Be a Grizzly!!!

A very long time ago a young un-wise teenager (me) honestly thought that self-development books and inspirational quotes were out there to help the simple minded find a way to reach mediocrity. Eventually I learned how wrong I was. I love reading self-development books. Some, of course, are garbage, but many either help re-enforce behaviors that I’ve already found to be useful, some help me refine my thinking and some actually open my eyes to whole new ideas.

Regarding inspirational quotes, anyone that knows me knows that I’m a big fan. What I love about using quotes, either out loud or using my inner voice, is how simple and transferable they can be. I won’t spoil your interoperation of each of these but as an example look at one of my favorites from author and strength coach Dan John “I said it was simple. Not easy.” This can apply to a workout program, to a weight loss program, to dealing with addiction, to finally finishing that degree. You name it, there are so many things in life that people put off because they confuse the difficulty of the plan with the effort. Below are quotes I use quite often and have for years, in no particular order. Most come from books I’ve read or classes I’ve taken — even a few from some solid heavy metal songs.

I hope you enjoy these and that at least of few of them stick with you.

“If you’re going to be a bear, be a grizzly.”
-Mahatma Gandhi (or maybe George Hyde Preston but Gandhi sounds funner_

“Eat like an adult”
-Dan John

“If you want to get stronger, lift weights.”
-Dan John

“I said it was simple. Not easy.”
-Dan John

“The best tonic for soreness is to do the movement that got you sore in the first place.”
-Dan John

“If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants.”
–Issac Newton

“Science is not only a disciple of reason but also one of romance and passion.”
–Stephen Hawking

“Anything in life worth having is worth working for.”
-Andrew Carnegie

“There is little success where there is little laughter.”
-Andrew Carnegie

“The man who dies thus rich dies disgraced.”
-Andrew Carnegie

“A feeble body weakens the mind.¨
–Jean-Jacques Rousseau

¨The groundwork for all happiness is good health.¨
–Leigh Hunt

¨Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body, it is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity.¨
–John F. Kennedy

¨The pain you feel today will be the strength you feel tomorrow.¨
–Arnold Schwarzenegger

“Positive thinking can be contagious. Being surrounded by winners helps you develop into a winner.”
–Arnold Schwarzenegger

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act but a habit.”
-Aristotle

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
-Wayne Gretzky

“You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end… with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be.”
–Admiral James Stockdale

“Don’t count the days; make the days count.”
-Mohammed Ali

“The greatest teacher, failure is.”
-Master Yoda

“Mistakes are always forgivable, if one has the courage to admit them.”
–Bruce Lee

“You must be shapeless, formless, like water. When you pour water in a cup, it becomes the cup. When you pour water in a bottle, it becomes the bottle. When you pour water in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Water can drip and it can crash. Become like water my friend.””
-Bruce Lee

“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”
–Albert Einstein

“We cannot solve problems with the same thinking we used to create them.”
–Albert Einstein

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving.”
–Albert Einstein

“Imagination is more important than knowledge.”
–Albert Einstein

“It’s all fun and games ’till someone loses an eye, then it’s just fun you can’t see.”
-James Hetfield (Metallica)

“If I know I’m going crazy, I must not be insane”
-Dave Mustaine (Megadeth)

“A master is a full-time student.”
–Unknown

“If it doesn’t challenge you, it won’t change you.”
–Unknown

“If you don’t know where you are going, you will probably end up somewhere else.”
–Lawrence J. Peter

“Just Do It”
-Nike (Dan Wieden)