Sometimes success is simply being willing to give it your all.

Almost religiously, I step away from everything and close my eyes and breathe deeply for a few moments. It helps solidify my focus and aligns everything in my body to take care of the task at hand - which is winning, of course.

I have kids. Unbeknownst to them, they are quick to snap me back to reality when I start feeling the pressure of being an athlete! It's a breath of fresh air to have two people to focus on; their happiness erases all the pressures I have on myself.

Obviously, the competitor in you, you want to be in the top three every time in the pool.

My performance has improved dramatically from yoga and meditation. No athlete ever dominated by sticking to one sport all the time.

Like anyone, I stress and get hard on myself from time to time, but it's minute compared to the pressure I used to put on myself to perform and succeed. To my kids' credit, they've probably helped me the most here: I'm more worried about what they're doing than what I'm doing!

I don't underestimate the power of mental preparation throughout all of my training. I'm in a much better state of mind about competition.