Shawn Johnson, the 2008 Olympic gold medalist, retired from gymnastics at the age of 20 due to an injury.
On retiring, Johnson felt lost and struggled to find her identity outside of the sport.
What happened after retirement?
Johnson took a two-year hiatus from competitive gymnastics after the 2008 Olympics, feeling paralyzed and unsure of how to operate without the structure of training and competition.
She spent those years aimlessly wandering, needing people to tell her exactly what to do, before returning to gymnastics in 2010 to attempt to make the 2012 Olympic team.
Why retirement was necessary
Johnson's retirement from gymnastics ultimately led her to meet her future husband, Andrew East, whom she was introduced to by his brother, Guy East, a professional cyclist, at the 2012 Games in London.
Johnson believes that if she hadn't retired, her relationship with Andrew might not have worked, given her intense focus on her competitive career.
Life after gymnastics
After retiring, Johnson went on to compete on Dancing With the Stars and worked as a special correspondent for NBC News, before settling down with Andrew and starting a family, with whom she now lives in Nashville, Tennessee.
Johnson and Andrew have three children together: Drew, 6, Jett, 4, and Barrett, 2, and she has spoken about the challenges of figuring out who she was outside of gymnastics, calling it the hardest thing she's ever done.
Finding identity
Johnson has spoken about the difficulties of transitioning from a life of intense training and competition to one without the structure and goal-oriented focus of gymnastics, but has found a new sense of purpose in her family and personal life,