Interview With Lisa Garner

1. What age did you start gymnastics?

5 yrs old

2. How did you start in gymnastics?

My parents put me in the sport after watching the Olympics and I was trying skills I shouldn’t have been doing.

3. How did you deal with mental blocks?

I only ever had a couple mental blocks and back then you just worked through them by believing and knowing you’ve done that skill multiple times and just went for it.

4. Who was your role model/someone you looked uo to in the sport?

Nadia, the 84 Olympic team and my teammates.

5. What was your hardest struggle during your time as a gymnast?

Being told I was fat, so lack of confidence.

6. How do you handle nerves when you are competing?

Pretending it was practice.

7. What was your biggest accomplishment in gymnastics?

National team for 4 years College athletic scholarship

8. What did you do after you were done competing? did you stay involved or did you do something totally different?

Coached gymnastics

9. What would people need to know if you are starting the sport for the first time?

Have fun with it. Great sport for the foundation of any sport if they switch sports.

10. What is your favorite meet?

NCAA Championships

11. How did you handle pressure form peers/coaches/fans?

If negative, I usually would get upset initially and then move on and remember who I am.

12. How do you overcome setbacks and challenges?

Move forward and positive thoughts.

13. Did college gymnastics ever cross your mind as something you wanted to do?

Yes, I was a college gymnast.

14. Least favorite event and favorite event? And Why?

Least…Vault- didn’t have a table back then and it was scary running toward the “horse”. Favorite- beam- came easy to me and the challenge of staying on. Beam-

15. Hardest and easiest gymnastics skill to train?

I don’t train anymore. I was a gymnast in the 80’s.

16. How did/do you deal with getting in your head on skills?

Ack then you just did it.

17. How did you stay out of your head at practice and at meet?

Focus on what I needed to accomplish that practice/ meet. Music also helped.

18. Have any of you got a skill for a few weeks on any event and then a week or to later you just can't do it? If this has happened to you how have you dealt with it or overcome it?

No

19. How did you cope when your time as a gymnast was over? Did you go into coaching or did you find something else to fill what gymnastics filled?

After college I got married and coached. Had to figure out who I was as a person not just a gymnast and what to do with all the extra time I had.

20. Advice you would give to current or people who want to start in the sport?

It’s a great foundation for all sports and in life. Learning hard things, strength, flexibility, body and air awareness and how to fall and get back up.