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Quotes
for the Runner |
Running |
| If you have to ask us
why we run, then you will never understand.
"I always loved running...it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs." - Jesse Owens “Running
is the classical road to self-consciousness, self-awareness and self-reliance.
Independence is the outstanding characteristic of the runner. He learns
the harsh reality of his physical and mental limitations when he runs.
He learns that personal commitment, sacrifice and determination are his
only means to betterment. Runners only get promoted through self-conquest.” |
Training |
“I
don’t train. I just run my 3-15 miles a day.” “Somewhere
in the world someone is training when you are not. When you race him,
he will win.” "Just
remember this: No one ever won the olive wreath with an impressive training
diary." “Good
things come slow - especially in distance running.” Love the hills and they will love you back. "Hills
are speedwork in disguise." If you want to run with the big dogs, you can't train with the puppies. "What
fun is it? Why all that hard, exhausting work? Where does it get you?
Where's the good of it? It is one of the strange ironies of this strange
life that those who work the hardest, who subject themselves to the strictest
discipline, who give up certain pleasurable things in order to achieve
a goal, are the happiest..." "What
a player does best, he should practice least. Practice is for problems." "Training
is principally an act of faith. The athlete must believe in its efficacy;
he must believe that through training he will become fitter and stronger;
that by constant repetition of the same movements he will become more
skillfull and his muscles more relaxed...He must be a fanatic for hard
work and enthusiastic enough to enjoy it." "If
you train hard, you'll not only be hard, you'll be hard to beat." "There
are no shortcuts to any place worth going." "I've always felt that long, slow distance produces long, slow runners." - Sebastian Coe "The
greatest treadmill running song, of course, is 'Black Dog' from Led Zeppelin
IV." If
you push the human body, it will respond.” "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." |
Pain |
"Men, today we die a little." - Emil Zatopek at the start of the Olympic Marathon "It hurts up to a point and then it doesn't get any worse." - Ann Trason Suffering is inevitable, misery optional. “There
is no such thing as bad weather, just soft people.” "When
the guy says go, you start to suffer -- or you might as well not be out
there. It's a small piece of your life, make it hurt." "The
Truth is that Running Hurts. No one gets faster without meeting their
personal pain barrier straight on. No amount of junk miles, fun runs or
affirmations are going to get you over the hill at the five mile mark
in a 10k. However, what will pull you through is solid prep with hard
hill runs and interval work." "Pain
is weakness leaving the body." "(Scientific
testing) can't determine how the mind will tolerate pain in a race. Sometimes,
I say, 'Today I can die.'" |
Racing |
|
When
asked about his tortured expression during races, Emil Zatopek said, "It
is not gymnastics or ice skating you know." "The gun goes off and everthing changes... the world changes... and nothing else really matters." - Patti Sue Plummer "Inevitably,
there's some official bellowing: "Come on! Run through the chute!
Keep it movin'...Keep it movin'!" But you're bent over, gasping,
admiring with salt-stung eyes the good, honest mud of battle, the trickle
of blood from a spike wound, splattered on your still-quivering legs and
too-old (but still lucky) racing shoes. What could be more beautiful?" "It's
an incredible feeling, 110,000 people -- energy at that level. What I
realized from watching the first day of competition was that athletes
that got excited and happy and got the fans into it and clapping, they
did better. The athletes that took it too seriously, they didn't do as
well as they'd hoped. " "There
will come a point in the race, when you alone will need to decide. You
will need to make a choice. Do you really want it? You will need to decide."
"Road racing is rock 'n roll; track is Carnegie Hall." Marty Liquori "I
made the school team, and when I won in a match against another school
it was the greatest moment of my life--even greater than the European
titles. In those school races, I always ran my legs off. There were girls
watching and I wanted to impress them. I was foaming and vomiting, but
I won." Any
race you can walk away from is a bad race. Coach Pete Waters |
Strategy |
"I
love controlling a race, chewing up an opponent. Let's get down and dirty.
Let's fight it out. It's raw, animalistic, with no one to rely on but
yourself. There's no better feeling than that." "Grind it out. Hanging on just one second longer than your competition makes you the winner." “The
problem with big kickers is they often lose to other big kickers.” "A
miler's kick does the trick...A miler's kick does the trick..." "Begin
at the beginning and go on till you come to the end; then stop." "Don't
attack a hill from the very bottom—it's bigger than you are!" |
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