LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - AUGUST 3: Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte of the United States walk to photographers with their medals after competing in the Men's 200m Individual Medley final, during the London 2012 Olympic games at the Aquatic Centre. Friday 3rd August 2012 (Photo by Steve Christo - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images) Steve Christo - Corbis via Getty Images
Ryan Lochte and Michael Phelps spent over a decade racing each other in the pool the highest level. Not only that, Lochte and Phelps crossed paths in many events, including battling head to head in the 200 Individual Medley and 400 Individual Medley countless times. They were two of the greatest Olympians of all time, competing on the same timeline, however Lochte never once considered packing up and training alongside Phelps, and he's not shy about why. "The best training program I've ever had was at the University of Florida, hands down the best," Lochte said on the Night Swim Podcast. For Lochte, it wasn't close. Legendary coach Gregg Troy ran a program in Gainsville that fit Lochte like a glove, and Lochte says Troy simply understood how to get the most out of him. "Coach Troy knew how to push my buttons, to push me to limits that I didn't know myself," Lochte said. ATLANTA - DECEMBER 6: Ryan Lochte swims in and wins the finals of the 200 yard backstroke during the 2008 Short Course National Championships at the Georgia Tech Aquatics Center on December 6, 2008 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Mike Zarrilli/Getty Images) Mike Zarrilli via Getty Images
Gainesville wasn't just a training base for the 12-time Olympic medalist, it was home. The familiarity, the focus, the routine all fed into a version of Lochte that thrived on outworking everybody in the pool. In his appearance on Night Swim, he compared himself to a lion, "always hungry," grinding through practices until his body simply gave out. That relentlessness was the whole engine. Uprooting it for another training group never made sense, even if it meant joining the greatest of all-time. Even when Lochte started to feel like he'd outgrown Gainesville after the 2012 Olympics, Phelps's training base still wasn't the answer. Lochte chose Charlotte instead, chasing a fresh environment with Team Elite. Following Phelps was never on the table. Looking back, Lochte desn't sugarcoat how that move played out. He told Night Swim Hosts Dax Hill and Elvis Burrows that leaving Gainesville was "one of the biggest mistakes" of his career. The coaching, training group, the daily grind didn’t travel with him to Charlotte as much as he’d hoped. Lochte's story isn't really about Phelps at all. He expressed it’s about being able to identify the perfect spot to reach your max potential. Sometimes the right setup is the one you already know pushes you to your limit. “I trained my mind to think that I haven’t done anything,” Lochte said. “Every year I had to work to get back to the top.”