50 Famous Fitness Quotes to Power Your Next Workout

The 50 Quotes

1. The only bad workout is the one that didn’t happen. — Unknown
2. If it doesn’t challenge you, it won’t change you. — Unknown
3. No pain, no gain. — Popular slogan
4. Your body can stand almost anything. It’s your mind you have to convince. — Unknown
5. The last three or four reps is what makes the muscle grow. This area of pain divides the champion from someone else. — Arnold Schwarzenegger
6. Don’t count the days; make the days count. — Muhammad Ali
7. Sweat is fat crying. — Unknown
8. Don’t wish for it; work for it. — Unknown
9. The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary. — Vince Lombardi
10. Train insane or remain the same. — Jillian Michaels (popularized)
11. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. — Wayne Gretzky (as applied to fitness risks/progress)
12. Fitness is not about being better than someone else. It’s about being better than you used to be. — Unknown
13. Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment. — Jim Rohn
14. Take care of your body. It’s the only place you have to live. — Jim Rohn
15. A year from now you may wish you had started today. — Unknown
16. The body achieves what the mind believes. — Unknown
17. You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great. — Zig Ziglar (popular attribution)
18. To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift. — Steve Prefontaine
19. Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it. — Henry David Thoreau (often quoted)
20. The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person’s determination. — Tommy Lasorda (common motivational attribution)
21. Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will. — Mahatma Gandhi (applied to fitness mindset)
22. You are stronger than you think. — Unknown
23. Results happen over time, not overnight. Work hard, stay consistent, and be patient. — Unknown
24. The only bad decision is the one you didn’t make. Move. — Unknown
25. When you feel like quitting, think about why you started. — Unknown
26. A champion is someone who gets up when he can’t. — Jack Dempsey (paraphrased)
27. The pain you feel today will be the strength you feel tomorrow. — Unknown
28. It never gets easier. You just get stronger. — Unknown
29. Little by little, a little becomes a lot. — Tanzanian proverb (widely used in fitness)
30. Don’t limit your challenges. Challenge your limits. — Unknown
31. The real workout starts when you want to stop. — Unknown
32. Great things never came from comfort zones. — Unknown
33. Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you get there. — Bo Jackson (commonly cited)
34. Your health is an investment, not an expense. — Unknown
35. The pain is temporary. Quitting lasts forever. — Lance Armstrong (popularized phrase; widely reused)
36. Action is the foundational key to all success. — Pablo Picasso (applied to training)
37. Move it or lose it. — Common fitness aphorism
38. You don’t find willpower — you create it. — Unknown
39. Fitness is like a relationship. You can’t cheat and expect it to work. — Unknown
40. Remember why you started. — Unknown
41. The clock is ticking. Are you becoming the person you want to be? — Greg Plitt (fitness model/actor; paraphrased motivational line)
42. The more you sweat in training, the less you bleed in battle. — Navy SEAL/athletic paraphrase (military aphorism adapted)
43. Sore today. Strong tomorrow. — Unknown
44. Your limitation—it’s only your imagination. — Unknown
45. Action expresses priorities. — Mahatma Gandhi (applied to habit formation)
46. Progress is progress, no matter how small. — Unknown
47. You don’t get the ass you want by sitting on it. — Unknown (light-hearted gym quip)
48. Be stronger than your excuses. — Unknown
49. Exercise should be regarded as a tribute to the heart. — Gene Tunney (boxing champion; sentiment commonly quoted)
50. The only time success comes before work is in the dictionary. — Repeated for emphasis (Vince Lombardi)