Take care of yourself. Eat well, rest, train hard and smart, make time to think and breathe. Be intentional with your time.

Everyone knows I drink a lot of Diet Coke, so...I drink chocolate milk after races as my recovery drink, and you won't ever find me without a peanut butter sandwich in my bag at races or without a jar of peanut butter when I am heading to Europe.

I love the big fresh starts, the clean slates like birthdays and new years, but I also really like the idea that we can get up every morning and start over.

I think, as most of us do, I put such high expectations on myself that this spills over onto other people. And not everyone is wired this way. Some people can shrug expectations off their shoulders like a cardigan, remaining cool and breezy. Others wear them like a parka with a stuck zipper, hot and stifling.

What I have learned about the sport of cycling is that you have to love it to do it because you're not going to retire off of it.

I think it doesn't happen overnight, that's for sure. As the first gold medalist since 1984, I think cycling needs to ride that wave right now, because people are excited.

I feel like I've done everything I can, and what I wanted to do.