It’s been a long nine months since we last saw Gabby Douglas snag gold at the 2012 Olympics in London. Since then, she’s been on the cover of ESSENCE, walked dozens of red carpets and even released two memoirs. But the time has come for the athlete to return to the gym, reports Sports Illustrated.
“She is very excited to be coming back,” said Douglas’ coach Liang Chow. “She can’t wait any longer.”
Douglas has big plans for the future. She’s set her sights on Rio 2016—just three short years away. Chow says he’s been exchanging text messages with Douglas about her upcoming return to the West Des Moines, Iowa gym that made her a star. “She’s the kind of person who wants to be achieving,” said Chow. “She wants to feel good about her improvement and her goal setting. That’s the attitude Gabby is about and now she can set out a goal and achieve it, through the sport.”
Chow warned Gabby it would be difficult getting back into shape, “‘If you think preparing for London was hard, preparing for Rio will be harder,'” he told her. Chow also warned that she must have more patience with herself this time around.