Gymnastics sensation Laurie Hernandez still seeks advice from Aly Raisman, the 'Grandma' of their 2016 Olympics squad

• Laurie Hernandez was 16 years old when she competed at the 2016 Olympics as one of the Final Five.
• During the games, the star looked up to "Grandma Aly" Raisman - the oldest gymnast for Team USA.
• Hernandez told Insider that she still seeks advice from Raisman as she pursues her second Olympics.

Laurie Hernandez may be old when it comes to elite-level gymnastics, but she's never too old for the level-headed leadership of "Grandma Aly" Raisman.

Five years after she first stole hearts as a 16-year-old member of the "Final Five" squad that won gold in Rio de Janeiro, Hernandez is following in Raisman's footsteps by pursuing a second Olympics trip of her own. And even though at 20 years old - and 21 by the time the games kick off in July - Hernandez is considered a veteran in the world of gymnastics, she's still more likely to defer to "Grandma Aly" for advice than dole it out herself.

"If anything, it's usually me reaching out to like Aly and being like, 'I don't know what I'm doing!'" Hernandez told Insider while discussing her partnership with USOPC sponsor Lilly. "And she's like, 'Yes, you do.' And I'm like, 'No, I don't know.' And she's like, 'Yes, you do.'

"That's always funny," she added.

Raisman, who was 22 years old when she earned a spot on her second Olympics team and won three medals in Rio, became the de facto leader of the "Final Five" as the oldest and most experienced member of the group. She even took on the nickname "Grandma Aly" because "she goes to bed [early] and takes a lot of naps and sleeps a lot," her "Final Five" teammate Gabby Douglas said at the time.

Under Raisman's wing, Hernandez took home an individual silver medal on the balance beam as well as the team's all-around gold from her first stint in Rio. Heading into Tokyo, though, the Old Bridge Township, New Jersey, native notes that many of the younger athletes in contention for the yet-to-be-named 2020 squad are "getting things pretty well" and only tap her for guidance on occasion.

"It's not quite often, but that happens," Hernandez said. "They're smart kids. I do believe that they are very smart. Especially a lot of those that are in the mix [for Tokyo] have been to really large competitions or have been to a world championships. And so they kind of understand the groove of it."

For Hernandez, contending for a second Olympics team - and through a pandemic, no less - has come with many physical and mental obstacles. After two years away from the gym, she had to ramp up her training and adjust to her body's changes during her hiatus.

She says that partnering with Lilly, a healthcare company that develops medications and seeks to make healthy living accessible to the masses, has helped her prioritize her own physical and mental well-being throughout her Olympics bid.

"Promoting being healthy and taking care of yourself actively is just an important thing," Hernandez said. "As an athlete heading into 2021, that allows us to reach our potential in that way."