I Got This: To Gold and Beyond

[QuietColours]

By Laurie Hernandez
Copyright 2017
In the acknowledgements, she lists Lisa Sharkey; her editor Sara Sargent; and her collaborator Hope Innelli, but no formally acknowledged ghost writer

Introduction

• On August 15, 2016, whispered "I got this" as she touched the beam for her final routine in the team final
• Didn't expect those words to blow up on social media
• They continued to have power for her as she competed on Dancing with the Stars
• 2016 was a magical year for her, with many wishes coming true
• Hopes everyone hears "You got this" in every line of the book

Family First
Chapter 1

• Actual name is Lauren Zoe Hernandez, but on the first day of gymnastics class her teacher decided to call her Laurie to differentiate from the other Laurens in the class, and the nickname stuck
• Also earned the nickname "The Human Emoji" because of her animated faces in her floor routine. Most people think she most resembles the "Epic grin" expression
• A lot of the joy people see comes from her doing something she's passionate about and from her home life
• Her father, Anthony, is a court clerk and her mother, Wanda, is an elementary school social worker. They met in college; her mother would study a lot in the library and her dad would joke around with her. He's the comedian in the family and always makes everyone laugh. Communication has always been important to them, and they've made sure it's important to the rest of the family too
• Her mother grew up in a not-great neighborhood in New York City and saw a lot of abuse, and they decided they wanted to start a family far from that, so they moved to Old Bridge Township in New Jersey. It's a friendly community, and her mom made sure the kids grew up with respect and love
• Two siblings: Jelysa and Marcus. They all think their parents are great life coaches who raised them to treat each other with respect, and it's because of their example that the kids are always so nice to each other. They don't fight, because they understand they're going to be there for the rest of each other's lives. When they're upset, they talk it out, and once they settle the disagreement, they leave it behind them
• Jay (Jelysa) is 11 years older than Laurie and is a big sister, extra mom, and best friend rolled into one. She has a masters degree and is a social worker like their mother. They're very close, despite the age gap.When they were younger they'd have sleepovers, where Laurie would crawl into Jay's room and they'd stay up all night talking.They finish each other's sentences and have the same mannerisms
• Marcus is four years older than Laurie and in college studying economics and sports management. He ran track in high school and was a middle distance runner during his freshman year at college. Laurie's always impressed by how he juggles many responsibilities–she focuses on gymnastics; he juggles school, family, social responsibilities, and track
• Misses her family while she's on the road and training and competing a lot, especially things like spontaneous dance parties while cleaning the house. Their home is always filled with laughter, a joyous environment that thought her about respect
• Watching her parents, she's learned you can always change your circumstances in life if you put your mind to it.

 

[tempest]

On August 15, 2016, whispered "I got this" as she touched the beam for her final routine in the team final

Didn't she compete on FX in TF as well?

 

[Puffin]

Didn't she compete on FX in TF as well?

Yes she did

And as the US qualified in 1st place they would have done FX last.

 

[RedBirdie]

Glad I'm not the only one who was like "this isn't correct" right off the bat.

 

[QuietColours]

But "my second event in the team finals" just doesn't have near narrative tension!

 

[QuietColours]

The Karate Kids
Chapter 2

• Whole family is athletic
  • Dad played baseball when he was young (center field)
  • Mom played volleyball and tennis and was in the Army Reserve in the 80s
• Kids all did martial arts; Laurie started karate at 2.5–their mom wanted them to know self defense after growing up in an unsafe area
• Only Jelsya and Marcus were enrolled, but Laurie came along to watch, dressed in her own gi. Her mom says Laurie would stand behind the sensei and copy everything they did. When the senseis saw she could keep up, they encouraged her to come over and try the different moves
• When her mom realized how flexible she was, she signed her up for ballet. But Laurie just wanted to dance around and ballet was too serious. She did like the sugar cookies they got at the end of the session though, so she always made it through the class
• She did like the performance aspect. At her first recital, all the other kids were shy about performing, but Laurie stepped out, found the spotlight, and did it exactly like she'd practiced
• By five, she was very energetic and her mom decided to sign her up for acrobatics. But no one else registered for the class, so the instructor cancelled it
• One day she saw Shawn Johnson on tv doing flips and decided she wanted to do acrobatics. Her mom found a 45 minute beginners class
• Her mom told the instructor she wanted her daughter to learn a cartwheel and a split, and that she'd continue enrollment if Laurie got them in 6 weeks. She got them much faster than that. That was the end of dance and karate–she was hooked on gymnastics
• One of her earliest memories of that time was doing a pretend competition. It was a tiny audience, but her whole family was there. The transition to real competitions feels like it happened very quickly
• Jelysa ended up getting her black belt
• Marcus' track training gave him the speed and stamina to get away from any bad situation
• Laurie was in constant motion

Doing My Best
Chapter 3

• Different ways to do competitive gymnastics
  • AAU–multisport organization for amateur athletes
  • USAG is how you get to the Olympics
• Explains the USAG level system
• Met Maggie Haney at 7 years old. She was coaching a girls' team for level 4+. Most of the level 4s were a year or two older, but Laurie picked up the skills quickly and stayed with the same group for levels 5 and 6
• Her mother started noticing Laurie's lines were improving significantly and her skills were developing more quickly than the other girls, and questioned if things were advancing too slowly for Laurie. Maggie had never trained an elite, so she decided to contact USAG about TOPS
• Laurie tried TOPS at age nine. It was the first time she thought that she'd been really progressing. She ended up getting the number one score for nine-year-olds in the country
• Got an invite to the TOPS developmental camp at the ranch. It was exciting but nerve-racking. Camp was run by Marta Karolyi, who is legendary for having helped mold some of the greatest gymnasts in the world. It was a privilege to go there
• Camp was on a huge complex in Huntsville, TX with state-of-the-art equipment, a dance room, several types of gyms, a medical room, a dining room, and dorm rooms
• At first she trained there five days every two months; then five days every month
• Marta brought in experts to give the gymnasts tips and help the coaches learn different techniques
• She'd study new skills and then go home and work on them with Maggie
• Loved the weeks at camp and realized she wanted to dedicate herself to gymnastics full time
• They had morning and afternoon practices and time off in between. Met girls from all over the country and slept in dorms that looked like log cabins
• This was also when she began home schooling, because she missed so much school traveling for camps. She was two weeks into third grade, so she wasn't leaving long term friends, and she got to be at the gym all day doing what she loved the most
• Still got to play with neighborhood friends–it was a close community, and they celebrated holidays with family friends as well
• Favorite get together was New Year's Eve, where they'd have a formal dinner with lots of music, parents and kids all dancing
• Shannon and Paloma Rodriguez, her best friends, are like sisters to her. Their moms met in the military and were very close, and by coincidence her mom also knew their dad from growing up in NY. They see them all the time and even vacation together.
• She likes home schooling through A Beka Academy, a Christian-based K-12 curriculum. It came with a series of CDs and videos, and the CDs connected her to a teacher, while the videos followed whatever book she was using. Her mom had a manual with the assignments for each day. There were different marking periods where she had to take tests, and quizzes and reports to do. Then they'd pack up all her work and send it to Florida to be reviewed, and she'd get a report card. She liked that it was designed for her to learn at her own pace.
• She's a good student who's always liked writing, and she's appreciated history more and more as she gets older.
• She'd sit with her teammates and do their homeschooling together, which made it less isolating. They were at different grades, so they could help each other. Older kids deserved As for taking care of the younger ones. It was like a private school where everyone took advanced placement phys ed
• She was practicing about 35 hours a week, and those hours grew longer as she began to compete more. She was at the gym from 8:30-1 and 3:30-5:30, six days a week. In between was meals, homework, and sleep. Plus PT, special stretching sessions, and massages
• Massages are not a luxury for an athlete; they're a necessity. Marta teaches that rehab and taking care of their bodies is the fifth event, as important as all the others
• They also need down time–it helps revive you so you can do better
• Between her intense training, self-care regime, and education, she took care of herself mind, body, and spirit