Quotes & Sayings About Marathons

The act of running is simple, one foot in front of the other. The art of becoming a runner is achieved through a new mindset and commitment to change, especially if it's new to you. It's tough, challenging, painful, sometimes lonely, regularly uncomfortable and often excruciating ... but the rewards are second to none. — Terry Lander

I got plenty of cautions that one or two of these marathons was all a man should do in a lifetime. — Clarence DeMar

When I was first running marathons, we were sailing on a flat earth. We were afraid we'd get big legs, grow mustaches, not get boyfriends, not be able to have babies. Women thought that something would happen to them, that they'd break down or turn into men, something shadowy, when they were only limited by their own society's sense of limitations. — Kathrine Switzer

When I was a kid in the U.S., 'Doctor Who' wasn't really on, but you would occasionally catch an episode. Different stations did marathons. — Holly Black

This is your first marathon. Possibly, you'll want it to be your last. Focus on future races draws energy from the one in front of you. Like the mileage that comprises them, train for marathons one at a time. — Gina Greenlee

Since I was forty and definitely slipping, I have won seven full marathons, got second six times, and third four times ... I'm wondering what I can do after I'm fifty. — Clarence DeMar

I adore watching movies; movie marathons are my favorite pastime. I can watch up to five movies back to back. I also love music and like reading whenever I get the time. — Priyanka Chopra

Financial winners don't run sprints, they run marathons. They don't rush. They do it step by step over time. — Dave Ramsey

Lies run sprints, but the truth runs marathons. — Michael Jackson

Marathon: (noun)
A popular form of overpriced torture wherein participants wake up at ass-o-clock in the morning and stand in the freezing cold until it's time to run, at which point they miserably trot for a god-awful interval of time that could be better spent sleeping in and/or consuming large quantities of beer and cupcakes.
See also: masochism, awfulness, "a bunch of bullshit", boob-chafing, cupcake deprivation therapy — Matthew Inman

'Star Trek' was a big thing for me. I kind of grew up with that. And 'Twilight Zone' is one of my all-time favorite shows. In fact me and Sam Witwer from 'Being Human' sit down and have marathons to get our little 'Twilight Zone' fix. — Mark Pellegrino

Not just starting marathons but actually finishing them ... (no matter how long it takes) will always lead to making a better you. — Timothy Pina

I might have to do the London Marathon. I like crowds, so that is why I like the big marathons. — Cara Buono

If you can run six, you can run 10," he said, noshing on an energy bar. "Run 10 and you can run 13. That's how it works. You have three to four more miles in you than you think. — Gina Greenlee

I have ten marathons under my belt, including four New York races and one Boston. — Harvey MacKay

My brother was a big marathoner. He was a great collegiate runner at Beloit College. He won his conference's races, and he did tons of marathons. I would go out and run with him every once in a while just to hang out with him. — Tate Donovan

I have so much to grapple with, I don't think too much about me. People call it the "dance of a thousand egos" when you make a movie. If only I had time to worry when I was making a movie about what the hell I was doing. It's sort of a marathon every day. And then at the end of it, you beg the producers for five more marathons. — Andrew Niccol

We're always trotting out some story of a ninety-seven-year-old who runs marathons, as if such cases were not miracles of biological luck but reasonable expectations for all. Then, when our bodies fail to live up to this fantasy, we feel as if we somehow have something to apologize for. — Atul Gawande

When I was around thirty, I met my own personal challenge and finished a few marathons under three hours, and I have completed many long bicycle tours. — Wolfgang Ketterle

I am much more wired to be an athlete than anything else. I understand the 'hard work = payoff' equation in sports. I run marathons and I box. And that's my Puerto Rican flag hanging in Freddie Roach's Wild Card Boxing gym. I gave it to him. My last N.Y.C. marathon time I ran in three hours flat. — Kirk Acevedo

For every runner who tours the world running marathons, there are thousands who run to hear the leaves and listen to the rain, and look to the day when it is suddenly as easy as a bird in flight. — George Sheehan

None of the longest-lived people ran marathons or pumped iron. They live exactly as their grandparents before them - surrounded by family and friends. — Dan Buettner

I remember thinking that a girdle was barbaric, and that never in a million years would I treat myself like a sleeping bag being shoved into a stuff sack. Never! Instead, I would run marathons and work out and be in perfect shape and reject the tyranny of the girdle forever. — Susan Orlean

I have several close friends who have run marathons, a word that is actually derived from two Swahili words: mara, which means 'to die a horrible death', and thon, which means 'for a stupid T-shirt.' Look it up. — Celia Rivenbark

My dad and I used to do movie marathons when I was a kid at the Chinese Theatre, and I just remember thinking, 'One day I want to have a movie here' And then later on, when 'Save The Last Dance' premiered there, that was definitely a full circle moment. — Bianca Lawson

In the novelist's profession, as far as I'm concerned, there's no such thing as winning or losing. Maybe numbers of copies sold, awards won, and critics' praise serve as outward standards for accomplishment in literature, but none of them really matter. What's crucial is whether your writing attains the standards you've set for yourself. Failure to reach that bar is not something you can easily explain away. When it comes to other people, you can always come up with a reasonable explanation, but you can't fool yourself. In this sense, writing novels and running full marathons are very much alike. — Haruki Murakami

With the publication of Running & Being in 1978, George Sheehan's voice became the voice of a movement, sounding a clarion call to hundreds of thousands of people to abandon their sedentary ways, take to the streets, and run. Today, there are millions of us lacing up our running shoes, training for 5-Ks, 10-Ks, half-marathons, and marathons - each trudging the same path of fitness and self-discovery that he blazed decades before. — George Sheehan

I'm a very competitive person ... I've run 12 marathons! I kayaked around Manhattan 29 miles in October! I ran the Berkshire Hathaway 5K! And I want every part of the business to compete - and play to win. — Steve Burke

It hit us all of a sudden, one night after one of these mouth-marathons, that anyone who has a complaint ought to have to qualify and be certified first. I mean, here's somebody who thinks it's just awful about the dirty water and the foul air. What is he doing about the solid waste he creates in his own house? What kind of poison-factory is he driving, and does he keep it running in such a way as to minimize the junk it puts into the air? Does he support government people he knows are corrupt, or by apathy just let them go on corrupting? The more we heard this kind of crap from these hobby gripers, the more we felt that a man should qualify to complain, just as he has to qualify to drive a bus or cut an appendix or run a ferryboat. Or vote. And if we were going to be honest about it, we had to look at ourselves. Point a finger at anybody and you'll find you have three fingers pointing at you. — Theodore Sturgeon

I learned that people in wheelchairs are allowed to have marathons ... which, to me, seems like cheating, but what are you gonna say? — Sarah Silverman

Beyond racing, I just love the art form of running, of conceiving new ideas like the 50 Marathons in 50 States in 50 Days. It's the ultimate expression of what I love to do, which is run, and travel, and see this great country. — Dean Karnazes

I do a lot of marathons as training runs. If I'm somewhere and there's a marathon, I'll sign up and just go run it. — Dean Karnazes

Know why people run marathons? he told Dr. Bramble. Because running is rooted in our collective imagination, and our imagination is rooted in running. Language, art, science; space shuttles, Starry Night, intravascular surgery; they all had their roots in our ability to run. Running was the superpower that made us human - which means it's a superpower all humans possess. — Christopher McDougall

Marathons are good training goals. — Jason Bateman

My new obsession is 'Storage Wars.' I don't know how such a simple show concept can be so addicting, but I can sit and watch marathons of it. — Nathan Kress

My dad was a big runner. Growing up, I watched him do half marathons, and he was always running six or seven miles. — Natalie Morales

If the human body recognized agony and frustration, people would never run marathons, have babies, or play baseball. — Carlton Fisk

When I'm working on a novel, I generally do write every day, but in between those marathons, I take breaks. My brain needs time to recharge. — Marie Brennan

In running, it doesn't matter whether you come in first, in the middle of the pack, or last. You can say, 'I have finished.' There is a lot of satisfaction in that. — Fred Lebow

I like making comics and animation because it takes such a long time. I'm not a runner of the 100 meter. I like marathons. The longer it takes, the better I feel. — Marjane Satrapi

I believe people run marathons every day of their lives in one way or another, and we need to remember to give ourselves the finishers' medals we deserve. — Zoe Koplowitz

B-b-but who will I have cleaning marathons with?"
"Casey. I'll be there in spirit."
"She's not neurotic and cranky like you."
"You'll miss that, ay?"
"Hell yes, I'll miss that! When you're obsessive and pissy, you tell those floors who's boss. They won't shine like that when Casey scrubs them. And don't get me started on our Covenant Series discussions. The girl thinks Alex should pick Seth. Seth, Em. How can I clean with someone who isn't Team Aiden? It's like ... madness. Madness on Earth. The fucking apocalypse - "
"Whitney," I chuckled, squeezing her tighter, "I assure you, you'll survive. The second she starts running her mouth about Aiden, just spray her with bleach. That'll teach her a lesson."
-Emma and Whitney — Rachael Wade

In racing marathons, one does not see the dropouts make fun of those who continue; failed runners actually cheer on those who continue the race, wishing they were still in it. Not so with the marathon of discipleship in which some dropouts then make fun of the spiritual enterprise of which they were so recently a part! — Neal A. Maxwell

Marathons are hard because of the physical pain, the pounding on the muscles, joints, tendons. — Lance Armstrong

In all the Kalahari Desert, only six true hunters remained. The renegades agreed to let Louis hang around, an offer he took to the extreme; once installed, Louis acted like an unemployed in-law, basically squatting with the Bushmen for the next four years ... He learned to keep his campfire burning and tent zipped even on the most sweltering nights, since packs of hyenas were known to drag people from open shelters and tear out their throats. He leaned that if you stumble upon an angry lioness and her cubs, you stand tall and make her back down, but in the same situation with a rhino, you run like hell. (p. 234) Know why people run marathons? he said ... Because running is rooted in our collective imagination, and our imagination is rooted in running. Language, art, science; space shuttles ... intravascular surgery, they all had their roots in our ability to run. Running was the superpower that made us human- which means it's a superpower all humans possess. (p. 239) — Christopher McDougall

If you look back at my marathons and ask whether I would swap one of them for my one balls-up, of course I would. But you can't choose. You have to make the best of it on the day. — Paula Radcliffe

This wasn't just an attack against the Boston Marathon ... It was an attack against the American public and our democratic use of the streets. We have used our public roadways for annual parades, protest marches, presidential inaugurations, marathons, and all manner of other events. The roads belong to us, and their use represents an important part of our free and democratic tradition. — Amby Burfoot

I miss my Dad. My Dad loved cheesy monster movies, so we'd have Godzilla movie marathons. Those are some of my favorite memories, laughing at how the monster outfits were so bad, like black garbage bags for heads. — Ahmet Zappa

When I was running the marathons in Munich, I always trained by myself. Between the demands of graduate work and a young family, I had to train at unusual hours. A few times, I ran home from my lab late at night, which was 20 kilometers out of town. — Wolfgang Ketterle

Marathons don't come to you overnight. — Sebastian Coe

My brain was fine, but I did not feel like myself. My body was frail and weak - the person who could run half marathons was a distant memory - and that, too, shapes your identity. Racking back pain can mold an identity; fatigue and nausea can, as well. — Paul Kalanithi

Novel writing is the slowest art form in the world. It is not a sprint. It is not even a marathon. It is a series of marathons that stretch over and over across a continent. — Mohsin Hamid

If people were possessed by reason, running marathons would never work. But we are not creatures of reason. We are creatures of passion. — Noel Carroll

I've been an exercise maniac most of my adult life, running marathons and triathlons, doing that as a regular way of life. I ran eight miles a day, every day for 29 years. — Wayne Dyer

There's a reason why you never see large-chested women finishing marathons first. They've been beaten to death by their breasts around Mile 5. It ain't pretty. — Dawn Dais

No doubt a brain and some shoes are essential for marathon success, although if it comes down to a choice, pick the shoes. More people finish marathons with no brains than with no shoes. — Don Kardong

Marathons are about tenacity as much as talent. — John Bingham

On the day of the race, as I run those very streets, will I be able to fully enjoy this autumn in New York? Or will I be too preoccupied? I won't know until I actually start running. If there's one hard and fast rule about marathons, it's that. — Haruki Murakami

We are all inspired by the incredible stories of handicapped people who write novels with their toes, cancer victims who run marathons for cancer research, bereaved parents who set up memorial funds for their lost children. How much easier is it for most of us to be small heroes simply by taking responsibility for our daily lives and transcending our ordinary obstacles? — Danah Zohar

Our friendship is made of bendy straws, long midnight letters,
my so-called life marathons, sleepless sleepovers, diner milk shakes, apron strings, a belief in beauty,
sucking helium, and the most trust I've ever felt for anyone, including myself. — David Levithan

'Forensic Files' is amazing! I love it! There were marathons happening all the time in college. That show, because it's always on at night, was always better than any scary movie I could put on, because it was 'real.' — Cory Michael Smith

I knew how to block out my issues in a sprint, but in marathons I ran out of gas. Consistency became a critical problem. On days that I was inspired, I was unstoppable. But other days I would play bad chess. The time had come for me to learn the science of long-term, healthy, self-sustaining peak performance. — Josh Waitzkin

Know why people run marathons? ... Because running is rooted in our collective imagination, and our imagination is rooted in running. Language, art, science; space shuttles, Starry Night, intravascular surgery; they all had their roots in our ability to run. Running was the superpower that made us human - which means its a superpower all humans posses. — Christopher McDougall

Wounded Warriors tell me they're not just going to walk again, they're going to run, and they're going to run marathons! — Michelle Obama

Just as you can't become a marathon runner by watching marathons on TV, likewise for science, you have to go through the thought processes of doing science and not just watch your instructor do it. — Eric Mazur

For all the marathons I've run, including the Ironmans that I've run, immediately after the race, I clean myself up, do whatever I need to do to make sure I'm okay, and I get right back out there, and I cheer people on. Because it's the people who come in late in the race I find most inspiring. — Casey Neistat