This week on Life in a Leo, I interviewed the amazing Betty Okino. Betty was part of the 1992 USA Olympic Team. This was the first team to win a medal at the Olympics. This was a time when the athletes had to compete both compulsory and optional routines. Betty was known for her beautiful lines and gracefulness. She has a couple skills named after …

This week on Life in a Leo, I interviewed Marla Ranieri, a physical therapist specializing in gymnastics. As an elite gymnast herself, Marla completely understands what these athletes go through and what they are striving for. She is working to make sure injuries don't keep them from reaching their dreams. This is done by performing an injury preve…

Just a quick update and apology for not having an episode ready for you. We have more in the works and I’ll have a new one next week. Happy holidays and don’t forget to point your toes 😉. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lifeinaleo/support

This week I got to interview the incredibly accomplished Jill Hicks. Jill runs a business called Jill Hicks Consulting where she helps athletes in seven different sports navigate the college recruiting process. Her expertise is gymnastics but the other sports include women's soccer, women's basketball, track & field, cross country, acro& tumbling, …

Happy Friday and welcome to Life in a Leo! This week I got to interview, 10-year-old gymnast, Anabelle. She is training level 7 at San Mateo Gymnastics and just qualified as a TOPS National A Team Member! What a huge accomplishment. Her favorite gymnast is Laurie Hernandez because she looks like she's having so much fun out there. What a great thin…

Thank you so much to everyone that answered my question on Instagram regarding topics you want to hear on the show. This week I explore a topic suggested by @abriannagallo on time management. I talk about what I did when I was still a gymnast, some of the tools I use now as an adult, and ways to plan your time. Check out https://monday.com/ if you …

This was so much fun. I got to interview one of my new co-workers who grew up doing gymnastics in France! It was great to learn a little bit about what that was like, her favorite event, her disgusting competition leotard, and some great advice for young gymnasts. It was a little challenging at times with the language barrier, but we figured it out…

I started a new job and am finding it difficult to create new episodes. I'm so sorry!! But, I'm still here and I'm going to try and get new episodes out. What do you want to hear? Email me - rebecca@leotard.com and let me know. Have you started competing this season? Let us know how it's going. What level are you doing? Are you competing in excel? …

Happy Friday and welcome to #Lifeinaleo! We hope you enjoy this week's interview with Sophie Kleinberg. Sophie is training level 10 at a small gym in NYC. She started gymnastics at 7 years old after someone commented on how well she did cartwheels. Once she started training she caught the bug and was hooked. I'm sure there are a lot of things you c…

Sorry, there was no episode last week. I'm working on figuring out how to budget my time and continue publishing this show. Thank you to everyone for tuning in and sharing your support. It means a lot. This week I discuss some experiences with goal setting as a gymnast. I provide a little insight into using a technique called SMART. You can learn m…

Happy Friday! In this episode of Life in a Leo, I interview a good friend and old teammate of mine, Erica Rubin Peressin. We discuss Erica's journey through the sport, getting a scholarship to the University of Michigan, and her most recent adventure, coaching gymnastics in Austin, TX. I love how one of Erica's proudest moments in the sport was whe…

Happy Friday! This week I had a great interview with level 5 gymnast, Ana Villela. Ana was so fun to talk to. Her passion and excitement for the sport of gymnastics are contagious. She has only been in the sport for four years but has continued to grow and progress. Ana is so focused and such a hard-working young athlete. We discuss Ana's favorite …

I've been having issues getting my interviews to record well and so this week I had to come up with a quick alternative. I'm working on getting it fixed so hopefully next week I can share the interview that was planned for today. Today, I talk a little bit about what it means to peak at the right time. This is not something I thought much about as …

In this solocast, I provide the 10 (actually 11) things I'm going to be watching for at the US Classic this weekend. It's also the Hopes Championships. We are so excited to see all these amazing athletes get out there and compete. They've been working so hard and it is exciting to see it all coming together. Remember, the Juniors need to get a 51 t…

Happy Friday! This week on Life in a Leo, I interviewed one of my friends and fellow judges, Kathi Ortiz. Kathi is currently living in the Chicago area and got into the sport of gymnastics in 1968. In addition to being a successful gymnast, Kathi was also a coach, club owner, and a very well respected judge. Kathi has had the honor of judging NCAA …

This week I got the chance to interview Melisa Torres, the author of the Perfect Balance Gymnastics, a fiction book series. Melisa started gymnastics a little bit later in life and progressed through the sport. As a junior in high school, her coach asked her if she wanted to continue in college and helped her find a school that matched her goals. M…

This week I discuss the top 5 things I'm most excited about at The American Classic. The American Classic is one of two elite meets that athletes can compete in to qualify for US National Championships. There are a lot of new Hopes gymnasts that will be competing. Some of the kids that competed in Hopes last year have now qualified as Jr. Elites so…

In this solocast (what I've decided to call it when I don't do an interview), I provide what my key takeaways are and some examples of how to interpret the new composition deductions in the new code of points. I don't go into too much detail but provide examples of the extremes on each event. Basically what is expected to receive no deduction and w…

Here is part two of my interview with JaNay Honest, Christine Peng Peng Lee and Deanna Hong, the incredible trio that hosted Bruin Banter this season (can you tell, I'm obsessed). This week we go into more detail about their time as Bruins, their most memorable gymnastics moments and what Life in a leo means to them. I loved this interview and can'…

This week I got to speak with the trio that put together Bruin Banter this past NCAA gymnastics season, JaNay Honest, Christine Peng Peng Lee, and Deanna Hong. https://youtu.be/wp0_PdKzYVg Just one of the few things these women are known for. We discuss their career in gymnastics prior to UCLA, how they made their way to UCLA and of course their fa…

Every week we are in and out of the gym training our butts off. We live in our leotards and sometimes we forget how to best care for them. This week I provide some advice on how to best take care of your leotards, especially the fancy competition ones that cost tons of money. These are the things you need to do to make sure the white stays white, t…

This week I got to interview one of my favorite Soul Cycle Instructors, Erin Kirschenbaum (https://www.soul-cycle.com/instructors/231/erin/). Erin grew up as a very focused ballet dancer training with the Boston Ballet. After high school, she decided she was ready to try something different and focus on school. However, Erin couldn't stay away from…

This week I discuss the three things that judges look for when evaluating artistry on floor. I break down each deduction and provide my best interpretation of the JO Code of Points. The music in the episode is Stevie Ray Vaughn's Little Wing which I reference when I talk about my floor routines. This was the music I had when I competed in college. …

This week I interviewed our amazing summer intern, Hannah Kaufman. In addition to being our intern, Hannah is studying dance and sociology at Rutgers University. She got her start in dance doing jazz and hip-hop but quickly found a passion for ballet. As Hannah got older, her style shifted and she discovered something called Gaga. Hannah shares her…

This week was another solo episode. Next week I will be back with an interview so stay tuned. The topic for this week was inspired by an experience I had when I was volunteering for an organization I feel passionately about. I was asked to work at a phone bank and it was one of the most frustrating experiences I have had. I wasn't even asking for m…

Happy Friday! In this episode, I explain how to get a level 9 or 10 routine to start from a 10.0. I felt inspired by Easterns and Westerns taking place this weekend and JO Nationals next weekend. I thought it might be helpful to the audience to better understand the requirements and nuances that go into designing a 10.0 start value routine. There a…

This week I spoke with Emily Chan from Singapore, the youngest FIG women's artistic gymnastics judge in the world! Emily runs a YouTube channel and Instagram account called Flip Fly Tumble (@flipflytumble) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_1JiHs3Bw0GVfLqLFH7OPw where she creates video edits judging elite gymnastics routines, providing some much ne…

This is a very special episode. It's the first time I interviewed a group of people. In addition, these were three of my teammates at UC Davis. Meghan was two years ahead of me and Flora and Lynn was a year younger. We discuss our growth in the sport throughout our time in college, the camaraderie of our team and how we never fully got closer even …

This week I wanted to bring you something a little different. I got the chance to interview my friend, Taylor Gordon. Taylor is a professional dancer. She started dancing from the time she could walk, leaving home at the age of 15 to train at the Rock School in Philadelphia. Taylor moved to NYC where she continued to perfect her craft and grow as a…

Ever wonder why your routine scored an 8.1 and your teammate got an 8.8? Maybe it's the execution...I have been a judge for 22 years. I provide some insight into what judges are looking for on all four events. I also provide some anecdotes from my experience as a gymnast. Let us know what you think? We hope to hear from you. If you want to share yo…

Blakley is an 8-year-old Level 4 gymnast at National Gymnastics Training Center in Orange County, CA. She has been doing gymnastics since she was 1 year old, and has been competing for 3 years. Blakley is known for being a fearless daredevil and was awarded the "Mini Powerhouse" award at Woodward last summer. She's been known to spend her free time…

This week we interviewed Lauren Hopkins, Editor-in-Chief of the Gymternet. She aims to bring the very best coverage, interviews, features, histories, and opinion pieces from the people who really “get” gym – other gym fans. As a journalist, Lauren has covered every elite competition on U.S. soil in addition to all major international competitions l…

This week we got to interview the talented Maddie Larson. Maddie takes us through her journey in gymnastics, starting at 2.5 years old, and now competing as a 12-year-old level 10. Maddie aspires to be an elite and compete in the Olympics someday. She has had some serious highs and lows this season including learning her Jaeger on bars and getting …

Today we interviewed the incredible Hallie Mossett. Hallie started gymnastics at the age of 5, quickly progressed through the sport to become elite and make it on to the US National Team. In 2014, Hallie started her NCAA career as a UCLA Bruin! Hallie is finishing up her degree, working as a choreographer and the Bruins Undergrad Assistant Coach, a…

I didn't get my interview done early enough this week, so I decided to bring you the top 10 things I learned about ice skating leotards from the 2018 Winter Olympics. Hope you enjoy it. Let us know what you think. Please email me rebecca@leotard.com and make sure to send us your Best Things in the Gym This Week!! This week we heard from Sarah who j…

In the latest episode of Life in a leo, we interviewed gymnast Isabelle, an Instagram phenom with over 140,000 followers. This 8-year-old gymnast shares her goals for the season, her favorite gymnast and food and what life in a leo means to her. We want to hear from you. Email me your Best Things In The Gym This Week at rebecca@leotard.com. You can…

This week we interviewed Mariah Merkle. You might know her as @Triplefull on Instagram. She is one hard working 18 year old! Mariah coaches gymnastics, trains and competes in CrossFit, and manages one of the most successful gymnastics fan pages on the insta. Check it out and let us know what you think. Visit www.leotard.com for more info. Happy fli…

Cheryl Gambuti was an elite gymnast, a coach, a national judge, a meet director and the parent of a level 10 gymnast. She understands the sport of gymnastics from every angle. Take a listen and get to know Cheryl a bit better. Shout out to Taylor for sending us her best things in the gym this week. Happy Friday and happy flipping 😊 --- Support this…

This week we interviewed Bailey McCabe from Auburn Gymnastics. Bailey is entering her third season as a level 10 gymnast. She is a sophomore in High School. She tells us about some of her new upgrades and her current bars routine. We also hear from Gabby and Sarah with the best things in the gym this week. Don’t forget to send us your best things. …

Today we interviewed world champion power tumbler @Mel_Doucette. She started as an artistic gymnast in NH eventually competing for The University of Bridgeport in college. After college she went back into the JO program and competed level 10 and Elite! Her college coach, Byron from UB turned her on to power tumbling where Mel’s career in the sport …

This our first episode. We interviewed Candy Dengrove. The founder and CEO of Rebecca’s Mom Leotards. She has been in business for 25 years and has lots to share. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lifeinaleo/support

We are here to discuss what makes gymnastics great! Do you have a lucky leo, prefer strength or flexibility any lessons learned and all sorts of stuff. Don’t forget to email us the best things that happened all week rebecca@leotard.com--- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lifeinaleo/support…

Life in a leo introduction--- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lifeinaleo/support