Ranting about politics is her hobby. It's what gets her going in the morning. It's like coffee to Julie. We let her go -- it's actually good comedy in the morning.

And to learn, you have to be willing to push yourself.

And then ultimately what I tell the kids is: coaches can give you information, they can give you guidelines, and they can put you in a position. But the only person who can truly make you better is you.

And I remember how proud I was to put on my training jersey and go out on the field. Making it back to that environment was for me my greatest moment, because somebody had told me I couldn't do it and I never gave up on myself, the game and my teammates.

After the '96 Olympics, we all started believing that this is bigger than we thought, and we were willing to do the work. We knew that it was up to us, the players, to make soccer successful.

I create tension on the elastic band by moving away from the person who's holding it, and I maintain that tension while jumping up to head the ball. It works my legs and core while also working on balance. You feel it helping on the field when you're going up for a header or when an opponent is pulling or pushing to gain position.