One Missouri woman is reminding others that it’s never too late to face your fears.
In a clip that has gone viral on Twitter with nearly 4 million views, Nicole Clemens is seen nailing the gymnastics stunt that terrified her as a teen.
“It was a fear of failure, but also a fear of physically hurting myself,” Clemens told TODAY Parents. “I always loved gymnastics, I just wasn’t any good.”
Clemens stopped competing at age 15, but about a year ago, she found herself missing the sport and signed up for an adult gymnastics class. The English teacher’s first order of business was overcoming her phobia of the roundoff back layout.
Last week, she crushed it.
“I was proud of what I had done physically. My daughter took the video and I was like, ‘I look decent!’” Clemens revealed. But Clemens admits she was a little nervous before sharing the footage with strangers.
“I’m not built like a gymnast and the internet is not always the nicest place,” she explained.
Though Clemens was waiting for “the fat comments,” they never came. Instead she was inundated with praise from thousands of people including retired Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman, who tweeted, "Looks great!!!!!"
“You killed it, Nicole. You look amazing and you’re inspiring as hell,” wrote one person.
Added another, “I think you look awesome. And your athleticism is impressive.”
Many adults chimed in by sharing clips of themselves executing difficult routines.
Clemens is continuing to set goals for herself on the mat.
As she told TODAY Parents, "I want to start moving some skills to landing on the hard floor, not just the foam pit!"