Every time Olympic swimmer Missy Franklin walked through a doorway, she used to give herself an affirmation.
“Sometimes you have to think about what you can tell yourself that’s positive and will build confidence and self-love,” the five-time gold medal winner told Cheddar Thursday.
That was one of the ways she coped with the stresses of competitive swimming and its impact on her mental health. She picked up the technique from the greatest Olympic swimmer ever, Michael Phelps.
Franklin said the only reason she could open up about her battle with depression was because she had “such an incredible stage set before me by people like Michael and…[fellow Olympic swimmer] Allison Schmitt.”
“For me, once I felt like I was really ready to kind of come out and talk about it, it was actually fairly easy knowing I had the support of so many people,” she said. “This is something that so many of us experience, and yet it’s still taboo.”
Franklin said her bouts of depression stem from her successes. She was just 17 years old when she won four gold medals at the 2012 London Olympics. She snagged her fifth in Rio four years later.
“A lot of it came from placing my identity in my success in a pool.”
Having lived through it, she now wants to reach out to younger athletes to help them recognize that, “You are not a best time, you are not a medal...you are so much more than that.”
The Olympian is already in training mode for the 2020 Games in Tokyo, which entails swimming for up to four hours a day.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/the-advice-michael-phelps-gave-missy-franklin-on-keeping-her-head-in-the-game).
In this week's episode of The Crypto Craze Cheddar Anchors Brad Smith and Baker Machado explain the biggest trends in the market. Cable and satellite entertainment company Starz filed a petition, asking the FCC to step in to resolve a fight with Altice. Facebook announces an update to its news policy. Amazon is increasing its prices.
To get you in the Super Bowl spirit PepsiCo is rolling out advertisements to gear up for the game. Greg Lyons, CMO of Pepsi Beverage, and Jen Saenz, CMO of Frito-Lay explain the messages behind the company's iconic ads this season.
On VF Hive: We’re joined by the crew from Vanity Fair's Hive to discuss Bannon's Mueller investigation subpoena. On Between Bells: Winter Olympics diplomacy, and Ellen Pompeo's payday. With New York Magazine, Latina Magazine, and FHM.
North Korea and South Korea shocked the world by announcing plans to march under a unified flag at the upcoming Winter Olympic Games. FHM's Nick Dimengo joins Cheddar to discuss whether the news will increase interest in the games.
The former Yankees star founded "The Players' Tribune" in 2014 as a way for athletes to tell their stories the way they want them to be told. The CEO says Facebook's changes only help get their story out there.
What's better than reading in-depth news about your favorite athletes, perhaps getting that news straight from the players' pen or mouth? "The Players' Tribune" is a sports media company started by Derek Jeter back in 2014. Since then, TPT has grown into video, continued to break news, and builds recognition in the sports space.
VICIS CEO Dave Marver discusses the Zero1 helmet, rated by the NFL as the safest ever made. Marver explains what makes the helmet different and what's next for the company.
People have compared trading on the stock market to playing a sport. You need to know the players, when to make your move, and how to win. So why not follow the sports industry and sports business like how you follow the stock market news? Corey Leff thinks you should. That is why he started "John Wall Street," a newsletter that covers the ins and outs of the sports industry.
Najee Goode is both a linebacker for the Philadelphia Eagles and a design engineer for the app VEEPIO. The Super Bowl hopeful joins Cheddar to explain what the Eagles need to do to win on Sunday and why VEEPIO is helping fans be more engaged.
On VF Hive, we're joined by the crew at Vanity Fair's Hive to discuss Oprah's White House ambitions and Steve Bannon's next moves. Then on Between Bells, we break down the new allegations against James Franco and the Lavar Ball drama sweeping the NBA.
