5 Years Into Retirement, Aly Raisman Is Still Learning How to Slow Down

Nearly a decade ago, Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman stepped off the podium for the last time. She went out with a bang, helping bring home the gold for Team USA alongside Gabby Douglas and Simone Biles — all true champions in their own right. But after years of grueling training within a system that ultimately failed to protect her, Raisman is happily settling into her fifth year of retirement. She's grateful for the rest — no really! But when you're used to performing at the top of your game, giving yourself permission to slow down can feel like the ultimate challenge.

"I read something online that said, 'If you don't pick a day to rest, your body will pick it for you.' And I feel like there were many days my body picked it for me," Raisman tells Popsugar. "After a really long time and a lot of therapy and support from people around me, I realized that I didn't have to be pushing myself to the limit."

This realization marked a massive shift in her champion mindset. At the height of her Olympic training, Raisman says she would sometimes work out for seven hours a day. When she announced her retirement in 2020, she assumed her body would appreciate the break. But giving herself permission to slow down turned out to be harder than anticipated — both physically and mentally. "After I finished competing, I was so tired and I felt so burnt out, so then for a really long time, I didn't work out," Raisman says. Learning to embrace the retired lifestyle meant finding a sweet spot between two extremes. "The harder I was on myself, it made it harder for me to work out," she says. "The moment I started to accept it, I started to be able to dip my toe into working out again."

These days, Raisman's version of wellness might involve hitting the gym. But it also might mean unplugging with an in-person yoga class. "I try to have a lot of quiet moments in my day so I can reset and relax," she says. In that quest for quiet, she makes time for recovery, relishes in simple rituals like drinking tea and using essential oils, and places a greater emphasis on self-care.

Make no mistake: Raisman still operates like a champion. But since starting to rest and recover in earnest, her definition of a "champion" has changed. "If you asked me 10 years ago what a champion means, I probably would've said it's winning first place," she says. "Now I feel being a champion means being who you are, and authentically yourself. I think being a champion is being brave." It's partly this perspective that makes her such a perfect addition to the Champions For Champion campaign, featuring modern champions across sports, music, and culture.

For the women champions of today, Raisman's advice is to focus on recovery and listen to what your body needs. "What you do outside the gym, or outside of your training, should be prioritized in the same way that it is when you're training, and I wish I understood that when I was younger," she says. "You know yourself better than anybody else. If you feel that you're pushing yourself too hard, you are."

As for herself, there's still a few areas where Raisman is hoping to grow. Namely, she wants to be kinder to herself — building herself up instead of tearing herself down. "I've realized the way I talk to myself impacts my mental health. It also impacts the way my body feels," she says. "It's a process and I'm human. I have ups and downs, but I try to lean on people around me and communicate or ask for help if I'm having a tough day."

Even champions have those.

Chandler Plante (she/her) is a social producer and staff writer for the Health & Fitness team at Popsugar. She has over five years of industry experience, previously working as an editorial assistant for People magazine, a social media manager for Millie magazine, and a contributor for Bustle Digital Group. She has a degree in magazine journalism from Syracuse University and is based in Los Angeles.