Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
143. Lessons from NCAA Gymnast Taylor Christopulos (2025 Nissen-Emery Award Winner)
2 Plays14 days ago
What does it take to become one of the nation’s top collegiate gymnasts? For Taylor Christopulos, the answer is found not just in routines and repetitions—but in mindset, resilience, and service.
In this episode, Taylor, the 2025 Nissen-Emery Award winner (often called the “Heisman of Gymnastics”), shares his journey from Layton, Utah, to Nebraska’s NCAA team, his Olympic aspirations, and the unseen grind that defines success. He reflects on the importance of training the mind, pushing through the “bottom third” days, and using his platform to lift others.
Highlight Moments:
-
Why everyday decisions—like sleep, food, and mindset—are where championships are really won.
-
The power of visualizing goals and staying grounded in purpose.
-
Lessons from Nebraska’s team motto: “It Takes What It Takes.”
This episode is a must-listen for any athlete striving to win more than just games. It’s about winning your hours, your mindset, and your impact.
Principles discussed: Win the Hour, Be Resilient, Seek to Bless Not to Impress
Listen now and be inspired to keep your Eyes Up and Do the Work.
Especially for Athletes:
Website: https://e4a.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EspeciallyForAthletes/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/E4Afamily
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/especiallyforathletes/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmbWc7diAvstLMfjBL-bMMQ
Join the conversation using #TheSportlightPodcast
Credits:
Hosted by Shad Martin
Produced by IMAGINATE STUDIO
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Support the show: https://especiallyforathletes.com/podcast/
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to the Podcast and Guest
00:00:01
Speaker
Welcome to the Especially for Athletes podcast, where we explore essential principles that empower athletes to learn life's most valuable lessons through sports.
00:00:16
Speaker
Welcome to the Especially for Athletes podcast.
00:00:19
Speaker
We are so excited to be joined by Taylor Christopoulos.
00:00:25
Speaker
Taylor, how are you?
00:00:27
Speaker
Doing good.
00:00:27
Speaker
How you doing, Chad?
00:00:28
Speaker
Doing good.
00:00:29
Speaker
So you just finished your senior year at Nebraska.
00:00:33
Speaker
You're on the gymnast team there, but more importantly, I mean for us, but I'm sure your teammates and everyone at Nebraska, I just want everyone to know who we're talking about here.
00:00:44
Speaker
You're the 2025 Nissen Emery Award winner, and for those who are like me that aren't super familiar with what that award is, this is...
The Nissen Emery Award and Its Significance
00:00:56
Speaker
somewhat the equivalent of the Heisman Trophy for male gymnasts in collegiate gymnastics.
00:01:03
Speaker
Is that correct, Taylor?
00:01:04
Speaker
Yeah, yes it is.
00:01:06
Speaker
How cool, man.
00:01:07
Speaker
We are so honored.
00:01:09
Speaker
Congratulations, first of all, on that accomplishment.
00:01:13
Speaker
It's a little bit different than the Heisman.
00:01:15
Speaker
We were talking a little bit about this before, and I read up a little bit on it, but
00:01:19
Speaker
you have to, it takes in kind of the holistic view of the athlete.
00:01:24
Speaker
So it's not just performance, though I'm sure that's a huge part of it, but it also takes in to account academics and social, like your social impact and everything else.
00:01:36
Speaker
And so taking holistically all the gymnasts in the country this year
00:01:41
Speaker
you were the one chosen to win that prestigious award.
00:01:45
Speaker
So congratulations.
00:01:46
Speaker
Tell us your thoughts on winning that award and being honored in that way.
00:01:51
Speaker
Oh, it's such an honor.
00:01:52
Speaker
And as I thought back on the award and receiving it, the award doesn't just represent, I mean, it does represent me and my efforts and the work ethic that I put in throughout my collegiate career.
00:02:03
Speaker
But it represents everybody in my corner, like my team, the University of Nebraska, my family, my friends.
00:02:09
Speaker
So everybody who's helped me to get to where I am, it's a testament of them, like how they are socially, morally.
00:02:17
Speaker
And the example they set there and how they've pushed me to be at my best, it's the award represents them just as much as it represents me.
00:02:24
Speaker
Yeah, that's really cool.
00:02:27
Speaker
And I think that's true of every award, right?
00:02:30
Speaker
And it's super awesome of you to be able to take a step back and realize all the people who got you to where you are today.
Choosing Nebraska and Olympic Aspirations
00:02:37
Speaker
So you started in Layton, Utah, right?
00:02:39
Speaker
That's where you grew up.
00:02:41
Speaker
How did you go from Layton, Utah to Nebraska?
00:02:43
Speaker
Tell us about that path.
00:02:45
Speaker
Yeah, so the recruiting process for gymnastics, it's pretty similar to other sports.
00:02:49
Speaker
You can't talk to colleges until your senior year.
00:02:52
Speaker
And I was debating whether I wanted to go to college or not and compete collegiately.
00:02:55
Speaker
And I was sitting on the fence about it, and my club coach pushed me to go, and so did my dad and my family.
00:03:02
Speaker
And so I was like, okay, yeah, I'll go.
00:03:04
Speaker
I had an old teammate, Dylan King.
00:03:06
Speaker
He's from American Fork, Utah.
00:03:09
Speaker
And he'd been there for the last two years.
00:03:11
Speaker
So we had a connection.
00:03:14
Speaker
He reached out to me and I reached out to him.
00:03:17
Speaker
He really helped me along with that recruiting process and putting my name out there to the coaches.
00:03:22
Speaker
So we set up a recruiting trip.
00:03:24
Speaker
And I went to four recruiting trips.
00:03:25
Speaker
So I went to Oklahoma, Penn State, Iowa, and Nebraska.
00:03:29
Speaker
Out of those four, after all the trips, I just, out of a lot of prayer and pondering and
00:03:35
Speaker
thinking about where I need to be, decided to go to the University of Nebraska.
00:03:42
Speaker
That's cool.
00:03:43
Speaker
I served a mission in Pennsylvania and served for some time on Penn State's campus.
00:03:48
Speaker
Yeah, beautiful.
00:03:49
Speaker
Yeah, you must have really loved Nebraska, their gymnastics program to turn down Happy Valley.
00:03:55
Speaker
That is a beautiful place.
00:03:58
Speaker
Holy cow.
00:04:00
Speaker
Yeah.
00:04:01
Speaker
Awesome.
00:04:02
Speaker
That's really cool.
00:04:03
Speaker
And so we were talking a little bit before just at our show prep here, but we have the Olympics in 2028 coming up in Los Angeles.
00:04:12
Speaker
And that's kind of the pinnacle, right, of gymnastics.
00:04:16
Speaker
And you were telling me that making an Olympic team is a goal and you're going to work toward it, but it's pretty unique.
00:04:25
Speaker
Tell me about the difficulty of making an Olympic gymnastic team.
00:04:31
Speaker
Yeah.
00:04:32
Speaker
Yeah, it's hard.
00:04:33
Speaker
I mean, making any Olympic team is hard.
00:04:35
Speaker
Like, you're less than 1% of athletes, you know?
00:04:39
Speaker
Like, you're the top of the top.
00:04:41
Speaker
And it takes a perfect storm to make an Olympic team.
00:04:45
Speaker
And where I'm at right now, I don't have the difficulty right now, but I have the potential and the work ethic to get there, and I really believe that.
00:04:51
Speaker
And so just working with my coaches in Nebraska and some teammates that we're training with, and we're all pushing each other towards this goal, and...
00:05:00
Speaker
We're trying to put ourselves in the best position throughout these next three years to be prepared for that perfect storm.
00:05:06
Speaker
To see what happens.
00:05:08
Speaker
I'm really excited for the journey.
00:05:10
Speaker
It's going to be really hard, but really fun.
00:05:12
Speaker
It's going to teach me a lot.
00:05:14
Speaker
It's going to teach coaching staff a lot, teammates a lot.
00:05:17
Speaker
It's going to push us all to be at our best.
00:05:19
Speaker
I'm really excited for it.
00:05:22
Speaker
That's really cool.
00:05:24
Speaker
When you say...
00:05:25
Speaker
I don't have the difficulty yet.
00:05:27
Speaker
Like there is certain tricks with each or movements.
00:05:31
Speaker
I don't know.
00:05:33
Speaker
What's the phraseology in gymnastics?
Understanding Gymnastics Scoring and Team Selection
00:05:35
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, difficulty.
00:05:36
Speaker
So gymnastics you have, so when somebody goes up, when you watch the Olympic games and they go up and they salute to the judge, they always, they have the routine in their mind, their D score.
00:05:46
Speaker
So we call it their D score, their difficulty score.
00:05:49
Speaker
And then they go up and they perform the routine and then the judges judge them based on their E score.
00:05:54
Speaker
And so when Team USA chooses the Olympic team, they're looking at the best of the best.
00:05:59
Speaker
So they're looking at the difficulty, their D score, and then also how they perform, so their E score.
00:06:04
Speaker
So usually guys who have the highest difficulty and the best E score, and then their final score, right?
00:06:10
Speaker
That's the combine.
00:06:10
Speaker
You subtract the E score from the D score.
00:06:13
Speaker
That's usually how they choose an Olympic team.
00:06:15
Speaker
And Team USA is not messing around the squad.
00:06:17
Speaker
They're going...
00:06:18
Speaker
They've been building it up ever since 2008.
00:06:21
Speaker
Like, they're going for gold.
00:06:22
Speaker
And I was in Colorado Springs a few weeks ago, and it was so cool to be able to sit in on those meetings and to hear the head coach and the USA director and all the athletes, the Olympians from the previous games, and to hear them talk about their mindset and how they want to approach these games.
00:06:39
Speaker
And what can they do these next three years to put them in the best position to win gold?
00:06:42
Speaker
How can we beat China and Japan and Russia?
00:06:44
Speaker
Like, those are usually the top three teams.
00:06:46
Speaker
We took bronze.
00:06:49
Speaker
Team USA took bronze in 2024, so in Paris.
00:06:52
Speaker
Yeah.
00:06:53
Speaker
So these guys are, yeah, Team USA is really hungry to get out there and to make a dent in the gold medal, you know, to take it back.
00:07:01
Speaker
I think the last time they won it.
00:07:04
Speaker
I might be wrong.
00:07:05
Speaker
You can double check, but I think it was 1984.
00:07:07
Speaker
It was 1984 in LA.
00:07:09
Speaker
It was either 80 or 84.
00:07:10
Speaker
Yeah.
00:07:10
Speaker
84.
00:07:11
Speaker
Yeah.
00:07:11
Speaker
Yeah.
00:07:11
Speaker
So that, I think that was the last time team USA won gold as a team.
00:07:19
Speaker
And so they're really hungry to get out there on the home turf, and they have connections all over the world.
00:07:24
Speaker
And it sounds like a lot of teams are worried about the home field advantage, and so it'll be really interesting to see how it plays out.
00:07:31
Speaker
But yeah, Team USA is hungry to get there, and we're really pushing everybody to get there, so I'm excited for that.
00:07:37
Speaker
So when you say you need to get your difficulty score up, that means you're trying things you've never tried before, attempting to get your difficulty score up.
00:07:45
Speaker
Yeah, I got to learn new skills.
00:07:47
Speaker
Every four years, so the Federation of International Gymnastics, FIG, they come out with new rules.
00:07:53
Speaker
And so it's called the code of points.
00:07:55
Speaker
So they adjust the code of points.
00:07:57
Speaker
And we, as gymnasts, we have to adjust our gymnastics towards those code of points to be the best.
00:08:01
Speaker
And so the first two years are interesting.
00:08:04
Speaker
People are always adjusting their strategy.
00:08:06
Speaker
FIG is adjusting the code of points and the rules.
00:08:09
Speaker
And so...
00:08:10
Speaker
Yeah, we're just pushing ourselves to fit FIG's idea and vision of what gymnastics should look like and how can we fit that for ourselves to be the best and to win gold.
00:08:23
Speaker
So that's part of what
State of Collegiate Gymnastics and Revitalization Efforts
00:08:25
Speaker
you're saying.
00:08:25
Speaker
It takes the perfect storm.
00:08:26
Speaker
Like if FIG adjusts certain things, it could be toward your strengths or away from your strengths.
00:08:33
Speaker
Yeah, and we're seeing it too.
00:08:36
Speaker
So we got, there's a lot of potential within Team USA to not just take gold on the team scale, you know, but to take gold individually.
00:08:45
Speaker
all around.
00:08:46
Speaker
So yeah, it'll be awesome.
00:08:48
Speaker
And the Olympics is coming out with a new event for gymnastics.
00:08:51
Speaker
It's a mixed cup.
00:08:53
Speaker
I don't think they've dropped the rules on it yet, but kind of the idea is where the men and women, they combine and they make a team and they compete.
00:09:00
Speaker
And so it's a really fun event.
00:09:02
Speaker
They've been doing it in Germany, in Stuttgart, at the DTP Pokal Cup for a long time.
00:09:06
Speaker
And so taking it to the Olympic stage is going to be really cool.
00:09:10
Speaker
That'll be fun.
00:09:11
Speaker
Yeah, that's really cool.
00:09:12
Speaker
Gymnastics in the Olympics is always one of those things that just, man, I don't care about it for four years and this is like a typical, you know, but I mean, it's not that I don't care about it.
00:09:24
Speaker
It's like not anywhere to see it, it feels like.
00:09:26
Speaker
Yeah, and that's what we're trying to do, right?
00:09:28
Speaker
It's like in order to reach the gold medal.
00:09:31
Speaker
That's why China and Japan are so good is because they have such a big pool of people to choose from.
00:09:37
Speaker
Right now, college gymnastics is kind of dwindling in the United States, especially at the collegiate level.
00:09:42
Speaker
COVID took a big dent in that.
00:09:44
Speaker
I mean, in the 80s, there was around 300 collegiate teams, and now there's only 16, I think.
00:09:50
Speaker
16 NCAA programs, 15 or 16.
00:09:53
Speaker
Yeah, it's dropped a lot.
00:09:56
Speaker
So we're trying to build it back up.
00:09:59
Speaker
And the Olympic team in 2024, they've done a great job so far.
00:10:03
Speaker
That's awesome.
00:10:05
Speaker
Yeah.
00:10:06
Speaker
That's really cool.
00:10:07
Speaker
So, well, good luck with everything.
00:10:09
Speaker
We hope that the storm blows in your favor because that would be amazing to watch your journey on that.
00:10:16
Speaker
And we'd love to hear more.
00:10:18
Speaker
We went with Ryan White, the Olympic swimmer.
00:10:21
Speaker
Yeah.
00:10:22
Speaker
And we've had her on three or four times to talk about, or let's see, we've had Ryan on two times, but to talk about her journey throughout the Olympic season.
00:10:33
Speaker
experience and we would love to to have you on as you go throughout that journey because we're all about learning life's lessons through sports and yes and there are a lot that's good that's going to be an incredible journey as you move forward toward that so we'll have to have you on and talk the journey if that's okay that'd be awesome yeah
00:10:53
Speaker
Well, great.
00:10:54
Speaker
Well, I would love to hop in and talk about a few of our principles that
Daily Routine and Time Management for Athletes
00:10:58
Speaker
we have.
00:10:58
Speaker
And I'm really excited to talk to you about them because of the things that you've accomplished and this Nissen Emery Award.
00:11:06
Speaker
It says to us that you're the type of person that lives these principles.
00:11:12
Speaker
And the first one is win the hour.
00:11:15
Speaker
And
00:11:16
Speaker
When we say win the hour, it's like you take a look at each hour of each day.
00:11:21
Speaker
So if you're getting eight hours of sleep, there's 16 hours in a day.
00:11:25
Speaker
And if we're more intentional about those hours and say, this is what I have to do to get where I want to get with these hours and win each hour, then we're not only going to have a good, well-rounded life, but we'll accomplish way more in our life.
00:11:40
Speaker
And so we challenge our athletes to go 16-0.
00:11:46
Speaker
Maybe we could start just by giving people a flavor for what it's like to be a college gymnast at the level that you're at, hoping to become an Olympian.
00:11:57
Speaker
Can you walk us through just a typical day of Taylor Christopoulos at Nebraska?
00:12:05
Speaker
I'd love to know what it's like to be a college gymnast.
00:12:09
Speaker
Yeah, so it's adjusted definitely throughout the years.
00:12:11
Speaker
I think my freshman year was the hardest, just learning how everything works.
00:12:15
Speaker
But I wake up in the morning.
00:12:17
Speaker
Yeah, in season, it's different too than in the summer.
00:12:19
Speaker
Season when everything's ramped up.
00:12:20
Speaker
So when we're ramped up the most, I wake up in the morning.
00:12:23
Speaker
It depends on the day.
00:12:25
Speaker
I usually wake up around 9.
00:12:27
Speaker
9?
00:12:27
Speaker
Yeah.
00:12:28
Speaker
I used to wake up earlier, but honestly, I try to get as much sleep as I can for recovery.
00:12:32
Speaker
Yeah.
00:12:34
Speaker
We'll go in for rehab about two or three times a week.
00:12:36
Speaker
Get rehab treatment done on the body, usually before practice.
00:12:40
Speaker
We'll also do weight training three times a week, too.
00:12:43
Speaker
And so getting the body primed in the fall to be strong enough and the endurance is up.
00:12:49
Speaker
So when season comes, we're ready to compete at the highest level.
00:12:52
Speaker
Yeah.
00:12:54
Speaker
So we'll do that three times a week, rehab three times a week.
00:12:57
Speaker
But my day, I'd wake up at 9, I'll eat breakfast, then I'll go to rehab.
00:13:01
Speaker
Or if we have weights, we'll wake up at 6.30 and we have weights at 7, and then I'll rehab after, get breakfast.
00:13:08
Speaker
And then I study all day until practice.
00:13:10
Speaker
We train at 2 o'clock every day.
00:13:11
Speaker
Okay.
00:13:12
Speaker
So we'll study up until practice, and then 2 o'clock hits.
00:13:15
Speaker
We're usually in the gym a little bit before then, an hour or 30 minutes before, like getting mentally ready, physically.
00:13:22
Speaker
And then we train for about 4 hours.
00:13:24
Speaker
So we go 2 to 6 max.
00:13:27
Speaker
People usually aren't there until after 6.
00:13:29
Speaker
I'm not.
00:13:30
Speaker
So...
00:13:31
Speaker
We really try to maximize our time in the gym, and then after we go eat dinner, and then we try to do what homework we can until we got to go to bed, and we do it all over again the next day.
00:13:40
Speaker
What time do you go to bed?
00:13:41
Speaker
How many hours of sleep do you try to get a night?
00:13:44
Speaker
I try to get around 8.
00:13:44
Speaker
Okay.
00:13:45
Speaker
8 to 9 hours is really good for me.
00:13:49
Speaker
If I sleep too long, I'm, like, really groggy throughout the day.
00:13:52
Speaker
If I don't sleep enough, it's just not fun.
00:13:54
Speaker
Yeah, so I try to hit that.
00:13:56
Speaker
So I'll go to bed around 10.30 to 11.30 within that time frame.
00:14:00
Speaker
Yeah.
00:14:00
Speaker
And then waking up at nine, that gives you the time to fall asleep and get that eight hours in.
00:14:06
Speaker
It's amazing, Taylor, like as we've talked to elite athletes, so many of them and their coaches are prioritizing sleep.
00:14:15
Speaker
They talk a lot about sleep in relation to recovery.
00:14:19
Speaker
I don't know if you know any of the science behind it.
00:14:21
Speaker
We aren't asking for that.
00:14:22
Speaker
But just what have your coaches taught you about the importance of
The Role of Sleep and Recovery in Athletic Performance
00:14:27
Speaker
sleep?
00:14:27
Speaker
Is that something they talk about?
00:14:30
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, in club, it was honed in a lot more on me, especially with my dad.
00:14:38
Speaker
I come from a great family.
00:14:40
Speaker
I love my family to death.
00:14:42
Speaker
And my parents really instilled in us how to be mature in those instances and if we want to be at our best.
00:14:49
Speaker
There's probably one path to get there, right?
00:14:52
Speaker
Yeah.
00:14:54
Speaker
So sleep was huge.
00:14:57
Speaker
My dad's been an athlete his whole life.
00:14:59
Speaker
And I had an older brother who did gymnastics too, so that was really good to grow up and to have an older brother to where we pushed each other.
00:15:06
Speaker
to be at our best.
00:15:07
Speaker
And so, yeah, sleep with, it wasn't just sleep, right?
00:15:09
Speaker
It's food, what you're putting in your body, what you're doing outside of the gym, like your thoughts and how you're preparing mentally.
00:15:16
Speaker
Like gymnastics is this crazy physical sport, but man, going through it my whole life.
00:15:21
Speaker
And I think a lot of gymnasts would agree with me.
00:15:23
Speaker
It's more, it's more, there's more weight mentally than there is physically.
00:15:28
Speaker
We train our bodies to the point to where we can handle pretty much anything.
00:15:32
Speaker
But, man, you got to train your mind just as much as you train your body, probably even more.
00:15:37
Speaker
Like, you see Olympians go up there all the time.
00:15:39
Speaker
The best of the best in all sports, right?
00:15:42
Speaker
And they've trained physically.
00:15:43
Speaker
They're ready.
00:15:44
Speaker
But, man, their mind, it'll hold you back from doing what you really want to do.
00:15:48
Speaker
Yeah.
00:15:50
Speaker
So sleep is just as important as, you know, it's one piece to the puzzle.
00:15:55
Speaker
It's like one piece to the perfect storm.
00:15:58
Speaker
And that was our team motto this last year was it takes what it takes.
00:16:02
Speaker
It's this book that my dad, some of my sisters are big tennis players.
00:16:06
Speaker
And they had, my dad had them read it.
00:16:09
Speaker
It's called It Takes What It Takes by Trevor Moad.
00:16:11
Speaker
And he talks about if you want to be the best, there's usually only one route to get there.
00:16:18
Speaker
And are you willing to make the sacrifices to get there?
00:16:20
Speaker
So when we talk about sleep and all the hours in the gym, what you're putting in your body.
00:16:25
Speaker
Our team motto this year, it takes what it takes.
00:16:28
Speaker
That's really what we try to focus on.
00:16:29
Speaker
Like, what does it take for us as a team, as individuals to achieve our goals?
00:16:33
Speaker
So it's training your mind.
00:16:35
Speaker
to be able to handle, put you in the best position to handle stress and pressure, right?
00:16:39
Speaker
Like pressure is privilege.
00:16:41
Speaker
It's because you earned it.
00:16:42
Speaker
I don't know if you know anything about CrossFit, but Matt Frazier, he's a CrossFit athlete, one of the greatest CrossFit athletes of all time.
00:16:48
Speaker
Honestly, like mentally too, this guy, you should look him up after this if you don't know who he is, but he would always say you win in the gym when you win out of the gym.
00:16:58
Speaker
So that's really what we tried to hone in on and push is like everybody's doing the same thing in the gym.
00:17:04
Speaker
Pretty darn close, right?
00:17:06
Speaker
Like you're in the everybody's training 24 to 30 hours a week.
00:17:10
Speaker
You're training the events, right?
00:17:12
Speaker
Like you're putting the same time, but what are you doing out of the gym to set you apart?
00:17:16
Speaker
And Frazier talks a lot about that, like how that really set him apart from his competitors and the habits you have outside of the gym and how they...
00:17:25
Speaker
exponentially impact your performance in a positive light inside the gym and in competition.
00:17:32
Speaker
Yeah, that's super cool.
00:17:33
Speaker
We had Ali Gomm on
00:17:35
Speaker
Recently, she runs track at Duke.
00:17:39
Speaker
She actually talked about how everybody's a competitor.
00:17:44
Speaker
Like, this is a way of thinking.
00:17:45
Speaker
Like, everyone's competing on the field.
00:17:47
Speaker
Like, you don't get to Division I athletics without not only being athletic, but being a competitor when you're in practice, when you're on the field.
00:17:56
Speaker
Yeah.
00:17:57
Speaker
It's like a magnet to attract those type of people.
00:18:00
Speaker
But she talked about the importance of competing off the field.
00:18:04
Speaker
She said, you know, when I'm making sure I'm getting plenty of water, I'm competing.
00:18:08
Speaker
against my opponents, when I'm making sure I'm getting plenty of sleep and when I'm getting the nutrition that's good for me, like that's a way of competing, that's a way of competing with people that we often don't focus on.
00:18:21
Speaker
It's that competition in the dark is what wins the championships.
00:18:26
Speaker
I love that from, is it Scott Frazier?
00:18:28
Speaker
Is that what you said?
00:18:29
Speaker
Matt.
00:18:30
Speaker
Matt Frazier.
00:18:31
Speaker
So Matt Frazier, you win in the gym when you win out of the gym.
00:18:37
Speaker
Yeah.
00:18:37
Speaker
So super cool.
00:18:40
Speaker
That's really great.
00:18:41
Speaker
And so you've talked a little bit about this mental side of the game and training mentally.
00:18:48
Speaker
Will you tell us a little bit more about that?
00:18:50
Speaker
Because I would bet that that's something you've picked up over time.
00:18:54
Speaker
How does an athlete train a
00:18:58
Speaker
their mind, not just
Mental Resilience and Visualization in Sports
00:19:01
Speaker
their body.
00:19:01
Speaker
If gymnastics is 80% or whatever mind, and you could all do a ton of stuff and you put your body through so much in training, four hours a day, like we talked about, what is it that sets someone apart mentally that you found?
00:19:18
Speaker
I think it's important to under everywhere of the rule of thirds,
00:19:22
Speaker
Tell me about it.
00:19:23
Speaker
Yeah, tell us about it.
00:19:24
Speaker
Yeah, so the rule of thirds is a third of the time you're going to feel at your best, a third of the time you're going to feel mediocre, a third of the time you're going to feel awful.
00:19:34
Speaker
And so I think it's really important to understand that rule as you approach your mentality towards your sport and honestly towards your career, right?
00:19:46
Speaker
Like you're not always going to have good days.
00:19:49
Speaker
You're not always going to have bad days.
00:19:52
Speaker
Right.
00:19:52
Speaker
And just to take note of how you feel and where you're at is huge mentally.
00:19:58
Speaker
And so as I approach my training, I really tried to do that.
00:20:01
Speaker
My coaches at Nebraska really helped me do that and teammates as well and keeping each other accountable there with how we handle our emotions.
00:20:09
Speaker
Emotions play a big part mentally.
00:20:10
Speaker
You can really weigh yourself down or you can really build yourself up and that affects performance in and out of the gym.
00:20:17
Speaker
And so
00:20:19
Speaker
Another big thing for me mentally was visualizing.
00:20:22
Speaker
So visualizing where I'm at in my sport, my routines, how I feel, and always thinking about it, but also visualizing where I'm at outside of the gym.
00:20:32
Speaker
What are my goals?
00:20:33
Speaker
What are my dreams?
00:20:34
Speaker
What do I want to achieve?
00:20:36
Speaker
I recently went to my sister's high school graduation and one of the speakers talked about the importance of dreaming and goal setting.
00:20:42
Speaker
And if you don't have any of those things, you're kind of just, you're going about your life blind.
00:20:50
Speaker
And you're kind of just taking it, I don't know, step by step, which is what a lot of us do, but it's a lot harder when you don't have a goal in mind or a dream in mind and a purpose that
00:21:02
Speaker
that you're going after.
00:21:03
Speaker
And I think that's something too that my parents did such a good job of is what's our why?
00:21:07
Speaker
Like, why do we do the things that we do?
00:21:08
Speaker
What's our purpose?
00:21:10
Speaker
And that really helped me mentally as well.
00:21:12
Speaker
And on those hard days, you know, when that third, that part of the thirds rule hits the hard days when you're like, I don't want to get up and do anything.
00:21:21
Speaker
Our coaches at Nebraska, too, tell us this all the time.
00:21:23
Speaker
Those are the days when you need to work the hardest.
00:21:25
Speaker
And like those days, you just want to shut down.
00:21:27
Speaker
And sometimes those days happen when you're at a competition, you know, when you're competing.
00:21:33
Speaker
And so like taking note of those things and training yourself to handle them is critical and crucial for your development and getting to the next level.
00:21:42
Speaker
Yeah.
00:21:43
Speaker
That's really cool to think about the...
00:21:46
Speaker
You know, I think that it's easy to do good on that top third of the days, the days that we feel really, really good, right?
00:21:54
Speaker
Like we're all energized and everything like that.
00:21:57
Speaker
Sometimes I wonder if like greatness comes from those who are in that bottom third, if they're still willing to do it, if they're still really willing to work and put in the time, if they're willing to do that,
00:22:12
Speaker
I feel like that's where people can make up ground because most people, they perform in the top third and then they don't, and when they don't feel like it, they don't do it.
00:22:22
Speaker
But part of the win of the hour and win of that mental advantage, if I hear what you're saying is, is that those bottom two thirds of still doing the work.
00:22:29
Speaker
Yep.
00:22:30
Speaker
Yeah, exactly.
00:22:32
Speaker
Awesome.
00:22:33
Speaker
Awesome.
00:22:33
Speaker
Well, Taylor, I wanted to talk to you about another subject and that is resilience.
00:22:40
Speaker
I want to talk to you a little bit about resilience and I would love to know what you've learned about the importance of being resilient as you've been on this collegiate
00:22:53
Speaker
you know, rise to accomplish what you've accomplished.
00:22:57
Speaker
Some would look at it and it looks like a straight line, but I bet that there's been challenges to overcome along the way and struggles along the way and things like that.
00:23:05
Speaker
Would you tell us about the importance of resilience in your own journey?
00:23:10
Speaker
Yeah.
00:23:11
Speaker
Yeah, it's huge.
00:23:13
Speaker
I think a big part of resilience is like believing in yourself.
00:23:16
Speaker
In my freshman year, I came in as a five, four-star recruit, and I think I was ranked fifth in my recruiting class.
00:23:23
Speaker
So I was up there, but I wasn't like the best, you know?
00:23:27
Speaker
And I came that knowing in, but I came in knowing how hard I wanted to work and the impact I wanted to have right off the bat.
00:23:34
Speaker
And so resilience is, it's getting up in the morning when you don't want to, you know?
00:23:39
Speaker
And it's eating the food you, it's eating the food that you need to eat when you don't want to, right?
00:23:44
Speaker
And it's doing sometimes like, you have to do things that you don't want to do.
00:23:49
Speaker
And a lot of people don't believe in that.
00:23:52
Speaker
And I'm a big believer in that.
00:23:53
Speaker
Like, if it's good for you and you don't want to do it, you better be doing it.
00:23:59
Speaker
you're gonna learn a lot from it.
00:24:00
Speaker
Like it's gonna, that resilience part of it is gonna teach you.
00:24:04
Speaker
There are many times when like I didn't wanna get up in the morning and I still got up and I'm so glad that I did.
00:24:11
Speaker
You know, and eating food like on the weekend that I didn't wanna eat, like I wanted to eat something else and I ate that and I'm so glad I did because I felt better, right?
00:24:22
Speaker
Like it improved performance and improved how I thought about myself.
00:24:26
Speaker
I think everything's intertwined, right?
00:24:27
Speaker
Like physically, mentally.
00:24:29
Speaker
And so the decisions I make really impact all aspects.
00:24:33
Speaker
And so resilience, I remember freshman year, resilience in pushing myself in training because I wasn't strong enough to get at the level that I wanted to be at.
00:24:42
Speaker
So I really pushed myself in conditioning and in the gym.
00:24:46
Speaker
And then I also did it outside of the gym.
00:24:48
Speaker
So I think just digging deep.
00:24:51
Speaker
and pushing yourself through like those barriers that want to keep you back.
00:24:55
Speaker
And honestly, your body's like, no, don't do it.
00:24:57
Speaker
Like it's protecting you, right?
00:24:59
Speaker
Like there's a side of you that's like, that's scary.
00:25:02
Speaker
Let's not do that.
00:25:03
Speaker
It's going to be harder.
00:25:04
Speaker
But if you want to get to where you want to go, if you want to be the best, you have to break through those barriers.
00:25:10
Speaker
You know, some people would look at say resilience is like overcoming challenges and it is that, right?
00:25:17
Speaker
It's like getting up when you get knocked down.
00:25:20
Speaker
It's interesting though, to like get into your mind and resilience is almost like that everyday resilience.
00:25:27
Speaker
Not just the event resilience, which is, oh, I had this setback happen.
00:25:31
Speaker
I need to respond.
00:25:32
Speaker
I have an injury.
00:25:32
Speaker
I need to be resilient or I had a loss and I need to get back up.
00:25:35
Speaker
But it's almost like to you, resilience is more of those three single day decisions.
00:25:41
Speaker
I'm going to get up.
00:25:42
Speaker
I'm going to get out of bed.
00:25:43
Speaker
I'm going to keep going even though I'm tired.
00:25:44
Speaker
I'm going to eat this even though I don't want to eat it.
00:25:47
Speaker
Do you attribute that kind of resilience more to your success than even the other kind of resilience?
00:25:54
Speaker
The everyday versus the big response to a big loss or something like that?
00:25:58
Speaker
Yeah, for sure.
00:26:01
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, and I think every athlete and every person has an instance in their life that's changed them for the better.
00:26:07
Speaker
But I think being consistent across the board will have the biggest impact on you over anything.
00:26:13
Speaker
And I think a big part of resilience is having an understanding of, like, why are these things happening?
Faith, Community, and Achieving Success
00:26:20
Speaker
I'm a big faith guy, and so, like, why are these, like, challenges or, like, these good things even, right?
00:26:26
Speaker
Like, you can be resilient through the good, like,
00:26:28
Speaker
How can you take advantage of when you're feeling good to maximize everything?
00:26:33
Speaker
I'm just like, what situations that I'm in, why are they being put in my path?
00:26:38
Speaker
And how are they shaping me for where I need to be and the decisions I need to make now for who I'm going to become?
00:26:44
Speaker
And who do I want to become?
00:26:45
Speaker
Because I'm a firm believer that agency, right?
00:26:50
Speaker
We've been given the gift to choose of where we can...
00:26:56
Speaker
put ourselves in how we can create the person that we want to become.
00:26:59
Speaker
And, and the Lord definitely wants to help us do that.
00:27:02
Speaker
But, but yeah, resilience is huge in all of those aspects.
00:27:07
Speaker
Yeah.
00:27:08
Speaker
Thank you for bringing that up because I do think that sometimes I don't know what to call it.
00:27:13
Speaker
I'm calling it event resilience, right?
00:27:15
Speaker
Where it's like a major setback, like you lost something you weren't supposed to lose or you got hurt or
00:27:22
Speaker
It's important to be resilient that way, but I love that everyday resilience.
00:27:27
Speaker
It's just pushing through those things you don't want to do.
00:27:30
Speaker
You don't feel like doing when you're in that bottom third that you're talking about.
00:27:36
Speaker
That's when resilience, that everyday resilience will bring about more greatness than just responding in those individual moments.
00:27:46
Speaker
So yeah, that's really, really cool.
00:27:49
Speaker
You've, uh,
00:27:52
Speaker
A big part of what our program is about is using our position and platform as athletes to help and to lift those around us, including those on our own teams, those in our own universities, our own families.
00:28:06
Speaker
How has the success that you've had in gymnastics put you in a position to do that for other people?
00:28:14
Speaker
And do any opportunities come to mind where you've been able to use your position as an athlete to do that?
00:28:21
Speaker
Yeah.
00:28:23
Speaker
Big thing that I've come to understand and that I've learned is that you don't have to be the best athlete to have an impact on people.
00:28:31
Speaker
Like you just love people, you know, be kind.
00:28:35
Speaker
That's one of the big things that
00:28:38
Speaker
really drove me to Nebraska was the life skills department.
00:28:41
Speaker
So each athletic department has a life skills department.
00:28:45
Speaker
And so the life skills department helps athletes with their life outside of sport and anything they need there.
00:28:52
Speaker
So like career development, service opportunities, stuff like that.
00:28:56
Speaker
In Nebraska, they have, it's called the Tom Osborne citizenship team.
00:29:00
Speaker
In order to make the team, you have to have a certain amount of service hours.
00:29:04
Speaker
So it represents your service to the community.
00:29:06
Speaker
And Nebraska was a huge proponent on that, like going to schools, serving in food kitchens, helping the homeless, helping build a community in advance, and using kind of your platform as a collegiate athlete to do that.
00:29:21
Speaker
And kids look up to that.
00:29:22
Speaker
Even if you're not the best athlete, they're like, oh, this guy's a college athlete.
00:29:25
Speaker
Like, they'll listen to anything you say, you know?
00:29:27
Speaker
And so your impact has or just who you are as a person has more of an impact on people than you think.
00:29:34
Speaker
So how you handle yourself and how you treat other people is huge.
00:29:40
Speaker
Yeah.
00:29:41
Speaker
Yeah.
00:29:41
Speaker
When you go back and think of Taylor at Leighton High,
00:29:47
Speaker
knowing that a large part of our audience are right there in high school.
00:29:52
Speaker
And we always learn things as we get older.
00:29:57
Speaker
We look back and we've matured a little bit.
00:30:00
Speaker
But some of us, if we're willing to share some things that we've learned along the way, it can help those who are currently there.
00:30:06
Speaker
If you go back and talk to 14-year-old Taylor Christopoulos, that he was just getting ready to go to high school,
00:30:14
Speaker
What are some things that you would share with him about
Life Lessons and Compassionate Impact
00:30:20
Speaker
using whatever position you have to help and lift other people?
00:30:24
Speaker
Yeah, I think I would, if I sat down with my 14-year-old self and had a conversation with him, I would try to have as much compassion as I could.
00:30:31
Speaker
14-year-old Taylor going into high school, like, that's a lot for a young kid.
00:30:38
Speaker
And all 14-year-olds, right?
00:30:40
Speaker
Like, I mean, you went through it, I went through it.
00:30:43
Speaker
And looking back, like,
00:30:45
Speaker
as you like reflect on your experience, like, yeah, you're nervous and stuff and excited, but that's, that's a big load to put on a young person.
00:30:52
Speaker
Not that they can't handle it, but it's just a lot.
00:30:54
Speaker
And so having compassion there for myself, my 14 year old self, but then just trying to teach him, right?
00:31:03
Speaker
Like, Hey, don't be afraid to do certain stuff.
00:31:06
Speaker
Cause I, I was a shy, I wasn't like the shyest kid, but I was shy.
00:31:11
Speaker
And yeah, just teaching myself, like, don't be afraid to,
00:31:16
Speaker
to love other people, you know, and to treat other people how like I would want to be treated and just to be kind and yeah, I think that's what I would try to do.
00:31:26
Speaker
And like you can have a big impact on people more than you think.
00:31:29
Speaker
And it doesn't matter how good you are at like a sport or at something, right?
00:31:33
Speaker
Just being a good person has a big impact on people.
00:31:36
Speaker
Yeah.
00:31:37
Speaker
Let me just finish with...
00:31:41
Speaker
One of the things we focus on here, Taylor, is learning life's lessons through sports.
00:31:48
Speaker
We believe that sports is one of the most valuable curriculums that life can give to learn life lessons that you're going to take on and use in other aspects of your life.
00:31:57
Speaker
You're not going to be a gymnast forever.
00:32:00
Speaker
I'm curious, what are some of the most impactful, even if we've already talked about them, you know, it doesn't have to be anything new, but when you look over your athletic performance, your time in gymnastics, what are some of the most valuable lessons that you personally have learned?
00:32:20
Speaker
Yeah.
00:32:22
Speaker
I think two big ones, relying on my heavenly father and my savior have been really important for me.
00:32:29
Speaker
And taking me
00:32:31
Speaker
Further than I could ever imagine.
00:32:32
Speaker
And two, relying on the people around me.
00:32:35
Speaker
It takes a village to create something.
00:32:38
Speaker
You can't do it by yourself.
00:32:40
Speaker
And so if you have those two things, like you're unstoppable, really.
00:32:44
Speaker
And I would just say to other athletes out there, like take advantage of your network and who you surround yourself with.
00:32:52
Speaker
because they have the biggest impact on you.
00:32:53
Speaker
And then if you believe in a higher power, rely on them and see where they'll take you.
00:32:57
Speaker
What does it look like for you to rely on your network of people?
00:33:02
Speaker
Yeah.
00:33:03
Speaker
What does that look like for you?
00:33:06
Speaker
Don't be afraid to ask questions.
00:33:08
Speaker
We're all here to learn and to grow.
00:33:11
Speaker
And even those who are older than you and who are in different areas and positions and everybody here wants to help you.
00:33:19
Speaker
So don't be afraid to ask questions.
00:33:21
Speaker
Ask questions and that's how you grow the most and how can you apply what you learn into your sport and how can it make you better and build relationships, push people too.
00:33:32
Speaker
If you push other people, they'll push you.
00:33:34
Speaker
And so, yeah, just be a good teammate across the board.
00:33:39
Speaker
Awesome.
00:33:41
Speaker
Awesome.
00:33:41
Speaker
Well, Taylor, we congratulate you on all the success that you've had.
00:33:45
Speaker
We would love to stay in touch with you on this journey that you're on and learn the lessons from it.
00:33:52
Speaker
And so, so thank you so much for joining us on the, especially for athletes podcast.
00:33:57
Speaker
And thank you everyone for listening.
00:34:00
Speaker
Keep your eyes up and do the work.
00:34:02
Speaker
Thank you for joining the Especially for Athletes podcast.
00:34:05
Speaker
To learn more about Especially for Athletes organization, get a copy of our book, The Sportlight, or to bring our program to your team, school, business, or organization, visit us at especiallyforathletes.org.