Experiencing this pain in my muscles and aching and going on and on is my challenge. The last three or four reps is what makes the muscles grow. This area of pain divides a champion from someone who is not a champion. That's what most people lack, having the guts to go on and just say they'll go through the pain no matter what happens. I have no fear of fainting. I do squats until I fall over and pass out. So what? It's not going to kill me. I wake up five minutes later and I'm OK. A lot of other athletes are afraid of this. So they don't pass out. They don't go on.

Training gives us an outlet for suppressed energies created by stress and thus tones the spirit just as exercise conditions the body.

Just remember, you can't climb the ladder of success with your hands in your pockets.

If my life was a movie, no one would believe it.

There are no shortcuts—everything is reps, reps, reps.

What we face may look insurmountable. But I learned something from all those years of training and competing. I learned something from all those sets and reps when I didn't think I could lift another ounce of weight. What I learned is that we are always stronger than we know.

You know, nothing is more important than education, because nowhere are our stakes higher; our future depends on the quality of education of our children today.