Quotes & Poems For Gymnasts


We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit. Aristotle	If gymnastics were easy, it would be called football.	10% talent, 90% hard work	Energy and persistence conquer all things. Benjamin Franklin
When all else fails, try doing what your coach suggested.	Winners train, whiners complain.	"Hard work beats talent, when talent doesn't work hard"	Even if you fall down face first, you've gone forward

	"The only thing better than winning is losing knowing you gave your best." Michael Ip	It is better to try and fail than to fail to try!	Obsessed is just a word the lazy use to describe the dedicated.
Continuous improvement comes from the willingness to raise the bar each time a goal is met.	"Goals.There's not telling what you can do when you get inspired by them. There's no telling what you can do when you believe in them. There's no telling what will happen when you act upon them.'	The only one who can tell you 'you can't ' is you. And you don't have to listen. Nike	Just because something is hard doesn't mean you shouldn't try, it just means you should try harder.
Our greatest glory is not in never falling but in rising every time we fall. Confucius	Anyone can tell you you have to do something, but actually doing it is up to you."Brinna R	The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond them into the impossible. Arthur C. Clarke	If you don't push yourself to the limit, how do you know where the limit is? Kristina K.
Whether you think you can or you can't, you're probably right." Henry Ford	Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence. Vince Lombardi	It is better to fall short of a high mark than to reach a low one. H. C. Payne	"I am always doing things I can't do, that's how I get to do them."
It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop. Confucius	It isn't hard to be good from time to time in sports.What's tough is being good every day. Willie Mays	The will to win means nothing if you haven't the will to prepare. Juma Ikangaa	Do a little more each day than you think you possibly can. Lowell Thomas
Don't ever try. Do it or don't.	Success is the ability to go from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm." Winston Churchill	I may not be there yet, but I'm closer than I was yesterday.	There's one thing stands between you and success and that's fear. Brent R.
"Nobody said it would be easy, but they all said it would be worth it"	"Never let yesterday's disappointments overshadow tomorrow's dreams."	"Make it happen, help it happen, or get out of the way."	Don’t compete like you practice, practice like you compete.
You don't have to be great to get started but you have to get started to be great. Les Brown	Celebrate what you've accomplished, but then raise the bar a little higher each time you succeed. Mia Hamm	Take pride in how far you have come, And have faith in how far you can go. Amy Hagan	If we all did the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves. Thomas Edison
“The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will. Vincent T. Lombardi	“The first thing is to love your sport. Never do it to please someone else. It has to be yours.” Peggy Fleming	Somebody somewhere said,"I don't care if this is nuts and I don't care if it hurts. I'm doing it. I'm going to climb this insanely high mountain. Watch me." Stick It	"Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt." Special Olympics Oath
	You may be disappointed if you fail, but you are doomed if you don't try. Beverly Sills	“Sports do not build character. They reveal it.” -John Wooden, American Basketball Coach	Focus on your potential instead of your limitations. Alen Loy McGinnis
In great attempts it is glorious even to fail. Cassius		Doubt whom you will, but never yourself. Christine Bovee

The Gymnast Prayer Now as I warm up for this meet, I pray my competition I can beat. And if I fail amidst the cheers, I pray I can hold back my tears. And one more thing success or not, I pray the creator of the beam be shot
Patience is a man's greatest virtue, or so the saying goes. A gymnast must have said it, for a gymnast surely knows! That in this funny sport of ours, discouragement runs high. And even the very best will find this virtue has passed us by. When hands are ripped and throbbing, when every muscle's sore, will a gymnast still have patience to limp in the gym for more? When you've lost old moves and progress seems slow, will you still have faith in better days, and not feel sad and low? Can you admit your frightened, yet not give in to fear? Can you conquer pain and frustration and often even tears? When someone else does something, you've tried so long to do... can you still be happy for her, or just self-pitty for you? And when success seems far away, your efforts all in vain, can you force yourself to wear a smile and disregaurd the pain? If despite the pain and tribulations, you can say "I won't give in" Maybe some day you'll discover that its now your time to win
Where your smile is truly painted on because your lips to your teeth are stuck, and the only thing the coach can do is pray you don't run amuck. So all of us should just think a spell and see that as teammates we're all the same. We should root for all and everyone regardless of the name. Because if you really think about it, winning isn't worth a dime. If you haven't had fun getting there you've missed the best of times.- Alana Sadler	The contest lasts for moments, though the training has taken years. It wasn't the winning alone that was worth the work and the tears. The applause will be forgotten, the prize will be misplaced, but the long hard hours of practice will never be a waste. In trying to win you build a skill, you learn that winning depends on will. You never grow by how much you win, you only grow by how much you put in. So any new challenge you have just begun, put forth your best and you have already won.- W. A. Clennan
The Beast Homework is done, time to get in the car Back out of the driveway, the gym’s not that far Heading down the road, my stomach’s in a knot What group will I have, do they know I need a spot? Slouching in the back seat, staring out into space I used to be excited, but now that’s not the case Mom interrupts, “let’s go honey, we’re running a bit late” I snap out of my trance, not feeling too great. Walking through the door, my palms feeling wet Nodding at some friends, stretch hasn’t started just yet Put my bag in the cubby, then on the floor to run, My eyes glance at beam, this wont be much fun You see I’m level 7 now and struggling with a new skill I’m not even 12 years old, but I feel over the hill It’s the back handspring on beam that’s dragging me down Haven’t smiled in weeks, have a permanent frown The groups have been split, level 7’s to BEAM It could not have been worse, it’s like a bad dream As we walk on over, I stare at the beast Of all the events, I love you the least Coach’s eyes meet mine, “go warm up your back” “What a great opportunity, to get you on track” Does he know that I’m scared, having a panic attack? I have the desire, it’s the courage I lack It’s my turn to go, I’m trying not to cry My eyes feel wet, my throat is so dry As I climb on the beam, my mind filled with fears I set to go and….get nothing but tears As a tear hits the beam, I’m in a frozen trance My heart wants to go, my mind says no chance Coach says “get down, let me explain something to you” “When level 10’s are afraid, this is what they do” “They SET and they GO, they don’t stop to think” “Their arms go up, they jump back in a blink” “They tighten their mind, if they hesitate they know” “The fear will get in, then they just won’t go” “Use your natural ability, you’ll know what to do” “You have to trust yourself, as much as we trust you” “Take a deep breath, and so there’s no misunderstanding” “The only thought you should have, is to stick your landing” Back up on the beam, moving kind of slow My mind starts racing, then I hear “Set…go” Wipe my hands on my legs, raise my arms over head This is the moment I always freeze, but this time, instead.. I flew up, arched back, my hands hit just right As I fly over, I push hard and I fight to stay tight And in an instant, and to the amazement of all I had done a back handspring, I did not fall! My teammates are all cheering, from coach a warm smile I stuck it, I stuck it, I’m staying up here a while! So the beast is gone, and now I love beam It was in me the whole time, or so it would seem Even though “SET…GO helped me, to get over my fear There was something special, that I needed to hear I knew all along, what I was supposed to do But what really gave me courage, were the words “We trust you”

COLLECTED FROM VARIOUS SOURCES ON THE INTERNET NO COPYRIGHT INFRIDGEMNT INTENDED

When you’re feeling down because your body hurts

When your hands are torn and your muscles ache

When the beam’s so high and you feel you’ll fall

When you feel you can’t and want to stop it all

When the spring floor feels like concrete

When you feel you’re spent and can’t compete

And the bars, they seem so wide apart

And vaulting now is not in your heart

When all of this makes you feel like the pits

It’s time to relax and think a bit

Of the hours and hours of hard work put in

It’s time to collect the dividend

You know why you’re here, what it’s all about

You know there’s no time at all for self-doubt

So get up, with both your body and your mind

And keep it going because you’re going to find…

YOU CAN…you can do it with a little more grit

Get up, breathe deep – and GO FOR IT!!

What I Love