--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm no great runner, by any means. I'm at…" description: "\"“I'm no great runner, by any means. I'm at an ordinary - or perhaps more like mediocre- level.But that's not the point. The point is whether or not I i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d5/haruki-murakami-21_distance-running_i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at_1949096.jpg" --- # I'm no great runner, by any means. I'm at an ordinary - or… ![“I'm no great runner, by any means. I'm at an ordinary - or perhaps more like mediocre- level.But that's not the point. The point is whether or not I improved over yesterday, In long distance running, the only opponent you have to beat is yourself, the way you used to be.” quote by Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d5/haruki-murakami-21_distance-running_i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at_1949096.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d5/haruki-murakami-21_distance-running_i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at_1949096.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d5/haruki-murakami-21_distance-running_i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at_1949096.jpg) > ““I'm no great runner, by any means. I'm at an ordinary - or perhaps more like mediocre- level.But that's not the point. The point is whether or not I improved over yesterday, In long distance running, the only opponent you have to beat is yourself, the way you used to be.”” [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Improvement is measured against one's past self, not others. **In simple terms:** Compete with yourself. Key Takeaway Focus on personal progress. Themes self‑improvement running competition mindset perseverance Mood motivational introspective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - training routines - personal goals - mental health - habit formation Key Concepts intrinsic motivation self‑comparison Questions to Reflect On - How do you define personal success? - What habits help you improve daily? A Different Perspective Self‑comparison can lead to negative self‑judgment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Distance running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distance-running/) [Long distance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-distance/) [Long distance running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-distance-running/) [Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race/) [Runner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/runner/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) ## Related quotes > [For me, running is both exercise and a metaphor. Running day after day, piling up the races, bit by bit I raise the bar,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/for-me-running-is-both-exercise-and-a-metaphor-running-day-after-day/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [In long-distance running the only opponent you have to beat is yourself, the way you used to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/in-long-distance-running-the-only-opponent-you-have-to-beat-is/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“I’m no great runner, by any means. I’m at an ordinary—or perhaps more like mediocre—level. But that’s not the point. The point is whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at-an-ordinary-or-perhaps-more/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [I enjoyed the discipline and solitariness of long-distance running, which allowed me to escape from the hurly-burly of school life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/i-enjoyed-the-discipline-and-solitariness-of-long-distance-running/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [We do a lot of lifting, and mix it up with upper body and lower body. A lot of circuit training for cardio. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-keys/we-do-a-lot-of-lifting-and-mix-it-up-with-upper-body-and-lower-body-a/) [Madison Keys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-keys/) > [Of course, long-distance running has to do with the fact that we're hunters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/of-course-long-distance-running-has-to-do-with-the-fact-that-we-re/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [Long distance running is 90% mental and the other half is physical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-davis/long-distance-running-is-90-mental-and-the-other-half-is-physical/) Rich Davis > [I guess I am basically most comfortable when I'm alone. As a kid, I was very much a loner. I love long distance running…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-conroy/i-guess-i-am-basically-most-comfortable-when-i-m-alone-as-a-kid-i-was/) [Kevin Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-conroy/) > [And if any of you want some tips on running, don't be in a hurry, and never let any of the other runners know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-s-smith/and-if-any-of-you-want-some-tips-on-running-don-t-be-in-a-hurry-and/) [Colin S. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-s-smith/) > [Long distance running is particularly good training in perseverance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/long-distance-running-is-particularly-good-training-in-perseverance/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [I love short stories. They're like small imploding universes. They are very tightly bound and controlled. I'd been wanting to write one for ages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/i-love-short-stories-they-re-like-small-imploding-universes-they-are/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [We have these amazing gifts of music and mathematics and painting and Olympic running. I mean, we're the animal that is best of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/we-have-these-amazing-gifts-of-music-and-mathematics-and-painting-and/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [I did javelin, swimming, long distance running. But the reason I did these other sports was because of boxing. I didn't want to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-dubois/i-did-javelin-swimming-long-distance-running-but-the-reason-i-did/) [Daniel Dubois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-dubois/) > [“There are many challenges to long distance running, but one of the greatest is the question of where to put on's house keys.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/there-are-many-challenges-to-long-distance-running-but-one-of-the/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [I became a great runner because if you're a kid in Leeds and your name is Sebastian you've got to become a great runner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/i-became-a-great-runner-because-if-you-re-a-kid-in-leeds-and-your/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) ## More by Haruki Murakami > [I always feel like I'm struggling to become someone else. Like I'm trying to find a new place, grab hold of a new life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-always-feel-like-i-m-struggling-to-become-someone-else-like-i-m/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [If writing novels is like planting a forest, then writing short stories is more like planting a garden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-writing-novels-is-like-planting-a-forest-then-writing-short/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“The sad truth is that what I could recall in five seconds all too soon needed ten, then thirty, thena full minute...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-sad-truth-is-that-what-i-could-recall-in-five-seconds-all-too/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Intelligent teenage girls were often instinctively theatrical, purposely eccentric, mouthing highly suggestive words to confuse people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/intelligent-teenage-girls-were-often-instinctively-theatrical/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Memory is like fiction; or else it's fiction that's like memory. This really came home to me once I started writing fiction, that memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/memory-is-like-fiction-or-else-it-s-fiction-that-s-like-memory-this/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [The most dangerous creature here would have to be me. So maybe I'm just scared of my own shadow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-most-dangerous-creature-here-would-have-to-be-me-so-maybe-i-m/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [If you listen to the radio for a whole hour there's maybe one decent song. The rest is mass-produced garbage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-you-listen-to-the-radio-for-a-whole-hour-there-s-maybe-one-decent/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“that one of our problems was our inability to recognize and accept our own deformities”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/that-one-of-our-problems-was-our-inability-to-recognize-and-accept/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“When I look back at myself at age twenty, what I remember most is being alone and lonely. I had no girlfriend to warm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-i-look-back-at-myself-at-age-twenty-what-i-remember-most-is/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“There's not a branch of publishing or broadcasting that doesn't depend in some way on advertising. It'd be like an aquarium without water. Why,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/there-s-not-a-branch-of-publishing-or-broadcasting-that-doesn-t/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“One by one, I'll face the tasks before me and complete them as best I can. Focusing on each stride forward, but at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-i-ll-face-the-tasks-before-me-and-complete-them-as-best-i/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Eleven o'clock had come and gone. I had to find a way to bring this conversation to a successful conclusion and get out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/eleven-o-clock-had-come-and-gone-i-had-to-find-a-way-to-bring-this/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Some people get a kick out of reading railway timetables and that's all they do all day. Some people make huge model boats out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/some-people-get-a-kick-out-of-reading-railway-timetables-and-that-s/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“When the time comes, everybody’s got to end up where they belong. Only me, I didn’t have a place to call my own. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-the-time-comes-everybody-s-got-to-end-up-where-they-belong-only/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“You let something out of the bag before yourself knew what it was all about”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/you-let-something-out-of-the-bag-before-yourself-knew-what-it-was-all/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) [Explore all 2,928 Haruki Murakami quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## More Distance running quotes > [Stadiums are for spectators. We runners have Nature, and that is much better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juha-vaatainen/stadiums-are-for-spectators-we-runners-have-nature-and-that-is-much/) Juha Vaatainen > [The way to get through anything mentally painful is to take it a little at a time. The mind can't handle dealing with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-de-sena/the-way-to-get-through-anything-mentally-painful-is-to-take-it-a/) [Joe De Sena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-de-sena/) > [At least for soccer players, it comes down to a blend of two types of fitness - your base endurance, which comes from longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-o-reilly/at-least-for-soccer-players-it-comes-down-to-a-blend-of-two-types-of/) [Heather O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-o-reilly/) > [Everyone is an athlete. The only difference is that some of us are in training, and some are not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-a-sheehan/everyone-is-an-athlete-the-only-difference-is-that-some-of-us-are-in/) [George A. Sheehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-a-sheehan/) > [To describe the agony of a marathon to someone who's never run it is like trying to explain color to someone who was born…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-drayton/to-describe-the-agony-of-a-marathon-to-someone-who-s-never-run-it-is/) Jerome Drayton > [Big occasions and races which have been eagerly anticipated almost to the point of dread, are where great deeds can be accomplished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-lovelock/big-occasions-and-races-which-have-been-eagerly-anticipated-almost-to/) Jack Lovelock > [A lot of people don't realize that not everybody gets high.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ringwald/a-lot-of-people-don-t-realize-that-not-everybody-gets-high/) [Molly Ringwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ringwald/) > [The long run is what puts the tiger in the cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-squires/the-long-run-is-what-puts-the-tiger-in-the-cat/) Bill Squires > [“Distance running demands a brain-body connection that no other creature is capable of.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-mcdougall/distance-running-demands-a-brain-body-connection-that-no-other/) [Christopher McDougall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-mcdougall/) > [The mile has all the elements of a drama.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-bannister/the-mile-has-all-the-elements-of-a-drama/) [Roger Bannister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-bannister/) > [The real competition is against the little voice inside you that wants to quit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-a-sheehan/the-real-competition-is-against-the-little-voice-inside-you-that/) [George A. Sheehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-a-sheehan/) > [Being on a major network television show is like long-distance running: You have to pace yourself and maintain your energy level and your morale.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-erbe/being-on-a-major-network-television-show-is-like-long-distance/) [Kathryn Erbe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-erbe/) > [I love sprinting, but I hate long-distance running. Isn't that funny?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-o-brien/i-love-sprinting-but-i-hate-long-distance-running-isn-t-that-funny/) [Dylan O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-o-brien/) > [Distance running to a professional athlete in my day was five laps around the field. And you stopped each lap to take your pulse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-swann/distance-running-to-a-professional-athlete-in-my-day-was-five-laps/) [Lynn Swann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-swann/) > [There's no such thing as bad weather - only the wrong clothes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-connolly/there-s-no-such-thing-as-bad-weather-only-the-wrong-clothes/) [Billy Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-connolly/) [Browse all 85 Distance running quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distance-running/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I'm no great runner, by any means. I'm at an ordinary - or perhaps more like mediocre- level.But that's not the point. The point is whether or not I improved over yesterday, In long distance running, the only opponent you have to beat is yourself, the way you used to be.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Haruki Murakami" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at-an-ordinary-or-perhaps-more-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Distance running" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at-an-ordinary-or-perhaps-more-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d5/haruki-murakami-21_distance-running_i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at_1949096.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d5/haruki-murakami-21_distance-running_i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at_1949096.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d5/haruki-murakami-21_distance-running_i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at_1949096.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I'm no great runner, by any means. I'm at an ordinary - or perhaps more like mediocre- level.But that's not…” — Haruki Murakami", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Haruki Murakami", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I'm no great runner, by any...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at-an-ordinary-or-perhaps-more-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-m-no-great-runner-by-any-means-i-m-at-an-ordinary-or-perhaps-more-2/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```