now than when I was younger. Before, it was daunting to go out and race against the rest of the world; but now I go out there feeling so much more confident inside myself because I know I can do it, and I dont have to over-think things.In fact, Ive never felt more relaxed at a major meet than at last years world championships in Kazan, Russia, where I won the 100m-200m double. It was a fantastic result and I know if I can go into this Olympics with the same mindset, Ive got some great results up my sleeve.I think, having done so well in Kazan, it means theres less pressure on me because I have that much more cconfidence now. Cheap Custom Astros Jersey. That confidence gives me extra drive when I need it, and the mental strength I need when Im racing.Taking It All InThe four-year Olympic cycle brings with it so much pressure. But this is my third Olympics; Im ready to go and I just cant wait to compete.I know what to expect now. It gets crazy before an Olympics but I can just be in Rio and have fun and enjoy it.I need to take what I learned in Kazan into Rio and enjoy the experience. Its over so quickly and its only on every for years, so you have to enjoy it. And Im confident I can do better and improve from London.Im Taking Nothing For GrantedI never like to guess what may happen when the Games finally get underway. Who knows what will happen? Maybe Ill get sick or injured before I can start racing; I mean, Ive dislocated my kneecap riding a horse before, so anything can happen!But fingers crossed nothing like that happens. Ive worked so hard to get to this position. Ive made sure Ive put 100 percent in during every training session; if I didnt put in everything I had, then its a wasted session.So Im feeling confident both from a physical and mental sense; Ive got some brilliant support from my family -- mum, dad and two of my brothers will be in Rio, which will be amazing -- my coach, my boyfriend Mitch Larkin and so many others.Rivals On NoticeHonestly, I dont pay too much attention to my rivals most of the time. I do watch their trials to see who makes the teams but for me, when I line up against them, I often dont know a lot about whos up on the blocks with me.Of course, Ill know a few from having raced against them in the past, but you get so many surprises during an Olympic year and its hard to pick wholl be a winner in each race. So I dont get too worked up about anyone who may or may not be in my races.Saying that, though, I know that my Australian teammates Madi Wilson and Belinda Hocking, in the 100 metres and 200 metres respectively, are very strong.Outside my teammates, I think my biggest threat will be Denmarks Mie Nielsen. In previous years, shes flown out of the blocks with a fantastic first 50 but lost a bit of power in the back-end of a race; Im sure shes worked really hard to rectify that.Therell be plenty of quality contenders at Rio, but Ive picked Mie as my major threat outside the Aussies. ' ' '