Michael Phelps -- Couch Potato!

Taking Short Break From Exercise, And Taking It All In

(CBS)  Michael Phelps is enjoying some downtime after his historic performance at the Summer Olympics in Beijing.

The champion swimmer won more gold medals at one Olympics, eight, than anyone ever had, surpassing the mark of seven set by fellow American swimmer Mark Spitz. Phelps also set seven world records in Beijing, and has 16 Olympic medals in all, 14 of them gold.

Phelps just got back to the United States, and says the attention he's getting, while expected, is still surprising.

"It's kind of strange," he told co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez on The Early Show plaza Thursday -- as soon as we walked off of the plane, people were doing double-takes. It's kind of fun to watch people's reactions. But I'm enjoying every minute along the way, and I'm just having fun."

Phelps says he's "just trying to take it all in and remember every experience I've had."

He says in his blog that he couldn't wait to be on the plane home from overseas and just relax.

And, he told Rodriguez, he's had "a little R&R here and there, but I think, over the next month-and-a-half, I'll be able to settle down a little bit more and hopefully get settled in my new place and have some downtime."

And that includes no workouts for awhile. Phelps already has his sights set on the Games in London in four years, but says he won't be training "for the next few months. Just taking some time off. Actually, I haven't exercised at all since my last day of competition (over a week ago). But I think I need to start doing something. I'm getting kind of antsy just sitting around!"

Phelps says all that's happened hasn't really hit him yet: "In Beijing, I had to really focus on one event at a time. And once that event was done, I had to put it behind me. That's just sort of where my mind frame was during the meet. And once it was over, I don't think everything has really set in, but I think, over the next few months and years, I think it really will set in, and I'm proud of everything that I've done and I'm happy I had this opportunity."

After winning his last gold in a relay, Phelps recalls, he and his teammates "all had sort of like a group huddle ... and we were talking a little bit about, you know, sort of the real definition of teamwork and what it means to each and every one of us. We're all just thankful to have he team we had and (that) we were able to be successful."

Phelps was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated with all eight of his gold medals around his neck, in a shot reminiscent of the one of Mark Spitz on the cover of the same magazine after Spitz' Olympic wins.

And Phelps says of the shot, "The medals are a little crooked, but it's a cool shot. When I first was taking it, I had never had them all on at once, and I never realized how heavy it was. But it was a fun picture, and I'm glad I was able to take it like that. It looks pretty cool, I think."

So the heavy metal of the medals wasn't a heavy burden!

Phelps wouldn't tell Rodriguez whether he's seeing anyone at the moment, saying he wants to keep that part of his life private.

He was in New York in part to announce a grant from VISA to the YMCA of Greater New York to help the "Y" expand its youth swimming programs and inspire the next generation of Olympic athletes.

And Rodriguez had a surprise for Phelps, a video game lover: Activision provided a copy of "Call of Duty 5," which isn't coming out until November. The company even named a character after him. A close friend tells The Early Show Phelps loves the game and would having the upcoming version early.

Not that he needs a free version. He's already being mentioned with the likes of sports icons such as Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan, and is likely to make tens of millions of dollars in endorsements, experts say.

[whiskyrokkr]

I''d say he deserves some down time.

[cricketmk3]

Michael Phelps is phenomenal!! Look at his resume on wikipedia...AWESOME! I hope he continues to be a positive role model for us all!

[dargay]

sterling789:

I see you are already looking for Obama''s replacement after 2016!

[sterling789-2009]

Michael Phelps is a great swimmer. No one debates that ... it is a fact. He is so likable, so genuine in appearance and consistantly likable. I want to write him in for president but he is not yet old enough to hold the office. Anyone can get experts on worldly topics but how can you beat the image of Michael Phelps? You cannot do it...

To every good thing that happens to Michael Phelps, money, privelage, fame... whatever he gets... he earned.

Take your time Michael... relax and enjoy... we as Americans'' have waitied a long time for the likes of you... and we are enjoying your success and your charater right along with you and your family.