Food for Run & Thought, 18-2014

＂I am a firm believer in getting off one's butt and running. For me it isn't about the speed or the distance necessarily, it's just getting dressed and going out to run.＂

Will Starr, Runner's World Challenger

＂On every run, I discover the strength that I did not know I had. Some days it is my salvation!＂

Carrie Parker, Runner's World Challenger

＂Every day is a good day when you run. ＂

Kevin Nelson

＂Running made me feel like a bird let out of a cage. I loved it that much. ＂

Priscilla Welch, winner of the 1987 New York City Marathon

＂Running is my meditation, mind flush, cosmic telephone, mood elevator, and spiritual communion.＂

Lorraine Moller

Food for Run & Thought, 17-2014

＂At first an ordeal and then an accomplishment, the daily run becomes a staple, like bread, or wine... or air.＂

Benjamin Cheever, author and Runner's World contributor

＂Through the ups and downs of running, I have found new perspective in life. The suffering and success has made me a stronger, happier person. ＂

Christine Casady

＂I found hope, love, recovery, and life in running. In so many ways, it changed my life forever. ＂

Christine Casady

＂Running, for me, is like a cheap therapy session. It's the solitude that allows me to think a bit more clearly and "de-stress." 

Ruffin Rhodes, architect and business owner

＂It's important to remember that each footstrike carries you forward, not backward. And every time you put on your running shoes you are different in some way than you were the day before. ＂

John "The Penguin" Bingham, Going with the Flow, The Penguin Chronicles Archive

Last is just the slowest winner. 

Food for Run & Thought, 16-2014

"Running is all about having the desire to train and persevere until every fiber in your legs, mind, and heart is turned to steel. And when you've finally forged hard enough, you will have become the best runner you can be. And that's all that you can ask for."

Paul Maurer, The Gift - A Runner's Story

"It's very hard in the beginning to understand that the whole idea is not to beat the other runners. Eventually you learn that the competition is against the little voice inside you that wants you to quit."

George Sheehan 

"There are as many reasons for running as there are days in the year, years in my life. But mostly I run because I am an animal and a child, an artist and a saint. So, too, are you. Find your own play, your own self-renewing compulsion, and you will become the person you are meant to be. "

George Sheehan

"I often hear someone say I'm not a real runner. We are all runners, some just run faster than others. I never met a fake runner."

Bart Yasso

"Running allows me to set my mind free. Nothing seems impossible, nothing unattainable."

Kara Goucher

Food for Run & Thought, 15-2014

"Running is not, as it so often seems, only about what you did in your last race or about how many miles you ran last week. It is, in a much more important way, about community, about appreciating all the miles run by other runners, too."

Richard O'Brien

"I run because it's so symbolic of life. You have to drive yourself to overcome the obstacles. You might feel that you can't. But then you find your inner strength, and realize you're capable of so much more than you thought."

Arthur Blank, co-founder of The Home Depot

"Play not only keeps us young but also maintains our perspective about the relative seriousness of things. Running is play, for even if we try hard to do well at it, it is a relief from everyday cares."

Jim Fixx, author of The Complete Book of Running 

"I love the wind blowing through my hair, the different smells, the sun beating down on me, and the scenery. On my run this past Sunday, I was reminded of how great running feels when I was running along side the Rappahannock River. It was fantastic, smelling the freshly bloomed trees and bushes and watching the ripples of water just flowing down the river. Ahhhh!"

Jennifer Homendy, Runner's World Challenger

"It's my meditation and my sanity. That's what my trail running is - something I do each day to be happy."

Danelle Ballengee, world champion adventure racer

Food for Run & Thought, 14-2014

"The first person you have to inspire every day is yourself. Running will do that. "

Marc Parent, Runner's World columnist

"When I forget who I am, I remind myself by finding my stride."

Kristin Armstrong, Equilibrium, Mile Markers blog, Runner's World.com

"That's the thing about running: your greatest runs are rarely measured by racing success. They are moments in time when running allows you to see how wonderful your life is."

Kara Goucher

"Running requires endurance, character, pride, physical strength, and mental toughness. Running is a test, not a game. A test of faith, belief, will, and trust in one's self. So hardcore that it needs a category all to itself to define the pain. Running is more than a sport; it's a lifestyle."

Jessica Propst 

"What distinguishes those of us at the starting line from those of us on the couch is that we learn through running to take what the day gives us, what our body will allow us, and what our will can tolerate."

John Bingham, running writer and speaker 

Food for Run & Thought, 13-2014

"Trust your gut. You are your own best coach."

Ryan Hall, U.S. Marathoner

"I am building a fire, and everyday I train, I add more fuel. At just the right moment, I light the match."

Mia Hamm

"The smiles, the cheers, the cowbells, the laughter, the jumping out to give me high fives, the grandkids running along with me for a few moments, these are the biggest rewards for training. There's this intangible thing that sinks into my heart every single time."

Sharon Cuoto, RW Challenger of the Week

"The best way to become a mentally tough runner is to believe that you're a mentally tough runner."

Ryan Hall

"It was being a runner that mattered, not how fast or how far I could run. The joy was in the act of running and in the journey, not in the destination. We have a better chance of seeing where we are when we stop trying to get somewhere else."

John Bingham, No Need for Speed: A Beginner's Guide to the Joy of Running

Food for Run & Thought, 12-2014

"Running gives freedom. When you run you can determine your own tempo. You can choose your own course and think whatever you want. Nobody tells you what to do."

Nina Kuscik, marathoner

"As a breed, runners are a pretty gutsy bunch. We constantly push ourselves to discover limitations, then push past them." 

Bart Yasso

"Even when our heart aches, we summon the strength that maybe we didn't even know we had, and we carry on; we finish the race."

President Barack Obama at the Boston Marathon memorial service on April 18, 2013 

"Running is the ultimate faith healer, restoring belief not only in oneself but life's possibilities."

Bart Yasso

"Running has taught me to be patient, to trust the process, that anything worth doing is worth training for and doing well. It has made me a better wife, co-worker, friend, nurse, sister, daughter, and person in general."

Andi Ball, Runner's World Challenger of the Week

Food for Run & Thought, 11-2014

"Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will."

Mahatma Gandhi

"I'm overwhelmed by the strength of my body and the power of my mind. For one moment, just one second, I feel immortal."

Diana Nyad

"Some of the world's greatest feats were accomplished by people not smart enough to know they were impossible."

Doug Larson

"A run begins the moment you forget you are running. "

Adidas ad

"Toughness is in the soul and spirit, not in muscles."

Alex Karras, American football player and actor

Food for Run & Thought, 10-2014

"It's amazing how the same pace in practice can feel so much harder than on race day. Stay confident. Trust the process."

Sara Hall

"I also realize that winning doesn't always mean getting first place; it means getting the best out of yourself."

Meb Keflezighi

"Never limit where running can take you. I mean that geographically, spiritually, and of course, physically."

Bart Yasso

"Be positive, ignore the critic, follow your heart, invest in your passions, believe in your dreams and get busy making them reality."

Josh Cox, U.S. 50-K record holder

"The true but rare runner's high is a zone that we enter when everything seems to click perfectly, when time stands still, and when we can run almost without effort."

Amby Burfoot

Food for Run & Thought, 9-2014

"Running is my meditation, mind flush, cosmic telephone, mood elevator, and spiritual communion."

Lorraine Moller

"The human body is capable of amazing physical deeds. If we could just free ourselves from our perceived limitations and tap into our internal fire, the possibilities are endless."

Dean Karnazes, author of Run!: 26.2 Stories of Blisters and Bliss

"There is nothing quite so gentle, deep, and irrational as our running - and nothing quite so savage, and so wild."

Bernd Heinrich, Ph.D., author of Why We Run: A Natural History

"Just move your legs. Because if you don't think you were born to run, you're not only denying history; you're denying who you are."

Dr. Dennis Bramble, University of Utah biologist, quoted in Born to Run

"Run when you can, walk if you have to, crawl if you must; just never give up."

Dean Karnazes

Food for Run & Thought, 8-2014

'I am a firm believer in getting off one's butt and running. For me it isn't about the speed or the distance necessarily, it's just getting dressed and going out to run. "

Will Starr, Runner's World Challenger

"On every run, I discover the strength that I did not know I had. Some days it is my salvation! "

Carrie Parker, Runner's World Challenger

"Every day is a good day when you run."

Kevin Nelson

"Running made me feel like a bird let out of a cage. I loved it that much."

Priscilla Welch, winner of the 1987 New York City Marathon

"It's important to remember that each footstrike carries you forward, not backward. And every time you put on your running shoes you are different in some way than you were the day before."

John "The Penguin" Bingham, Going with the Flow, The Penguin Chronicles Archive

Food for Run & Thought, 7-2014

"At first an ordeal and then an accomplishment, the daily run becomes a staple, like bread, or wine... or air. "

Benjamin Cheever, author and Runner's World contributor

"Through the ups and downs of running, I have found new perspective in life. The suffering and success has made me a stronger, happier person. "

Christine Casady

"I found hope, love, recovery, and life in running. In so many ways, it changed my life forever. "

Christine Casady

"Running, for me, is like a cheap therapy session. It's the solitude that allows me to think a bit more clearly and "de-stress.""

Ruffin Rhodes, architect and business owner

"It's important to remember that each footstrike carries you forward, not backward. And every time you put on your running shoes you are different in some way than you were the day before. "

John "The Penguin" Bingham, Going with the Flow, The Penguin Chronicles Archive

"Last is just the slowest winner."

C. Hunter Boyd

Food for Run & Thought, 6-2014

"Running is all about having the desire to train and persevere until every fiber in your legs, mind, and heart is turned to steel. And when you've finally forged hard enough, you will have become the best runner you can be. And that's all that you can ask for. "

Paul Maurer, The Gift - A Runner's Story

"It's very hard in the beginning to understand that the whole idea is not to beat the other runners. Eventually you learn that the competition is against the little voice inside you that wants you to quit. "

George Sheehan 

"There are as many reasons for running as there are days in the year, years in my life. But mostly I run because I am an animal and a child, an artist and a saint. So, too, are you. Find your own play, your own self-renewing compulsion, and you will become the person you are meant to be. "

George Sheehan 

"I often hear someone say I'm not a real runner. We are all runners, some just run faster than others. I never met a fake runner. "

Bart Yasso

"Running allows me to set my mind free. Nothing seems impossible, nothing unattainable. "

Kara Goucher

Food for Run & Thought, 5-2014

"What is the purpose of any one workout? Enjoyment? Improvement? Coach said so? Whatever, the hour you run often is the best hour of the day."

Hal Higdon

"We all have dreams. But in order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline, and effort."

Jesse Owens 

"No matter how old I get, the race remains one of life's most rewarding experiences."

George Sheehan

"I run, therefore I am. And given the years improved fitness adds to our lives, if I did not run, maybe I would no longer be."

Hal Higdon

"Believe that you can run farther or faster. Believe that you're young enough, old enough, strong enough, and so on to accomplish everything you want to do. Don't let worn-out beliefs stop you from moving beyond yourself."

John Bingham

Food for Run & Thought, 4-2014

"Passion is pushing myself when there is no one else around—just me and the road." 

Ryan Shay

"The advice I have for beginners is the same philosophy that I have for runners of all levels of experience and ability – consistency, a sane approach, moderation and making your running an enjoyable, rather than dreaded, part of your life."

Bill Rodgers, four-time winner of the Boston Marathon

"Hill workouts are kind of like doing singing scales or repeated high notes - I hate it, but if I do easy stuff all the time, I won't improve."

Lisette Oropesa, Soprano, The Metropolitan Opera

"I run because it's so symbolic of life. You have to drive yourself to overcome the obstacles. You might feel that you can't. But then you find your inner strength, and realize you're capable of so much more than you thought."

Arthur Blank, co-founder of The Home Depot

"When people ask me why I run, I tell them, there's not really a reason, it's just the adrenaline 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

Food for Run & Thought, 3-2014

"Don't worry about your time or your distance, just go. And, you can always run a little farther. You won't die if you run to the next mailbox. "
Brad Wilkinson

"Running has taught me, perhaps more than anything else, that there's no reason to fear starting lines...or other new beginnings."

Amby Burfoot 

"Running is a road to self-awareness and reliance-you can push yourself to extremes and learn the harsh reality of your physical and mental limitations or coast quietly down a solitary path watching the earth spin beneath your feet." 

Doris Brown Heritage, first woman to run sub 5-minute mile

"I ran and ran every day, and I acquired a sense of determination, this sense of spirit that I would never, never, give up, no matter what else happened. "
Wilma Rudolph 

"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, author 

Food for Run & Thought, 2-2014

"Running taught me valuable lessons. In cross-country competition, training counted more than intrinsic ability, and I could compensate for a lack of natural aptitude with diligence and discipline. I applied this in everything I did."

Nelson Mandela

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

Emil Zatopek

"Running in the snow has its own special qualities - softness, quiet, the white landscape - and it can make you feel like a kid again."

Claire Kowalchik, The Complete Book of Running for Women 

"You have to get out of bed first - that's the hardest part. Of course, I have sore knees and a bad back, but so what? I'm 80!"

David Arst, winner of the 80-to-84 division at the USA Triathlon Sprint National Championships

"The secret to racing is not about digging deep for more than you're capable of, it's about knowing exactly what you're capable of. 

The secret to racing is not about digging deep for more than you're capable of, it's about knowing exactly what you're capable of. 

Jenny Simpson 

Food for Run & Thought, 1-2014

"Good things come slow, especially in distance running."

Bill Dellinger, three-time Olympian in the 5000 meters and former coach at the University of Oregon 

"Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going. "

Jim Ryun 

"I run because it's my passion, and not just a sport. Every time I walk out the door, I know why I'm going where I'm going and I'm already focused on that special place where I find my peace and solitude. Running, to me, is more than just a physical exercise... it's a consistent reward for victory! "

Sasha Azevedo, actress

"If you always put limits on what you can do, physical or anything else, it'll spread over into the rest of your life. It'll spread into your work, into your morality, into your entire being. There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. "

Bruce Lee

"When it's pouring rain and you're bowling along through the wet, there's satisfaction in knowing you're out there and the others aren't. "

Peter Snell, Olympic gold medalist