19 Fitness Quotes on Mindset and Motivation from High Performers
Unlock the mental strategies of athletes and high achievers to overcome challenges, defy the odds and crush your fitness goals.
By Kelan Ern Updated: 10/30/2025
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Let Yourself Experience Hard Things
There’s plenty of time when I’m out running where it hurts just as much as everyone else and it’s about kind of accepting that as part of the journey and in order to get to the top of the mountain: the discomfort, the fatigue and the struggle is part of that. And I think once you appreciate it, you don’t try to avoid it. -Scott Jurek, ultramarathoner
Load Your Mental Toolbox
If we know that we want to have a good day every day, what are we going to load in our toolbox every day? Is it going to be exercise were loading in? Is it going to be inspirational reading? Is it going to be pondering? Is it going to be praying? Is it going to be service? What is it going to be so that you can make sure that you can be successful? -Donna Jean Wilde, 2x Guinness World Record Holder
A True Summit
A summit isn’t just a place on a mountain. A summit exists in our hearts and minds. It is a tiny scrap of a dream made real, indisputable proof that our lives have meaning. A summit is a symbol that with the force of our will and the power of our legs, our backs, and our two hands, we can transform our lives into whatever we choose them to be, whatever our hands are strong enough to create. -Erik Weihenmayer, mountaineer and first blind person to summit Everest
Develop Your Power
Training is a skill of disciplining your mind, developing your power and supplying endurance to your body. Proper training is for the purpose of building your body and avoiding activities or substances that will deteriorate or injure it. -Bruce Lee, legendary martial artist and actor
I Want Better Than Your Best
Sometimes people – especially people over 40 – underestimate what they really are capable of. They believe they’re not capable of doing something great. I tell people who are over 40, “I don’t want your best. I want better than that. I want better than what you perceive your best is. -Jack LaLanne, legendary fitness coach
Remember You're Lucky
You are so lucky to be out here. You are so lucky that your body can do this. That your mind can handle this and that you’re here right now in these amazing mountains and pushing yourself to try and do something that no one else has ever done before. -Tyler Andrews, record-breaking runner and mountaineer
Focus on Immediate Rewards
Focus on how working out makes you feel immediately afterward, not long-term goals. After each workout, spend a minute mentally noting the positive sensations: increased energy, better mood, or even just the satisfaction of having moved your body. This trains your brain to associate exercise with immediate rewards rather than distant, abstract benefits that could otherwise be discouraging. -Dr. Kevin Woods
Do It When You Get Home
I exercise the minute I get home. The reason? Because there are just so many distractions once I walk through that door. If I don’t get my exercise done right off the bat, there’s a 9/10 chance I won’t do it at all. So I’ve trained myself to go out and do it the moment I get home, no matter what else is going on. - Dr. Brian Hoeflinger, neurosurgeon
Alone With Your Mind
There’s a certain loneliness and isolation that comes at the gym. It’s just you against the heavy weights… in the moment, when you’re going for that ninth rep or you’ve put a little extra weight on the bar, nobody’s gonna do it for you. It’s just you alone in your mind seeing if you can go a little bit further than you thought you could go. – David Corenswet, American actor Superman
Work at 80%
Not going beyond 80% is about enjoying runs and not putting all the effort in every day, which can make my muscles and my body tired… when you run under 80% in a comfortable way, it will be easy for you to transfer that to 100% at the right time. -Eliud Kipchoge, 2x Olympic Champion long-distance runner
Don't Wait for a Break
Most guys don’t realize that the hard work they put in isn’t enough. They look around and wonder why everyone else has success. They want to know why they can’t catch a break. You know why it doesn’t happen for them? It’s because those who reap the benefits of life don’t wait for breaks to happen: they make them happen. It’s an aggressive approach to life and an endless pursuit that will lead to what you want.” - Joe Manganiello, American actor, director, author
Quarterback Mentality
It’s like a quarterback mentality, you just have to play the next play. Sometimes, if you step back and look at your upcoming schedule, with all these different commitments, it can feel overwhelming. For me, I just focus on what’s next. Prepare as you need to, and take care of your body and mind to be successful that day. Then, focus on tomorrow when it comes. -Jesse Palmer, former pro quarterback
Keep Records
I think one of the best ways to motivate people when they’re training is to really keep records and to show them improvement. And then when people see that improvement, then it moves the intrinsic motivation where it’s not us dependent to motivate them and they see the benefit of what they’re doing. - Corey Twine. human performance specialist and astronaut strength, conditioning, and rehabilitation specialist
Turn Off The Pity-Party
I found doing it every day, you just get used to it. Your body and mind just get used to the routine and you turn off that pity-party that you had with yourself and get on with it. It is just flicking that switch in your head and say, ‘We’re doing this.’ -Helen Ryvar, Guinness World Record Holder for most consecutive half-marathons
Fight the Good Fight
There were many days when I wanted to quit, when I didn’t want to train any longer. Leading up to the event, I faced numerous obstacles. But once I’m there, in the water, fighting the fight, it’s what I’ve dreamed about. -Chris Solarz, 9x Guinness World Record Runner
Give it Everything I've Got
If I have a mindset that says, ‘I'm going to give all I've got to everything I'm doing, including the stuff I don't even like,’ my worst day will be better than the average person's best day. -Greg Harden, peak performance coach
Don't Listen to Your Thoughts
Your body is crying for attention because you’re pushing your body. But you don’t have to listen to the thoughts. You don’t have to board that train. You want to facilitate your brain to be an asset, not a detriment. -Dr. Shannon Baird, mental performance consultant
Stick to a Proven Formula for 30 Days
To this day, I don’t believe it when people tell me that they have tried something that will help them make some kind of change and complain that it didn’t work. If you stick to the proven formula of doing something for thirty days and believe in it and in yourself, a change will happen. But you have to stick to it. I have seen this plan succeed in too many people, including myself, to discount it. -Dan Gable, Olympic champion wrestler
A Form of Meditation
If your mind is involved in your workout, there is no way you can lose. I look at it as a form of meditation! The more I focus on the lift that I’m doing, the more present I am in the moment, meaning I can feel exactly how my body reacts to the lift. Get to know your body, and get your mind working in sync with it. -Arnold Schwarzenegger
Kelan Ern Elite Fitness Coaching
P.S.For more mindset-infused tips to help you transform your health and fitness, check out a free issue ofMind-Body Breakthroughs. Each week I share advice from the fittest people on the planet and their tips, strategies and mindsets for helping you breakthrough to the next level.
