Motivational Running Quotes
Most Lazy Runners hear me blah, blahing every week about pushing yourself, getting out of your comfort zone, working harder etc etc..a couple of times this week I've seen some eyes glazing over (very similar to the looks my teenage daughters give me when I give them a lecture!), so maybe we need some inspiration from other quarters.

I love reading about running, runners and any sporting inspirational stories..and I'm writing this tip after watching the prelude to the AFL grand Final, where they are interviewing coaches (you guys think I'm tough!) and players asking them what today means to them in their sporting lives.

One of my favourite parts of working in an AFL club was hearing the coach give the pre match speech, there would be a hush in the room and all eyes and ears hung on every word he said (similar to the ways you guys listen to me....NOT)

I believe we all could do with a little inspiration when we are out there running..so this week I want you to pick one of the quotes below that grabs you and appeals to how you feel in a run and use it on your next run, to inspire you and push you...and of course I will start with one of mine (not so motivational but if followed it really works)....

'When you want to stop...Don't'
Marie Bean, Lazy Runner

Today was not about times, it was about getting in there, enjoying the race, and enjoying the atmosphere [on winning NY marathon]
Paula Radcliffe 

I definitely feel there's room for improvement.
Roger Federer 

If you want to run a mile, then run a mile. If you want to experience another life, run a marathon.
Emil Zatopek

It is better to look ahead and prepare than to look back and regret.
Jackie Joyner-Kersee 

Show me a guy whos afraid to look bad, and I'll show you a guy you can beat every time.
Lou Brock

I always felt free when I ran. I suppose that's what was good about it.
Betty Cuthbert

You've got to stick at a thing, a particular thing, until you succeed.I feel that's the only way to succeed - by concentrating on something in particular. Once you know what you've got to do you will succeed, you will succeed.
Betty Cuthbert

We only have two things that we share in this life; we are born and we die. And what we do in between those times, we've got to be happy. I don't let the outside world deter me.
Dawn Fraser

If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude.
Maya Angelou

Never give in and never give up.
Hubert H. Humphrey

Confidence is contagious. So is lack of confidence.
Vince Lombardi

Once you learn to quit, it becomes a habit.
Vince Lombardi

Winning is not everything, but wanting to win is.
Vince Lombardi

"You must have a training routine so that what you do happens automatically.   If I got up in the morning and thought about going for a run there would often be a number of possible arguments against it.  The thing is to get out and run.   Later you can wonder whether you should have or not."
Rob de Castella

"Running well is a matter of having the patience to persevere when you are tired and not expecting instant results. The only secret is that it is consistent, often monotonous, boring, hard work. And it's tiring."
Robert de Castella

"If one can stick to the training throughout the many long years, then will power is no longer a problem. It's raining? That doesn't matter. I am tired? That's besides the point. It's simply that I just have to."
Emil Zatopek

"I have never been a killer. I'm not an aggressive personality and if I can remember any emotion I felt during a race it was fear. The greatest stimulator of my running was fear."
Herb Elliott

"You have to give the European a motive to train... but with the Kenyans they will train just because they love to run."
Brother Colm O'Connell (coach of St. Patrick's HS in the Rift Valley of Kenya)

"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent."
Calvin Coolidge

"Running is a big question mark that's there each and every day. It asks you, 'Are you going to be a wimp or are you going to be strong today?'" 
Peter Maher

"Once you're beat mentally, you might was well not even go to the starting line."
 Todd Williams

"A lot of people don't realize that about 98 percent of the running I put in is anything but glamorous: 2 percent joyful participation, 98 percent dedication!  It's a tough formula.  Getting out in the forest in the biting cold and the flattening heat, and putting in kilometer after kilometer."
Rob de Castella

"The marathon's about being in contention over the last 10K.  That's when it's about what you have in your core.  You have run all the strength, all the superficial fitness out of yourself, and it really comes down to what's left inside you.  To be able to draw deep and pull something out of yourself is one of the most tremendous things about the marathon."
Rob de Castella


"You have to forget your last marathon before you try another. Your mind can't know what's coming."
Frank Shorter, 1972 Olympic marathon gold medalist:

"If you feel bad at 10 miles, you're in trouble. If you feel bad at 20 miles, you're normal. If you don't feel bad at 26 miles, you're abnormal."
Rob de Castella, winner 1983 World Marathon Championships:

"We are different, in essence, from other men. If you want to win something, run 100 meters. If you want to experience something, run a marathon."
Emil Zatopek, Czech runner; winner of four Olympic gold medals:

"The marathon can humble you."
Bill Rodgers, winner of four Boston and four NYC marathons:

"I've learned that finishing a marathon isn't just an athletic achievement. It's a state of mind; a state of mind that says anything is possible."
John Hanc, running writer

"The difference between the mile and the marathon is the difference between burning your fingers with a match and being slowly roasted over hot coals."
Hal Higdon, running writer and coach:


"I tell our runners to divide the race into thirds. Run the first part with your head, the middle part with your personality, and the last part with your heart."
Mike Fanelli, running club coach:

"The body does not want you to do this. As you run, it tells you to stop but the mind must be strong. You always go too far for your body. You must handle the pain with strategy...It is not age; it is not diet. It is the will to succeed."
9. Jacqueline Gareau, 1980 Boston Marathon champ:

I was unable to walk for a whole week after that, so much did the race take out of me. But it was the most pleasant exhaustion I have ever known.
Emil Zatopek's description of the Olympic Marathon win in Helsinki

A marathon is like life with its ups and downs, but once you've done it you feel that you can do anything.
unknown

Ask yourself: "Can I give more?". The answer is usually: "Yes".
Paul Tergat

When people ask me why I run, I tell them, there's not really a reason, it's just the adrenalin when you start, and the feeling when you cross that finish line, and know that you are a winner no matter what place you got.
Courtney Parsons

I believe in the runner's high, and I believe that those who are passionate about running are the ones who experience it to the fullest degree possible. To me, the runner's high is a sensational reaction to a great run! It's an exhilarating feeling of satisfaction and achievement. It's like being on top of the world, and truthfully... there's nothing else quite like it!
Sasha Azevedo